We have lived in this area for over forty years and, over the last three
years have noticed a rise in the garden tick population.

We live near heathland and there have always been deer around so there must
have been ticks but it is only in the last there years, as i mentioned,
thatthey have become a problem.

The cats pick them up. We pick them up. And I am getting concerned.

Is there ANYTHING we can do to protect our animals and ourselves, apart from
moving, which we don`t want to do!!

My thanks for anything you can suggest and my apologies if this is a subject
that has been discussed before. I am new to the group.

Sian.

The cats could be treated with Frontline (available from your vet). This
should kill any ticks they pick up and take care of fleas too which would be
an added bonus. Not of any help to the humans though I'm afraid!
Mel.

"Sian" wrote in message
...
We have lived in this area for over forty years and, over the last three
years have noticed a rise in the garden tick population.

We live near heathland and there have always been deer around so there
must have been ticks but it is only in the last there years, as i
mentioned, thatthey have become a problem.

The cats pick them up. We pick them up. And I am getting concerned.

Is there ANYTHING we can do to protect our animals and ourselves, apart
from moving, which we don`t want to do!!

My thanks for anything you can suggest and my apologies if this is a
subject that has been discussed before. I am new to the group.

Sian.

In message , Sian
writes
We live near heathland and there have always been deer around so there
must have been ticks but it is only in the last there years, as i
mentioned, thatthey have become a problem.

The cats pick them up. We pick them up. And I am getting concerned.

Lyme disease could be a really bad problem,. For some information see

http://www.wadhurst.demon.co.uk/lyme/

and

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/lyme/index.htm

--
Klara, Gatwick basin

On Tue, 9 May 2006 16:17:34 +0100
"Sian" wrote:

We have lived in this area for over forty years and, over the last three
years have noticed a rise in the garden tick population.

We live near heathland and there have always been deer around so there must
have been ticks but it is only in the last there years, as i mentioned,
thatthey have become a problem.

The cats pick them up. We pick them up. And I am getting concerned.

Is there ANYTHING we can do to protect our animals and ourselves, apart from
moving, which we don`t want to do!!

My thanks for anything you can suggest and my apologies if this is a subject
that has been discussed before. I am new to the group.


Sian, I don't know anything you can do about ticks, except don't panic.

We now have tons in Normandy. 15 years ago there were hardly any. We
take many off the cat, maybe 2/3 per week, although she gets most off
herself. We check the kids frequently, and pull them off there too. For awhile
we used ether to put them to sleep, now we just twist them off with a little
tick crowbar.

There are now a few cases of Lyme's showing up here, but nothing like
from the east of the USA. I was actually just tested, although my issue
turned out to be unrelated.

The ticks are unpleasant but life is full of little trials...

-E
--
Emery Davis
You can reply to ecom
by removing the well known companies

In article ,
Emery Davis writes:
|
| Sian, I don't know anything you can do about ticks, except don't panic.

Precisely.

| We now have tons in Normandy. 15 years ago there were hardly any.

Hmm. They have always been common in most parts of the world, so I
suspect that you mean "in your parts of Normandy". They were common
in the UK 30 years ago, and still are.

| There are now a few cases of Lyme's showing up here, but nothing like
| from the east of the USA. ...

Yes, right - Lyme's is rare in Europe.

| The ticks are unpleasant but life is full of little trials...

Precisely.


Regards,
Nick Maclaren.

On 9 May 2006 17:40:20 GMT
(Nick Maclaren) wrote:


In article ,
Emery Davis writes:
|
[]
| We now have tons in Normandy. 15 years ago there were hardly any.

Hmm. They have always been common in most parts of the world, so I
suspect that you mean "in your parts of Normandy". They were common
in the UK 30 years ago, and still are.


Indeed. The locals attribute the rise in population to the generally
dryer weather patterns, although I know of no formal study in
the area.

| There are now a few cases of Lyme's showing up here, but nothing like
| from the east of the USA. ...

Yes, right - Lyme's is rare in Europe.

[]

Also worth pointing out that it is very treatable, and quite easy
to recognize. My sister-in-law got on a plane from Boston after
having been bitten. She was treated in Yorkshire, and the doctor
gave her an insufficiently long course of antibiotic. When she arrived
in France she was still manifestly sick, so we tested again and
repeated the proper course. (The only point being that the staff
was insufficiently familiar with the treatment to get it right.)

It's readily recognized by red concentric circles, like a target,
around the bite.

-E
--
Emery Davis
You can reply to ecom
by removing the well known companies

"Janet Baraclough" wrote in message
...
The message
from "Sian" contains these words:

We have lived in this area for over forty years and, over the last three
years have noticed a rise in the garden tick population.

We live near heathland and there have always been deer around so
there must
have been ticks but it is only in the last there years, as i mentioned,
thatthey have become a problem.

The cats pick them up. We pick them up. And I am getting concerned.

Is there ANYTHING we can do to protect our animals and ourselves,
apart from
moving, which we don`t want to do!!

My thanks for anything you can suggest and my apologies if this is a
subject
that has been discussed before. I am new to the group.

In the UK ticks aren't a particular health risk to the pets; I don't
think pets even find them as irritating as we do; or even notice them.
I've never seen our dogs and cats scratching or rubbing even at very
engorged ticks.

It would be worth doing some research to see if Lyme disease is
present in your area, which is a health risk to humans. Your GP should
know. If it's not, then tickbites are unpleasant and annoying but
nothing to worry about.

