Ticks
My main reason for visiting the Moy Fieldsports Fair was to meet the dedicated folk who run BADA -UK, the Borreliosis and Associated Diseases Association. This is a voluntary organisation that campaigns to raise awareness about ticks and the diseases that can be contracted from their bites. I came across them while researching an article on Lyme Disease, which Lee has been treated for twice following tick bites. Anyone who spends time out of doors, whether it’s stalking deer in remote glens or walking the poodle in the park, should have a look at the BADA-UK website and familiarise themselves with the dangers posed by ticks and the simple ways to avoid them. The website is at http://www.bada-uk.org/.
As well as maintaining the website with its essential information and fascinatingly horrible close-ups of the little monsters, the BADA volunteers take the information around the country, manning stalls at fieldsports fairs and country events. If you visit them, as I did at Moy, you’ll be able learn to recognise ticks, from a tiny nymph to an adult, engorged on blood to the size of a well-grown coffee bean.
Two of the volunteers who run BADA suffer from chronic symptoms associated with Lyme or other tick-borne diseases, one being a wheelchair user. They are dedicated to spreading the word about how to avoid these diseases and how to get them treated effectively.
The stand at Moy was kept busy with people gazing in horror at the illustrations of ticks on animals and various bits of humans. They were then able to ask advice and take away information or buy tick-removal tools. Part of BADA’s work is to dispel some of the old wives’ tales about ticks and how to remove one that has attached itself to you or your furry pet for a quick snack. So for the record, it’s NOT a good idea to burn them off with a cigarette, smother them with Vaseline or inebriate them with gin. What to do instead? Visit http://www.bada-uk.org/ and find out.