As I expected from yesterday’s high bracken foliage at SOG1 (Houghton), I found an unwanted passenger attached to my knee when I got home. I was easily able to remove the tick using the O’Tom device (http://www.otom.com).

I don’t know if ticks are becoming more common, it does seem so to me, and I would strongly recommend the purchase of a tick remover by all orienteers for just such an occurrence.

Hi Jon

Just out of interest, were you wearing shorts, or did the tick manage to get through running trousers?

Cheers

Rob.

Also out of interest, are some folk more prone to collecting ticks than others? I’ve been wandering through dense undergrowth all year round all my life (46+ years,) having been raised on a farm and enjoyed many outdoor pursuits; and I have yet to find one on me (or even the bite mark from one). This is probably the cue for a glut of them homing in on me now!!!!!!!!  :)

When I was at Lagganlia it certainly seemed like the ticks preferred me to others. After the first morning’s training on Inshriach I found a grand total of 32 ticks on me.
Over the week I probably collected over 100, when others didn’t get any!!

Shorts - at Houghton - no way!

When ticks attach themselves, they anaesthetise you at the same time. You are therefore very unlikely to feel anything whilst they are on you. Since removing my ‘passenger’ using the O’Tom hook, I have not felt any irritation whatsoever*. The nettle stings and hawthorn wounds are still singing, though!

* on a previous occasion, just yanking the tick out with tweezers caused considerable irritation afterwards. This method is not recommended!

My Mum is always getting ticks when orienteering (in N.Scotland).  She uses the Tick Lasso http://www.misotrading.co.uk/ which is very good - easy to use and seems to remove them every time.  The ticks seem to prefer my Mum to myself or my sister!!!

I’ve found 2 ticks previously - once after the Scottish 6 Days in 07 (on the way home, so think it was the last day) and we can’t remember the other one ! We used tweezers on both occasions to remove them, without twisting.

There seems to be some conflicting advice about the removal of ticks - some websites I’ve seen recommend using the O Tom hook and twisting and others say do not twist, but pull out cleanly with tweezers or the lasso tool.

Does anyone know which is the correct advice ?

Ali

Forgot to add - anything biting seems to prefer me to Mike anyway

22 years regular orienteering

1 tick!

From my very limited experience:

Each of the devices mentioned seems to work by grasping the tick as close to your skin as possible, below the tick’s body, before removing it. The O’Tom instructions say to twist, and the Lasso is a straight pull.

Each device costs less than a fiver, seems to work, and either is way better than tweezers. Tweezers are essentially like a little vice, and will to some extent squash the body of the tick, increasing the chance of it breaking up and leaving mouthparts attached to you.

BTW, and this is me just speculating, I wouldn’t be surprised to find out that a lot more people get tick bites than are aware of it. It’s just that the ticks bite and drop off without ever being detected!

Don’t be nonchalant about tick bites.  I know a half dozen orienteers who have contracted Lyme Disease.  Admittedly, all lived in or near, or visited, New England.  But the disease is pretty global now.  Not treated promptly, it causes severe neurological damage apparently.  (One friend caught it too late.)

Yes - I know at least 3 orienteers who have contracted Lymes Disease from UK orienteering (mainly in Scotland).

We live on the edge of Tortington Woods and occasionally have deer in the garden, a mixed blessing! I also spend time in the woods mapping. My wife is a mad keen gardener. Between us we collect dozens of ticks each year - must total hundred+ by now. We don’t use a tool; as most ticks are found at bath/shower time we’ve found applying a drop of liquid soap or shampoo and then gently rubbing the tick in a circular motion with a finger tip works every time, most within a few seconds, all in a minute or two.
We find occasionally that the little blighters turn up a day or two after possible exposure, and suspect they lodge on outer garments and appear next time you put it on.

As one of the “lucky” few orienteers in the UK to have been unfortunate enough to have contracted Lyme disease from a tick (after orienteering in the Lake District), I can vouch for the fact that they are quite adept at getting through standard O clothing or crawling around it until they find a gap.
Seeing as getting the disease involves at least a month of antibiotics and a general feeling of having no energy whatsoever, nowadays after any event where deer, sheep, etc. are likely to have been present, the 1st check after my run is to search out the little blighters!