Ticks In The UK ?

Hi

As we are all going up to Keswick early July I am always a bit wary about Ticks though they have never had any and I
have never even seen one but I will still give them a treatment with Advatix instead of theit normal Frontline .I know they
can be a big problem in parts of the US but how much of a problem are they in the UK .I also have a couple of those tick removal things just in case .

Ticks can be a problem in the UK where there are sheep or deer, so in the lake district you could get unlucky. Your girls should be fine if you have treated them, I guess if a tick tries to attach itself to them it will die very quickly and drop off. It depends also on the season, and whether ticks are active.Many years ago we were on holidayin Wales I think it was, and we could see the ticks scrambling up our dogs legs, there were loads of them . At the time we had never come across them and it wasn't until a couple of days later that we realised that there were a number of foriegn bodies attached to our cavalier's faces and heads. A quick visit to the vets sorted it out. But I now know what ticks look like!!!!!! horrid things.Enjoy your holiday.

Yes ticks are a huge problem up here too due to all the deer and sheep

Photos - well I hope you have a sick bag to hand http://www.dartmoorcam.co.uk/dartmoortickwatch/photos/photos.htm



Yes take a tick hook, check them carefully after a walk and if you ruffle the coat this can drive them up to the surface. Wash your hands after handling ticks as they can carry disease which affects humans - so never, ever squeeze a tick.

Always remember to remove them in an anticlockwise direction as this disengages the mouth parts, if the mouth parts are left they can cause an infection.


You can apply something like silver spray, Bach rescue cream or aloe vera to the area to help with healing. Often they can get a large bump where the tick has been

I've read that to avoid disease you need to remove them within 48 hours of them attaching.

Don't forget to check yourself too - I'm told that smearing vinegar on your skin stops them attaching UGH. BTW if you do get one, the area can be extremely itchy and this can go on for several YEARS after the bite

I always keep an Amethyst crystal in the water bowl, this takes a few months to work but for some reason greatly reduces the number that attach. Also garlic in their food - the granules for horses are good, a very small pinch daily [6-7 granules]

Both work against fleas too.


Ticks here start around the end of April and go on in to October, rarely we get the odd one at other times of year. Even the really bad winter didn't seem to kill them off!

My first experience of ticks was when we returned form Skye Sonny had one. We had never had a problem before and we always exercised Sonny up the Braes. We were told it was probably because we had used Advocate instead of our usual Frontline. We started using Frontline again with no problems. I always thought ticks were confined to fields etc but when I was walking Kaley in our park last month I was talking to one of the dog owners we used to walk with Sonny and her little ruby Cav got a tick near his eye. At first she wasn't sure what it was and by the time she got to the vets Corrie had an infection that needed treating. The vet said he was really lucky as it was close to the eye socket and could have been worse.

Maybe Nicki can confirm if this is true but Corrie's mum was told a safe way to loosen a tick is to soak a cotton bud in dark alcohol ( such as whisky or brandy) and rub it round the area where the tick is attached and that causes the tick to unlatch itself. Corrie's mum maintains Corrie caught the tick in the park as that is the main place she exercises him.I Frontline Kaley every month but when I'm grooming her I have a good look through her coat especially was we use that park every day.

The tick on Sonny was the first I'd ever seen and it was pretty gross.

There are all sorts of ideas to remove ticks but the safest way is with a tick hook - they look like small crochet hooks.

Most vets stock them, also online chemists and pet shops - even the pharmacies up here!!

This is the one we have http://www.otom.com/how-to-remove-a-tick

You can smear them with vaseline and they will drop off, but things like this do take a while which leaves the animal more open to the risk of transmission of disease - that's one of the reasons I don't like relying on things like Frontline or Advocate as again they take a while to work. I have known people to apply a lighted cigarette or even a match to a tick, but that to me is extremely dangerous and should never be attempted.

I hate it when they attach near the eyes as they are so hard to remove, but yes there would be higher risks of problems from ticks in those areas.


We have picked them up in all sorts of places - don't forget they might not necessarily attach to a passing animal or human and could therefore be dropped somewhere and picked up by another animal - so that could explain one being in the park.


Interestingly when we have had shot wild rabbits dropped off I have NEVER found a tick on them - they always have fleas though. One last April had over 100 fleas think perhaps it was weakened by the harsh Winter.

Kittens and puppies have been known to die from flea infestation as they become anaemic due to loss of blood.

Hedgehogs have ticks too, so a dog can pick one of those up.
here is some more info

http://www.lymediseaseaction.org.uk/ticks.htm

Hi

Got my four pack of Advantix ( £15.50 ) and as the girls all go the groomers on Saturday I shall leave applying it till the end of next week .They also have their daily Dorwest garlic and fenugreek tablets and neem chews .I like all of us do not like any chemical treatments but better an occasional treatment in the summer that horrid ticks .


http://www.bayeranimal.com.au/default.aspx?Page=50&ItemId=14

We are frequently bothered by ticks when out walking at this time of year, sometimes four or five in one go. They don't normally have time to attach, unless the dogs coats are very long and we miss one. We have never used Advantix though, I've always found them really easy to remove.

I've got them both trimmed a little shorter than normal this time, so the crawlers are really easy to see and take off before they attach. My hubby had one on his back once, I removed it, but was nearly sick in the process :grnyuk:

Ive never found a single tick on her.Touch wood.
Thankfully because I walk in the Pheonix Park (lots of deer very nearby)
:xfngr:

They also have their daily Dorwest garlic and fenugreek tablets and neem chews .I like all of us do not like any chemical treatments but better an occasional treatment in the summer that horrid ticks .Brian, is this what you use to stop ticks and fleas instead of a chemical treatment? If it is does it work?