Air Arms Owners Club

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-34579423

Worth a read and as a reminder to dress appropriately when out in the country - I'm sure much is down to wrong attire and footwear.

Yep, a stark reminder of how nasty this disease can be if undetected Steve. Might be worth reminding shooters to dress accordingly when out hunting and indeed anyone who participates in countryside activities. Dog walkers are particularly vulnerable because essentially they dress in normal clothing which may not offer adequate protection.. Like Weils Disease many doctors mis-diagnose Weils disease and Lymes because the early symptoms are almost Flu like.
If you have been lying in long grass etc, perhaps stalking bunnies etc its worthwhile checking oneself for ticks. I do it as a matter of course after Deer Stalking. The removal of ticks is best done with a simple tick removal tool which are readily available and the safest way to remove a tick. I would urge anyone not to remove a tick by nipping it between finger and thumb as this will release toxins from an infected tick into the blood stream. Not all ticks carry the disease i might add.
On the subject of Weils disease a shooting pal of mine contracted the disease when topping up water drinkers on the Pheasant shoot. However unlike many cases it was not diagnosed at the start and he ended up in hospital seriously ill. Luckily he eventually made a recovery but even to this day he says his health has never been the same!!!
So a warning to everyone. Take Care!!!!!
ATB,
Pat

A seriously unamusing malady as I discovered earlier this year, good advice on the clothing but, if you are lying down or on hands and knees in the undergrowth (no tittering at the back!) then indeed good practice to check yourself over afterwards or better still have your better half do it (more tittering...). The wee devils that got me were smaller than pin heads.

DEET doesnt really repel ticks.
However Permethrin does a good job as ticks are repelled or killed. It can be mixed into a solution for treating clothing. Or, some dog bedding flea sprays contain Permethrin.

i was talking to friend today about his lymes disease he was top guy at local zoo till he was taken ill,
not knowing what he had court .
if you google paul bramble lymes diseaes worth a read and you see how hard it is too find out
this is not detected in standard blood test.
as for ticks tvo does the job we used it on dogs /ferrets .
i now have to carry card for weils because of working in sewer and drains .
not good for fisher men if there is a lot of rats around ponds .

Very Scary disease and affected more people than you would think.

It would seem more common in USA, although more cases of infection are been seen in the Uk. I always try to check myself after an outing but some of these little buggers are very small indeed, it is worrying.

There was a superb full documentary by Doctor and Tick specialist on youtube very interesting indeed covers every aspect of this disease including the the first diagnosis in a place called Lime in America some children in Lime contracted the Lime Disease hence the name Lime, they had Arthritis like Symptoms very baldly swollen knee joints
Very nasty and dreadful disease...

I went to an FFA(Future Farmers of America) forestry camp with my daughter over the summer and brought home 3 ticks.