Ticks the size of peas

[PatrickM]

Just back from a trip up north, we decided to check the dog over - found a few (over 20) of his friends had hitched a lift

[spamel]

They're not ticks! Haven't you seen the aliens films?!!

[fredcraft]

Didn't know ticks could get that big ! Poor dog...

[w00dsmoke]

This is the worst year for ticks that I've ever known. I've even got ticks in my back garden where the only wildlife in it apart from me is the foxes and hedgehogs!

[william#]

a growing problem it seems
actually when i had dogs they would get ticks similar in size too so nothing new really.
thankfully i have never had one myself (which is very suprising as i use to play in the braken a lot as a nipper).
the little git faces can also carry lime disease which if yu are unfortunate enough to get is going to at least side line you for several months.
there is no bomb proof way to guard against the things though tucking socks in trouser while looking ridiculous certainly helps keep them out .
there have been reports of the things growing in population in the uk . so is certainly worth being aware of .

[moko]

Had the same problem a couple of weeks back in New Forest. One of the little blitters caused an infection in my dog resulting in £77.00 worth of vets fees! Frontline and spray is the only way to keep them at bay.

[woodstock]

I got a nasty one just above my ankle once it did'nt hurt at the time but it was a horrid feeling sheep tick i think when walking in scotland it is worth remembering that heather is a haven for ticks so good boots and gators is a must oh and long trousers

[sam_acw]

Is the lack of burning of heather contributing? I've heard that EU laws make it hard to burn for land management.

[woodstock]

Is the lack of burning of heather contributing? I've heard that EU laws make it hard to burn for land management.

I think so when most land owners carried out controlled burning I hiked heather moors for years without getting bit but in recent years it seems people get bit a lot more often good point.

[rickety-root]

i think tics is a growing problem wherever you go. I was in New York state a few years ago where limes disease was a real problem and people were dying from it. My wife had a tic burrow into her hip and it was very scarry - they had to send it off for analysis to check if it was infected or not. I am a teacher and took a load of children on a field trip to Bradgate Park in Leicester and they were everywhere.

the advice we were given is to inspect each other thoroughly after going out for a walk in fern or long grass. Especially check dark warm places, if you know what I mean, because that's where they like to go and can hide away unoticed for weeks until they have fed enough to be noticed.

Very creepy!

[scanker]

We've just spent the weekend in Dorset, where I went geocaching for a couple of hours each morning. Mandy's just taken 9 ticks off me this morning. The o'Tom tick remover I bought a while ago worked a treat.

[Jodie]

The O'tom thing worked well for me too although thankfully I only had to use the teeny
one and not the larger of the two tick-unhookers. No ill effects so far but I'm aware that
the incubation of any nasties can take a couple of weeks so I'll be keeping an eye out
for any unwellness over the next week or so!

I found tiddlers though, and apparently this means it's fairly unlikely that they'll have fed
on much else and so are less likely to be infected. Fingers crossed.

[tommy the cat]

Just out of interest I have read that a tick should be kept frozen for a couple of weeks when found?
I take it no action is taken before symptoms appear? I presume you would only seek medical advice if in a high risk area and found a tick on you?
I hate them but wear gaiters most of the time and never had to get the tick twister out the packet.
D.

[Jodie]

I've seen that some websites and others recommend that you keep ticks - but I'm not
sure how helpful it is. Perhaps they can test the tick for the diseases but I think it would
be more for epidemiological (the geographical distribution and prevalence of diseases)
purposes rather than for getting the antibiotics right as I'm sure they'd just give you a
broad spectrum antibiotic to get rid of the nasties rather than flapping about exactly
which organism might be being dealt with.

Having said that I'm not a doc, so they might do something entirely diffferent

I kept my ticks out of curiosity and so that I can prove to the doctor that I'd been bitten.
Just in case hehe.

To the best of my knowledge no action would be taken in the absence of symptoms
and it was low-risk etc. etc. Perhaps if it was high-risk and you were not in the best
of health there might be some preventative antibiotic use but I'm assuming this is
pretty unlikely and in fact have strayed quite beyond my domain of knowledge here