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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To be freaked out by a tick on my DD!

76 replies

ADHDHDHDHD · 05/07/2024 21:54

Wow she had been playing outside, said her back hurt. Yes a tick was about to bite!

I ran to get my - as recommended by Mumsnet- tick remover tool from the first aid kit. Removed said tick successfully.

It's now drowning in some gin (that we don't like, haven't wasted Hendricks on it don't worry)

People- get a proper tick remover tool!

OP posts:
WhereToStartAgain · 06/07/2024 22:16

The compact ones go on a keyring

SnugglyJumpersMakeItBetter · 06/07/2024 22:25

I'm always accidentally leaving the heads behind when I pull them off my dog. I wonder if that's because I twist clockwise? I never read anything about how it should be anticlockwise before?!

Aria999 · 06/07/2024 22:33

If you are doing it with tweezers it's important to grab it by its head as if you compress the body you can squeeze the dangerous bacteria into the person.

I did that wrong, DS had lymes, we caught it 2 months on and had antibiotics. All seems ok now 2 years later but whenever he has mysterious fatigue or illness I wonder.

WhereToStartAgain · 06/07/2024 22:45

Aria999 · 06/07/2024 22:33

If you are doing it with tweezers it's important to grab it by its head as if you compress the body you can squeeze the dangerous bacteria into the person.

I did that wrong, DS had lymes, we caught it 2 months on and had antibiotics. All seems ok now 2 years later but whenever he has mysterious fatigue or illness I wonder.

That’s why the tweezers I linked to are so good - very thin and easy to be precise and get close to the skin.

chloechloe · 06/07/2024 22:45

My tip for disposing of them is to use two strips of sticky tape so they can’t escape and then throw them in the bin.

Don’t flush them down the toilet as they survive in water.

I had one which was still alive after me swimming for about an hour and then going in the sauna.

Make sure you disinfect the wound and the tick remover afterwards and keep an eye out for a rash which can develop up to one month later and not necessarily at the site of the bite!

Remaker · 06/07/2024 23:05

As an Australian I was reading this thread in horror because we are taught never to remove a tick when it’s alive as it causes toxins to be released into the body which can cause very severe allergic reactions, including allergy to red meat. We are advised to use a special spray that kills them while they’re still attached, then you remove them. Tweezers are an absolute no no. But I’ve googled and that advice is only for Australian paralysis ticks and elsewhere in the world you can pull them off.

But just be aware if you visit Australia leave your tick removal tool at home and buy some Tick Off spray when you get here!

Chocaholicnightmare · 06/07/2024 23:06

LizzieSiddal · 06/07/2024 09:53

No need to go A&E! The Dr can easily give you the antibiotics needed to sort Lyme disease.

Show quote history

Yes I agree, but time is the essence, and if it's out of hours, you need to be seen asap

Tulipvase · 06/07/2024 23:10

Isn’t it mostly deer tick that transmit Lyme disease? It certainly isn’t all ticks.

Macandcheeese · 06/07/2024 23:12

Oh my goodness this reminds me of when my 3 year old had one in his nappy on our holiday a few months ago 🤢 it was inside his thigh quite close to his bits and I couldn't get it all out so we had to travel to a hospital 30 mins away to check him 🤦🏼‍♀️ gave me the heeby jeebies though

Endsofbells · 06/07/2024 23:20

Macandcheeese · 06/07/2024 23:12

Oh my goodness this reminds me of when my 3 year old had one in his nappy on our holiday a few months ago 🤢 it was inside his thigh quite close to his bits and I couldn't get it all out so we had to travel to a hospital 30 mins away to check him 🤦🏼‍♀️ gave me the heeby jeebies though

Sounds like a complete nightmare.

@chloechloe wow that it was still there after the sauna!

I hope to God I never see one. Going to look up what these removers look like.

Flossflower · 07/07/2024 00:32

https://tickcard.co.uk/shop/

This is what I have successfully used. You can buy similar (smidge one) on amazon. It has a magnifying area so you can check if it is a tick and two remover sizes, depending on the size of the tick ( how much of your blood it has had).

I am really wondering if no mow May helped increase the tick population.

Order Securely Here

https://tickcard.co.uk/shop

Flossflower · 07/07/2024 00:35

If you get the red ring after having a tick, take a photograph of it as the ring may be gone by the time you see your GP.

Righttherights · 07/07/2024 00:40

Aren’t you supposed to go to the nurse/gp for antibiotics? Lymes disease? My DD had one on her head and was put on antibiotics. Was a few years back but Lymes is still around. Was it if there was a big red circle?

