Sleeping with a tick.........

[MyBuddy]

Soooooooooooooo.................last weekend hubby and I were driving into town for a few things. It was pretty warm out so I had on a sleeveless shirt. As he's driving, I thought I felt a loose hair or something on my bare arm. With no sleeves, its understandable that my long hair was touching my shoulder. I always hate when I have a single strand of loose hair that I can feel but can't see! lol So I finally I reach around with my left hand to my right shoulder to feel what's bugging me and feel a scab. My immediate thought was, a cut? when did that happen?? I didn't want to pick it off but felt it sort of slid off with my fingers as I moved over it. So I grabbed it and took a look.....................

................Ok, you KNOW what the hell it was!!! It's in the TICK thread!!!! Ohmigod, are you kidding me???!? So here we are, driving, and I've got a frickin' tick in my hand!! Again, nano seconds pass as I think of what to do with it!! I know that I don't want to fling it out the window, lest if blows back in! So I quickly grab a tissue and ball him up in it, all the while freaking out that I had another frickin' tick on me!!!!! The first chance we had to stop, I got out, put the wad on the ground, stepped on it and did a twirl on it for good measure!! LOL!!

 

[obbanner]

Over the past month, I've been talking to several owners and breeders who warned me about Rocky Mountain Spotted fever. Cooper was injured and limping, and taking quite a while to recover. I was told to have him checked out for Rocky Mountain Spotted fever, which is pretty rare in NJ. They had dogs with limping symptoms that turned out to be RMS. I think Coopers problem was ligament injury because he started as soon as we got home from an outing, and he's pretty much better now, but if he has a relapse, I'll have him tested for RMS.

* I had Cooper checked out for Lyme and other tick or flea born diseases other than RMS. He also had full body xrays twice that didn't show anything wrong.

 

[JanS]

Aww poor cooper. Albert can't put any weight on his one leg when it hits him and unfortunately I think he might be getting arthritis in that leg because we can't seem to knock for good it out with antibiotics. It will suddenly come on and completely go away within a few days but this last time I was able to get him to the vet right away and he did have swollen lymph nodes and fluid on his knee because of it.
He doesn't have Lyme or the other one that starts with an A but the vet said that there are so many tick borne diseases out there now that it's impossible to test for all of them. There is some test they can send away that can pinpoint it (forget what it's called), and I'm going to do that next time I take him in.

 

[katie's mom]

ok...this is freaky...my buddy...i think ticks might have a thing for you LOL!!!! ... I would feel pretty trapped if I found a tick on me in the car...No way would I just simply throw it out the window, because they DO NOT DESERVE TO LIVE... and, believe me they would easily survive being thrown out a car window... At least twice a summer I have Frazier (husband) to a complete body scan...( he always thinks thats a great idea, but thats for another topic) You do realize that now that I have read this I will feel ticks crawling all over me for the next several days....

 

[MyBuddy]

Cooper was injured and limping, and taking quite a while to recover.

Oh, boy, that's terrible for Cooper and Albert! You can't be too careful with these things. They carry a lot of diseases and one can only hope that the meds for them keep them off! I actually have not found one on the dogs! Just me! And both times at least they were crawling and not embedded. Whenever I watch the dogs run through some higher grass, I cringe. But whatcha gonna do??

ok...this is freaky...my buddy...i think ticks might have a thing for you LOL!!!! ... I would feel pretty trapped if I found a tick on me in the car...No way would I just simply throw it out the window, because they DO NOT DESERVE TO LIVE... and, believe me they would easily survive being thrown out a car window... At least twice a summer I have Frazier (husband) to a complete body scan...( he always thinks thats a great idea, but thats for another topic) You do realize that now that I have read this I will feel ticks crawling all over me for the next several days....

You are so right! On everything! lol It's freaky that its twice now, its horrible being trapped in the car, and damn, they don't deserve to live! Hence my little twirl on top of him!!

The other day my husband came in after doing a ton of weed whacking and took off his shirt and said, "Look me over....any ticks?" (he had none! ) I was texting with our daughter and told her what happened and she said, "Isn't there a song like that??" Why, yes, child, there is!

 

[Tropicalbri's]

Oh, boy, that's terrible for Cooper and Albert! You can't be too careful with these things. They carry a lot of diseases and one can only hope that the meds for them keep them off! I actually have not found one on the dogs! Just me! And both times at least they were crawling and not embedded. Whenever I watch the dogs run through some higher grass, I cringe. But whatcha gonna do??


