Ticks and Tick bourne diseases such as Lymes Disease and TBE are on the increase. In England and Wales 684 cases of Lymes Disease were reported last year, and Scotland has seen a tenfold increase in numbers over the last decade, with 177 cases reported last year. It is estimated that a further 2000 cases go unreported each year.

If you or your pet get a tick attached, it is extremely important to remove it quickly and safely. If the tick is held incorrectly on removal, it can regurgitate it’s stomach contents back into the bloodstream increasing the risk of disease. All commercially available tick removal tools will work if used correctly. The most important thing is to remove the tick slowly, so as to minimise damage, and to grip the head parts of the tick, not the body.

Areas where infection has been acquired in the UK include popular holiday destinations such as Exmoor, the New Forest, the South Downs, parts of Wiltshire and Berkshire, Thetford Forest , the Lake District, the Yorkshire moors and the Scottish Highlands, but the infection can occur in other areas where ticks are present

Ticks are nasty blood sucking parasites related to the same family as spiders.Ticks are quite small and hard to detect as they inject a chemical that numbs the bite area. Ticks can feed up to 7 days with out causing irritation.

Ticks are most active between April and October, but this period can be all year round in the southern counties.

The following links will provide you with much greater detail...

http://www.bada-uk.org/index.html

http://www.tickpreventionweek.org/

http://www.masta-travel-health.com/tickalert/

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

http://www.scottishgamekeepers.co.uk/ticks.htm

http://www.hpa.org.uk/infections/topics_az/zoonoses/lyme_borreliosis/menu.htm