Ticks and Lymes disease

[Mick Dempsey]

I have never (to my knowledge) had a tick on me or had Lymes disease though it seems it's not uncommon in the tree biz.

 

I've seen them , on my dogs and my ferrets, never on me though. Are they the same sort of ticks? I was under the impression they couldn't live off our blood.

 

 

What are the risks? And does anyone on here have any experience of this?

Edited August 2, 2017 by Mick Dempsey
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[htb]

As far as I know they are the same. Had one attach a few years ago, had 2 in last 2 weeks came off the dogs, but found crawling before they attached. Wife had one about 3 wks ago attach near her bellybutton

[jamez654]

Yes they are the same tick: Ixodes Ricinus. They are not fussy about what they feed on though they prefer large mammals. 

[Steve Bullman]

4 minutes ago, jamez654 said:

Yes they are the same tick: Ixodes Ricinus. They are not fussy about what they feed on though they prefer large mammals. 

thats not good news. @Mick Dempsey is a large mammal

[woody paul]

1 hour ago, htb said:

As far as I know they are the same. Had one attach a few years ago, had 2 in last 2 weeks came off the dogs, but found crawling before they attached. Wife had one about 3 wks ago attach near her bellybutton

Not nice, get a blood test done ASAP to catch it soon enough is the best answer but test to find out takes longer then other blood tests.

[Rich Rule]

If you think the tick may have passed Lyme's on to you there are good signs and symptoms on the net.

 

if the bite has a bullseye around it get checked immediately.  My friends son was so knocked back it put him in a wheelchair for a while.  He was bitten a year and a half ago and developed some severe symptoms.  Lethargy, hallucinations, neck and back pain, unable to walk etc.  Doctors thought he had epilepsy of some form due to his fits and just kept monitoring brain activity.

 

turned out to be Lyme's disease.  It can effect the ocular nerves hence the hallucinations and tripping out.  He is now treating it as Lyme's and is making an excellent recovery.  Still has bouts of tiredness but isn't using a chair anymore and starting to be a normal kid again.

[Mick Dempsey]

Jeebus Rich, that's heavy.

[Pete Mctree]

Not everyone exhibits the bullseye- they think it is absent in 20% of cases of lymes disease. I live in an area that has a lot of ticks & check myself every day & I also wear chainsaw trousers with gaiters built in.   

[Stubby]

Are sheep ticks the same as deer ticks ?

[peatff]

Are ticks a real risk for climbers, I thought they were more of a low level threat