You are so right! On everything! lol It's freaky that its twice now, its horrible being trapped in the car, and damn, they don't deserve to live! Hence my little twirl on top of him!!

The other day my husband came in after doing a ton of weed whacking and took off his shirt and said, "Look me over....any ticks?" (he had none! ) I was texting with our daughter and told her what happened and she said, "Isn't there a song like that??" Why, yes, child, there is!

We have a lot of the small seed ticks down here. They are hard to see and when you do find them they are gray filled with blood. I hate them!! We had our dog on flea and tick prevention but he got ticks on him anyway. I finally fenced in the yard and had exterminator treat inside and out. Never had a problem with them or fleas after that. I do use Chlorpyrofo on the yard every six weeks to keep chinch bugs and grubs from destroying my lawn. It takes care of fleas and ticks as well.
I hate using chemicals but it is the only way to control them.

 

[Tropicalbri's]

The one bug that gives me nightmares is bed bugs. They just really freak me out. I get nervous tics from them. We had a house (multi million dollar home) that got them. One of the family members flew in and brought them in on their luggage.
When they called me about it I was like no way am I going in that house.
But .....I had no choice. Had to call exterminator and then take every cloth item...pillows, blankets, sheets, rugs, towels etc. to laundry mat to cook in the dryer. I had 68 loads to treat. I ordered bed bug covers for all the mattresses and pillows. It took me 2 days to get everything done, then I put all the towels and linens in space saver bags and stored in garage until I knew all the bugs were gone. It's a 5000sf home so it was intense work for the exterminator and myself to get rid of those nasty critters. I wouldn't go to my house until I had clean clothes on and literally left my Dyson upright there because I was afraid of infecting my house. They just give me the heebie jeebies.

 

[katie's mom]

The one bug that gives me nightmares is bed bugs. They just really freak me out. I get nervous tics from them. We had a house (multi million dollar home) that got them. One of the family members flew in and brought them in on their luggage.
When they called me about it I was like no way am I going in that house.
But .....I had no choice. Had to call exterminator and then take every cloth item...pillows, blankets, sheets, rugs, towels etc. to laundry mat to cook in the dryer. I had 68 loads to treat. I ordered bed bug covers for all the mattresses and pillows. It took me 2 days to get everything done, then I put all the towels and linens in space saver bags and stored in garage until I knew all the bugs were gone. It's a 5000sf home so it was intense work for the exterminator and myself to get rid of those nasty critters. I wouldn't go to my house until I had clean clothes on and literally left my Dyson upright there because I was afraid of infecting my house. They just give me the heebie jeebies.

I had a friend that broughjt them back from a 5-star hotel ... She and her family went through total hell for weeks and weeks... lets face it....BUGS SUCK!!! (except for lady bugs and walking sticks, and well, maybe praying mantis' since they eat other bugs...and, I dont mind lightning bug too much... all others can die When I was in junior high we saw a filmstip (how that for telling my age) entitled: 'INSECTS: MANS CLOSEST COMPETITOR FOR SUPREMACY ON EARTH..(probably funded by Ortho) anyway, im thinking that it might have traumatized me... I should sue someone.

 

[MyBuddy]

BUGS SUCK!!! (except for lady bugs

I can't tell the difference between the lady bug and those other stupid things that LOOK like lady bugs (and bite!) and I don't care! I can't stand those damn things because they get into the house somehow and hibernate! When it's warm, they are on the windows like a scary movie!

I hate bugs and my three most hated are:

Mosquitoes
Flies (all kinds!)
Black Gnats (that attack the horses)

 

[Tropicalbri's]

Do you all remember back in '98 the exterminator commercial came out with the cockroach crawling across the TV screen. Guess they had to pull that commercial because so many people freaked out and threw things at their TV screens thinking it was real. Hahaha
Lots of damaged TVs. When I first saw it I thought how the heck did that palmetto bug get in here. I went to get a paper towel to kill and remove it, then realized it was a commercial. Anyone with a phobia of bugs would have lost it on that one. Lol

 

[Tropicalbri's]

I can't tell the difference between the lady bug and those other stupid things that LOOK like lady bugs (and bite!) and I don't care! I can't stand those damn things because they get into the house somehow and hibernate! When it's warm, they are on the windows like a scary movie!

I hate bugs and my three most hated are:

Mosquitoes
Flies (all kinds!)
Black Gnats (that attack the horses)

Mine would be:
1. Bed Bugs
2. Yellow Flies
3. Noseeums
4. Ticks
5. Fleas
6. Mosquitos

We have our first case of Dengue Fever reported down here for the first time in several years. I am concerned about the Zika Virus. Mosquitos are really bad this year!!

