I just realised that Oscar is due his usual Frontline tomorrow and it sais that protects against ticks so i have put that on him and am hoping that will help prevent them (still going to call into the vets, we are going to the middle of a forest without even a loo so no shops )

Thanks for the help.

Frontline helps a bit but our dogs still pick up loads of the bl**dy things

Totally agree with otoms tick remover - brilliant invention. Wipe the area after with a little surgical spirit to prevent any residual infection.

Pre treat with frontline combo or Prac-Tic, both spot on antiparasitics, any tick that bites will die and drop off PDQ.

Ticks, brr, nasty critters

Frontline will kill ur ticks eventually but nothing can stop them attatching
The other thing u can do is smother the head (bit embedded in dog) with vasaline and will suffocate n drop off.
O tom hooks r the best very easy to use.
i have found most ticks tend to like the eyebrow area o keep ckin, if he has one there he may have another elsewhere
Rona dont worry if u sqeeze a tick the worst that'll happen is they will die with the head embedded. They r not poisoness but the eurapean ticks docarry tick bourne diseases. We r lucky in the uk not to have them.....yet!

What about Lyme disease

I found this

Lyme disease can occur anywhere that ticks are found. In the UK, Lyme disease occurs mainly in the New Forest, Salisbury Plain, Exmoor, the South Downs, parts of Wiltshire and Berkshire and Thetford Forest.

Its not common and given u treat with frontline u neednt worry the tick if carrying Lymes would die b4 that could be transmitted.
Are u going south???
Believe me I attended a seminar the other night on european diseases, parasites and pet passports....we have nothing to worry about!! But I dont think I could ever risk taking my dog abroad Far too worrying!

Cool thanks for that.

We will be in Thetford, it's not far from me.

There certainly is tick borne disease in the UK - Lyme disease which can cause long term damage to the joints and central nervous system if untreated. It is quite common in the New Forest and also in Cumbria, probably other areas (mainly wooded) too. I know two people who have been permanently disabled by Lyme disease (one got the disease around 40 years ago in south Cumbria), and others who have recognised the symptoms early and had the treatment. I have had loads of deer tick bites but no symtoms other than itching.
Lyme disease affects dogs too. There is a dog vaccine in the U.S.A but it is not licensed here. And there is something that stops ticks attaching: Advantix by Bayer, applied monthly, makes the ticks drop off without attaching. If you are in an area that has Lyme disease, the worst thing to do is put vaseline on the tick. The disease is transmitted to the blood of the animal as the tick finishes feeding. It regurgitates some blood back into the host, and that's when the bacteria gets in. Putting vaseline or alcohol on causes the tick to regurgitate into the host during feeding as it suffocates, making it more likely to give you the disease. If you get a tick bite the symptoms to look out for are
1) A red circular ring around the site of the bite up to several weeks afterwards
2) Flu-like symptoms
3) Pain and stiffness in the joints
Not everyone gets all or indeed any of these. The bacteria can lie dormant for months before you get ill, by which time you will have forgotten about the bite. A course of antibiotics cures it in the early stages, one of my friends had to take a six-week course.
Lyme disease is getting commoner and should be taken seriously. A lot of GPs know little or nothing about it, so it can be overlooked. There is a blood test available.

Thanks for this.

So what i am concluding is Oscar is probably ok because of the frontline but we all need to be VERY careful. Will pack long trousers and wellies for everyone

Thanks again everyone

Standing corrected
But the active ingredient of Advantix is permethrin which I believed was an organo phosphate which I was led to believe had been banned just over 10 yeras ago
Also it states it helps to repels ticks so although less likely to attatch its still no guarentee.