BananaPalm · 07/07/2024 00:49

Well, the problem is that the ring/rash does not always appear. In some European countries it's recommended to take the tick to a lab and get it tested for Lyme disease (to know whether you need antibiotics or not). It tends to cost around £50 there. But I have no idea where/whether such tests can be done in the UK. I think I should look into this, judging by this thread 😱

Firefly1987 · 07/07/2024 01:51

There was a lady who went to a park near me who got really sick from Lymes. Unfortunately she had pulled the tick out and left the head in and when the bullseye rash appeared a couple weeks later doctors dismissed it being Lyme's. This was about 25 years ago so hopefully there is far more awareness now. She's in a terrible state, blind, bedridden just lying in the dark because it affected the nerves in her eyes, horrific. That all could've been avoided if doctors had taken her seriously but it seems like it wasn't so well known about then.

I went walking in a field a couple years ago and went into a footpath leading to another field and suddenly saw a sign saying "beware this area has a high population of ticks" I got out of there so fast! I was glad of the warning though, first time I'd ever seen a sign like that.

HauntedBungalow · 07/07/2024 01:59

All this fucking no mow may/June/July/august bullshit means we're all going to be doing a lot more of this. And meanwhile industrial farming continues apace.

ElizabethanAgain · 07/07/2024 05:09

Remaker · 06/07/2024 23:05

As an Australian I was reading this thread in horror because we are taught never to remove a tick when it’s alive as it causes toxins to be released into the body which can cause very severe allergic reactions, including allergy to red meat. We are advised to use a special spray that kills them while they’re still attached, then you remove them. Tweezers are an absolute no no. But I’ve googled and that advice is only for Australian paralysis ticks and elsewhere in the world you can pull them off.

But just be aware if you visit Australia leave your tick removal tool at home and buy some Tick Off spray when you get here!

If you are in Australia please pay attention to this. Ticks can cause a VERY severe allergic reaction in susceptible people, particularly small children. Our ticks are different to the UK ones and more toxic. Like most of our wildlife.🤣

Djthhtk9494 · 07/07/2024 06:24

HauntedBungalow · 07/07/2024 01:59

All this fucking no mow may/June/July/august bullshit means we're all going to be doing a lot more of this. And meanwhile industrial farming continues apace.

The warmer climate and less sheep dipping is contributing to increases. Environmental projects such as no mow May are very much needed as we need insects. Their numbers have dropped 60% in 20 years. That is what is terrifying. There have always been hoards of ticks where we live and there is no need for hysteria. They are in the local fields we walk our dog in every day too. They are easy to see in dogs and easy to remove with the correct tools. Long trousers and a quick check after being in woodland, long grass etc.

Sorenlorrenson · 07/07/2024 06:29

What do you mean "the tick was about to bite" ?
Why did you let it bite ?

Thismighthelp · 07/07/2024 07:00

Lots of people have mentioned the bullseye bite, so sharing a pic for awareness. My daughter had to have 14 days of strong antibiotics (this is years ago now)

To be freaked out by a tick on my DD!
Justabadwife · 07/07/2024 07:07

DD (14) gets ticks like no one I've ever known.

She went on a school residential in year 5 and came back with at least 8 ticks- I wasn't too pleased. She was fine though.

I pulled one out of her last week and we still can't work out where she had been to get it, cos I'm fairly sure ticks don't hang out in Tesco.

Forgetmesnot · 07/07/2024 07:29

Definitely keep an eye out for the bullseye rash. My husband had a tick bite and the bullseye rash came up about 5-7 days later if I recall. He was put on a 3 week course of antibiotics in case of Lymes disease

TheresNoTelescreen · 07/07/2024 07:55

For awareness - Bullseye rash diagnosed as Lyme Disease.

To be freaked out by a tick on my DD!
pinkstripeycat · 07/07/2024 08:02

We had a scare one year in France. DS was about 12 and I found a tic behind his ear. Didn’t have a removal tool but did the twist and pull with tweezers. Was so worried I’d left some behind so we took him to a dr who spent ages with a magnifying glass to make sure all was gone.

We then bought a pack of different sized removal tools and never needed them since. Still glad I’ve got them though

Chocaholicnightmare · 07/07/2024 15:31

Firefly1987 · 07/07/2024 01:51

There was a lady who went to a park near me who got really sick from Lymes. Unfortunately she had pulled the tick out and left the head in and when the bullseye rash appeared a couple weeks later doctors dismissed it being Lyme's. This was about 25 years ago so hopefully there is far more awareness now. She's in a terrible state, blind, bedridden just lying in the dark because it affected the nerves in her eyes, horrific. That all could've been avoided if doctors had taken her seriously but it seems like it wasn't so well known about then.

I went walking in a field a couple years ago and went into a footpath leading to another field and suddenly saw a sign saying "beware this area has a high population of ticks" I got out of there so fast! I was glad of the warning though, first time I'd ever seen a sign like that.

How awful for her- and could have been prevented. A good friend of mine in Scotland was told to 'go home, there's nothing more we can do' when bedridden with Lymes. She has turned her life around through her own way of treating it and fights it, but it has been a total life change for her. I would take antibiotics as a precaution, if in any doubt.