Just pulled a tick out of dd2's head...

[TooTicky]

...it looked whole, but there still seems to be a small dark bit there. What should we do now?

[dinny]

think you should have killed it first (with a lit match) not sure what you should do now - will ask dh when he gets homas he is tick expert.

[TooTicky]

Sounds a bit dangerous!
Oh, and I've just realised the accidental relevance of my username to this subject!

[Enid]

lol @ user name

you should not have pulled it out, sorry

you need a special tick remover, you can get one from a vets

DO NOT ATTEMPT TO KILL A TICK ON A CHILD WITH A LIT MATCH!!

dd3 had one a week or so ago

[Blu]

I would swab well with something anti-cabterial - savlon, for e.g, and call NHS Direct.

The black bit will be the mouth parts - they stay embedded if you pull a tick out.

there are other ways of dealing with them before you pull them out - for e.g cover with vaseline to suffocate it, then the die and the mouth parts let go, the other one is with a lit cigarette - not advisable on a child, and i forget what else.

Were you in an area with deer?

[TooTicky]

I used to put butter/marge on but was told it was actually okay to pull them out. I think somebody said this on MN too.

[TooTicky]

Not many deer around here, but some.

[Enid]

get a tick remover from a vets they cost about 80p and good to have

[TooTicky]

I'll get one. Have to overcome my fear of vets though...

[SSSandy]

How do you know it's a tick, what do they look like?

[TooTicky]

Small, dark, roundish-bodied creature stuck to the skin - they put their mouthparts right into the skin.

[Greensleeves]

I heard that if you smother them in vaseline/apply a lit match it does kill the tick and you do get the whole creature out - but it disgorges all the crap and poison inside it in its death throes, so not ideal. A proper tick hook is the best way to remove them.

I'd call NHS Direct.

[SSSandy]

Thanks TT, that sounds disgusting. Not looking forward to getting those!

[jampots]

urgh - how do you catch them>? I remember years ago our cat had one

[TooTicky]

Grassy places, I think, especially where there are sheep and deer.