Does the tool strangle them then and cut off the flow of stomach content so they cannot vommit in your bood stream ?

How did people get them out before this tool came along ? or did everyone just catch Lymes didease ?

I found tick tools didn’t work on the little ones, so carry tick tweezers now.

Bollox.

Get a tick remover tool and do it properly. Anything which stresses them can cause them to empty their stomach contents into your body – which is how you can contract Lymes.
+1
Although once they are attached you can still contract Lyme or a co-infection without them vomiting.
They have barbs on their head hence why pulling them can leave the head in

Just spent the past 20 mins looking up how to remove a Tick !

I guess i will be buying some tweazers

I may order one of those cards. Easily stashed in a wallet although don’t take a wallet riding with me. My old man used a burnt ember ie cigarette, match etc on their arse an they would just drop off with dying. Did it for years on the farm animals and on himself. Don’t carry either of those thins either so of no use

http://www.bada-uk.org/products/tickremover.php

That one Holyzeus has just recommended above is great. I can verify its easy to use … Even did a good job getting ticks off my daughter who is very squeemish.. A very good tool. There is one remover for the big ticks and has a small one,. Its like a DIY nail remover and with a small twist the small ticks are off in seconds

Is it true that this is on the increase in the UK due to the depressed sheep market? Farmers simply cannot afford to routinely dip their sheep which would usually eliminate a large breeding ground for the ticks?

Routinely? Once a year…?

It’s prolly on the increase because of climate variability, and because there are more deer, badgers, small mammals and they are moving closer to where people live. And ordinary people may be getting out more. Plus patients learn about it and make a fuss.

Hmm, found my first small tick on my leg last night after riding on sunday. Thought it was a thorn or a scab, probably about 1.5mm in diameter.
Didnt realise it was a tick until i bushed it off with my finger and I noticed its legs moving.
It looked practically flat, so dont know if it had actually got its teeth into me or not.
What should I do now? Bit worried about it tbh.

Just keep an eye on the location of the ‘bite’. If there’s a load of inflammation, particularly extending in a circular pattern with the bite at the centre over the next few days, you might want to wave it at a GP.

Google ‘tick bullseye rash’ for images, although they don’t always look like that.

Chances are you’ll be fine though, the majority of tick bites are unproblematic.

I rode through a deer fenced area at Grizedale last weekend (wished I hadn’t, was boggy as hell) and one jumped on me from my bike as I cleaned up my drivetrain the next day. Tenacious little buggers.

bigyinn – did it fall off when brushed?

If so it hadn’t attached as they hold on very firmly when they do, hence the mini crowbars to remove.

And it wouldn’t release itself until it had had a good feed so would have been bigger.

csb, it didnt take much effort at all, in may have moved off itself. It looked flat, almost squashed, so hopefully it didn’t actually latch on. It does beg the question what has it been doing and where has it been since sunday afternoon?
On plus side its got my other half well creeped up! Mwahaha.

If it was flat I doubt it had fed. If you managed to keep it you can get it tested. Mine was a small fella but I didn’t get a rash or a bulls eye. I feel like sh*t. Waiting on test results at the moment so can’t guarantee it’s Lymes despite have a lot of the symptoms.

Fingers crossed that its not Taff.
Didnt keep it, washed it down the plughole, yuk!