 

[MyBuddy]

Do you all remember back in '98 the exterminator commercial came out with the cockroach crawling across the TV screen

Oh yea! For sure! That one got more than a few people!! lol! I think I heard about it before I saw it so my TV was saved.

 

[JanS]

3. Noseeums

Those are the worst since they come through the screens at night and it drives you nuts because their bites really itch.

I rolled over in bed the other morning and hubby spotted a tick on my back and pulled it off. That one was really stuck and took some flesh off when he removed it but I never even felt it until he pulled it.

 

[Tropicalbri's]

Those are the worst since they come through the screens at night and it drives you nuts because their bites really itch.

I rolled over in bed the other morning and hubby spotted a tick on my back and pulled it off. That one was really stuck and took some flesh off when he removed it but I never even felt it until he pulled it.

It reminds me of kids getting head lice. That is so gross. I don't ever remember having lice but I remember the school sent notes home to parents that there was an outbreak of lice in the school. I would get ticks when we used to go camping both as a child and adult. We had to do a thorough body search on everyone while camping. Also Chiggers. They itch like crazy. I remember putting clear nail polish on chigger bites.
We have so many bizarre insects down here that I had the exterminator give me an insect identification manual and types of pesticides used for treatment and if the insects will sting or bite or have a venom defense.

 

[katie's mom]

so glad you mentioned noseeums...oh Lord they make my outdoor time (which is A LOT) miserable..Itch, itch itch...and oh, the chiggers...a nightmare from my childhood..Did the clear fingernail polish on the affected area even help? LOL !! Regardless, I did it faithfully. To my credit, though, none of these nasty creatures ever stopped me from playing outside, dawn to dusk! I am currently using a service that uses a organic bait for mosquitoes.. Not perfect, but MUCH better than last year, and I dont worry about the birds so much.

Frazier suggested a bat house since they really eat tons of mosquitos,,, we're going to look into it... I think i would prefer bats to bugs any day..

 

[Tropicalbri's]

Frazier suggested a bat house since they really eat tons of mosquitos,,, we're going to look into it... I think i would prefer bats to bugs any day..

They built a Bat Tower down here but it didn't work out as planned. It is now on the tourist list of things to see as it sits abandoned.
Officials are now considering releasing GM Mosquitos to curb the problems with them but the public hasn't been to keen on supporting that idea.

 

[Tropicalbri's]

none of these nasty creatures ever stopped me from playing outside, dawn to dusk!

I didn't give bugs a second thought growing up. It was just part of being outside and having fun. Lol
I remember as kids we used to run behind the mosquito truck as they fogged. May explain some of my poor decisions as an adult. Hahaha

 

[MyBuddy]

I didn't give bugs a second thought growing up. It was just part of being outside and having fun. Lol
I remember as kids we used to run behind the mosquito truck as they fogged. May explain some of my poor decisions as an adult. Hahaha

I don't ever remember giving bugs a moments thought as a kid either, but maybe its because its so long ago that I've forgotten! lol

I NEVER went in that fog truck!! I thought the kids that did that were batty!!! *see how I got bats back into the conversation?? Because speaking of bats, I thought about putting up a bat house too. There actually are 'requirements' like on how high to place it, how far from your house or activity, etc. and I never did put it up. I know we've had some here and at our last house. I remember taking a walk at our last house and thought, 'Wow, it's late for birds to be out!'

Here at this house we get the barn swallows following us when we mow!

 

[Tropicalbri's]

Great segue back to bats. Lol
Yes we were batty as kids doing the fogger.
Back in 1960 in the Philippines we used to ride the water buffalo and come home nasty and smelly, always finding trouble and something dirty to get into. Drove my mom nuts trying to get us clean. The rice paddies had these huge fly looking bugs about 1 and 1/2 inches long that we would catch and bring home. My mother would go bananas. She didn't like bugs or snakes and we were always catching one or the other and bringing it home. I can remember many a spanking over that. Lol
The joys of growing up in the 50's and 60's. I miss that time with the way the world is now. Sorry, didn't mean to hijack this thread. Just a stroll down memory lane.

 

[JanS]

We have bat houses all over but we'd need 100 times more to cover all of our land. Since we keep our land chemical free we either deal with bugs or wear a bug suit. I guess there is a natural mosquito treatment now that uses something from Mums (I think) that really works.