Lyme Disease And Ticks

[sarabande]

Dipping is no longer carried out on a routine annual basis, but only when there are specific veterinary reasons as in a plague of ticks or other ectoparasites.

The regulations for protection of people engaged in dipping and for disposal of the used and remaining dips are massively changed from even 40 years ago, when it was routine to use arsenic based chemicals and to allow the dip tanks to drain away over the fields. Gone too is the habit of chucking the sheepdogs into the tank at the end of the day, and the addition of 'bloom' chemicals to make the fleeces shine when presented for sale after shearing.

It is more than 30 years since I dipped my sheep. Treatment for parasites is nowadays carried out by a small hand spray applied in a "T" shape over the back and stern of the sheep. Even then the PPE requirements are substantial, and some shearers will refuse to deal with sheep that have been sprayed with e.g. Clik or similar products. These are now so clever that some will work for up to 16 weeks after application, which takes one through the fly and tick season.

As an observation about ticks on open moorland.... The reduction in 'swaling' (deliberate, controlled burning in early summer / late spring) which used to clean the moors of parasites and allow fresh vegetation to grow as aftermath, has meant that gorse and heather grows taller and tougher and provides more shelter for parasites. It is an instructive exercise to drag an old white blanket across the moorland and see how many ticks and keds jump up and bite the blanket; movement and vibration alerts the insects and readies them to leap up at the target, be it a blanket, a sheep, or a walker.

 

[dgadee]

Gone too is the habit of chucking the sheepdogs into the tank at the end of the day,

Local small farms used to bring their sheep to the large farm my uncle worked at (I was at the building of the dip in the 60s as a child). I remember one dog was happy as larry all day until all the sheep were through. He knew just what was coming.

 

[Yealm]

What? Making my nose go bright red? ?

haha maybe

 

[Gary Fox]

At least people are aware of Lyme's disease now. Time was when it was rare, so GPs weren't on the lookout for it and it often wasn't diagnosed until it was too late and causing long-term disability. My brother in law had this happen to him in France, so it isn't just in the UK.

It appears there's recent research that suggests the long-term effects are an auto-immune disease that's triggered by the infection.

Yes an auto-immune reaction. Such reactions are skyrocketing due to excessive hygeine, and mollycoddling children.
I had a huge tick (size of the top joint of a man's thumb) burrow into my flank in Africa, without noticing until I undressed so presumably anaesthetic saliva?
The local kids burned it on the tail with cigarettes and it reversed out and dropped in the sand, leaving a big hole in me. Not bleeding.
The next thing was to cauterise the hole by pushing burning cigarettes into it!
That made me flinch but it did the job..

 

[Robert Wilson]

Doxycyline
Within hours

Quite correct. First time I got it I was taking it within12 hours of seeing the red swelling. Probably 72 hours after the bight - ill for weeks with lasting effects and damage.
Second (last month) I was on Doxy within twelve hours of seeing the little bas***d on my leg - recovered almost immediately.
Further a post above, I contracted quite serious nervous system problems. I don't know what the long-term prognosis is.

 

[dunedin]

Quite correct. First time I got it I was taking it within12 hours of seeing the red swelling. Probably 72 hours after the bight - ill for weeks with lasting effects and damage.
Second (last month) I was on Doxy within twelve hours of seeing the little bas***d on my leg - recovered almost immediately.

Sounds nasty, but hopefully no longer term effects.

Were you wearing shorts / short sleeves or fully covered? As walking on remote Scottish islands and hills is one of our hobbies, I am hoping that always wearing long trousers may reduce the risks?

 

[Robert Wilson]

Sounds nasty, but hopefully no longer term effects.

Were you wearing shorts / short sleeves or fully covered? As walking on remote Scottish islands and hills is one of our hobbies, I am hoping that always wearing long trousers may reduce the risks?

Wear long trousers and tuck them into your socks. Look out if wearing short sleeved shirts etc.
The first time I got bitten, 20 years ago, I walked the hill in shorts.
When in the bath that night I saw the little blighter enjoying itself on my...................!

 

[Clancy Moped]

When we wintered in Kalamata an American had Lymes, she swore by cannabis oil, handy as that neck of the woods is Greece's biggest producer.

 

[dunedin]

Wear long trousers and tuck them into your socks. Look out if wearing short sleeved shirts etc.
The first time I got bitten, 20 years ago, I walked the hill in shorts.
When in the bath that night I saw the little blighter enjoying itself on my...................!

Coincidentally just got a survey about ticks and avoidance related to our local area where we walk. It included a question asking whether took any / all of these suggested precautions

• Wear clothing which will cover your legs and arms

• Tuck your trousers into socks

• Wear light coloured clothing

• Stick to the paths when you are walking

• Insect repellent

The suggestion about light coloured clothing I heard about when going to the Baltic. Also get vaccination for Tick Borne encephalitis (TBE), potentially even nastier than Lymes Disease

 

[Laser310]

I live in Connecticut - perhaps one hour drive from the town of Old Lyme.

Many here have had Lyme disease.

We are told that in New England, only the "Deer Tick" carries Lyme Disease.

The problem is that these Deer Ticks are tiny - they look nothing like normal, every-day ticks.., the ones that become engorged with blood on people and pets.

Deer Ticks are so tiny that they are very difficult to spot on skin - quite literally the size of a pinhead or even smaller, You could easily mistake one for a freckle or speck of dirt.

In the end there is just not much we can do - I have tall grass and brush on my property. I see deer and other tick-carrying animals (foxes, bob cats, coyotes) in this brush nearly every day. I hike in the woods several times a week.

I don't bother with tick inspections - i would be doing them all the time

 

[davidej]

If going to the Baltic you are advised to get vaccinated against tick borne encephalitis.

 

[ean_p]

If going to the Baltic you are advised to get vaccinated against tick borne encephalitis.

And southern Germany and beyond.....!

 

[Metabarca]

If going to the Baltic you are advised to get vaccinated against tick borne encephalitis.

And in Friuli Venezia Giulia in NE Italy if walking in the hills. And around home, while we are blessed with lots of wildlife that includes these little buggers, so the tick removers see regular use. But at least the tick borne encephalitis hasn't come this far... yet, 'only' Lyme.