You can reduce the number of ticks you pick up yourself, by keeping
out of long grass and bracken, not sitting around on the lawn, and not
letting cats in your bed. But you will still get some. The record
tick-pick for one person in one day in our family is 27 :-( when we
were living in a Lyme area, but he had no ill effects.

Janet.



Since posting this I have learnt that a neighbour`s son, four doors away.
was diagnosed with Lyme`s disease last year, though we didn`t know. The
cats, as you point out, don`t seem to suffer any ill-effects and don`t find
the ticks irritating. We use Frontline but it isn`t always effective. I use
Tea Tree Oil on any tickbites, but they do itch at times!


Thank you all for the advice ; much appreciated.

Sian

On Tue, 9 May 2006 19:50:22 +0100
Janet Baraclough wrote:

The message
from Emery Davis contains these words:

Yes, right - Lyme's is rare in Europe.

[]

Also worth pointing out that it is very treatable, and quite easy
to recognize.
It's readily recognized by red concentric circles, like a target,
around the bite.

Unfortunately not. It *is* a treatable disease, but not so easily
recognisable or diagnosable.

The bullseye mark round a tickbite is not a certain indicator of
infection; and many who are infected, have never produced the bullseye
reaction.


Hi Janet,

I don't pretend to be an expert, you may well know much more about it.
Just relaying what various doctors have said over the years. There's
actually a poster up in the local practice "how to recognize Lyme's"
with a picture of the target pattern.

No doubt, if it is on my derriere, I wont ever see it. Honestly during the
season I get so many bites, and do my best to ignore them, that I might
well ignore the signs even if present in a "visible area."

-E

--
Emery Davis
You can reply to ecom
by removing the well known companies

Janet Baraclough writes

I don't think pets even find them as irritating as we do; or even
notice them. I've never seen our dogs and cats scratching or rubbing
even at very engorged ticks.

It must be a personal thing. I've never had a need to scratch or rub at
even a very engorged tick - in fact, unless I'm looking for them, it's
only by accident that I find them.

Mosquitos, otoh ....!

--
Kay

In message , Sian
writes
We have lived in this area for over forty years and, over the last three
years have noticed a rise in the garden tick population.

We live near heathland and there have always been deer around so there must
have been ticks but it is only in the last there years, as i mentioned,
thatthey have become a problem.

The cats pick them up. We pick them up. And I am getting concerned.

Is there ANYTHING we can do to protect our animals and ourselves, apart from
moving, which we don`t want to do!!

My thanks for anything you can suggest and my apologies if this is a subject
that has been discussed before. I am new to the group.

Sian.

This it the resource on ticks that we use as H&S information at the
moment -
http://www.bada-uk.org/pdfdocs/outdo...its_groups.pdf
--
Robert

"K" wrote in message
...
Janet Baraclough writes

I don't think pets even find them as irritating as we do; or even notice
them. I've never seen our dogs and cats scratching or rubbing even at
very engorged ticks.

It must be a personal thing. I've never had a need to scratch or rub at
even a very engorged tick - in fact, unless I'm looking for them, it's
only by accident that I find them.

Mosquitos, otoh ....!

--
Kay


We check each day now and find them when they have only just "arrived". Have
never had an engorged specimen, thank Goodness. We use vaseline which
suffocates them and then remove them easily with tweezers. The head is never
left in using this method, though I believe some people say you should not
follow it.

We do itch for a short time after this removal, Kay, so you have been very
lucky !

Just remember, only 50% of patients get a bull's eye rash. There are
many types of Lyme rashes..and some people dont get a rash at all.

We looked up several of the Lyme disease sites when my son's
father -in -law, a keen falconer and shooter showed symptoms of the disease.
The indication was a greater risk of infection in the UK from ticks that
had resided on gamebirds.
Regards
David T

"Sian" wrote in message
...

"K" wrote in message
...
Janet Baraclough writes

I don't think pets even find them as irritating as we do; or even notice
them. I've never seen our dogs and cats scratching or rubbing even at
very engorged ticks.

It must be a personal thing. I've never had a need to scratch or rub at
even a very engorged tick - in fact, unless I'm looking for them, it's
only by accident that I find them.

Mosquitos, otoh ....!

--
Kay


We check each day now and find them when they have only just "arrived".
Have never had an engorged specimen, thank Goodness. We use vaseline which
suffocates them and then remove them easily with tweezers. The head is
never left in using this method, though I believe some people say you
should not follow it.

We do itch for a short time after this removal, Kay, so you have been very
lucky !

This resource is very informative though I now have ALL the symptoms of
EVERY disease listed! :O)

My thanks again to all of you who offered information and advice.



"Robert" wrote in message
...
In message , Sian
writes
We have lived in this area for over forty years and, over the last three
years have noticed a rise in the garden tick population.

We live near heathland and there have always been deer around so there
must
have been ticks but it is only in the last there years, as i mentioned,
thatthey have become a problem.

The cats pick them up. We pick them up. And I am getting concerned.

Is there ANYTHING we can do to protect our animals and ourselves, apart
from
moving, which we don`t want to do!!

My thanks for anything you can suggest and my apologies if this is a
subject
that has been discussed before. I am new to the group.

Sian.

This it the resource on ticks that we use as H&S information at the
moment -
http://www.bada-uk.org/pdfdocs/outdo...its_groups.pdf
--
Robert