The itch drove me mad tbh
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Yeah. I didnât realise what was happening for a while until I saw the same horsefly coming back to bite me over and over again every time I shooâd it away.
In the Netherlands, I had a horsefly bite me between my toes whilst wearing sandals on a bicycle. Because there was nowhere left to drain, my feet and toes swelled and blistered quite heavily. I hate those things.
I have a thing that looks like a pen. Itâs point gets hot when you press the button. It should be used on the bite ASAP to destroy the protein that an insect left in your body. It seems to help a bit with mosqito and horse fly bites. But you should take it with you to the hike, because time is crucial.
Funny that horse flies never bite my husband, only me.
Thereâs also a device that delivers a tiny electric shock, used directly on the bite, which is pretty effective. Immediately takes the itch out of it.
It is the bigger danger with certain insect and spider bitesâŚthe irritation causes scratching, which results in infection.
I actually found placing a Compede over a horsefly bite helped lower the itching and stopped me scratching them to death.
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You mean a Blasenpflaster? I would have never thought it helps with these stings too. 
@TinyK, whatâs the name of that pencil thing you use?
We have the older version of this one.
If you donât have one of those pens a tip an old French lady told me was to dip a teaspoon in boiling water and place the back of the spoon in the bite, it has the same effect as the heat pen.
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Genau. It doesnât relieve the bite, it just prevents doom-scratching. Iâve only needed this for horsefly and spider bites.
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nothing compared to bedbugs. I suffered it once, from an airB&B in Graubunden. Even locally applied corticosteroids wouldnât help. I thought I was going mad for 3 days solidâŚand when they attack, it is not one bite that you get⌠I got 10, my partner got 100+!!! (I have very âactiveâ sleep, and these little monsters need at least 10 minutes to suck your blood, so I was somehow protected). Seem to be more and more common in Europe⌠(they were until the XIX century, then they disappeared, now theyâre back with a revenge). If you want to know about them, this is a pretty good video Bed Bugs- What Youâve Been Told is Totally False
I use this for bites and stings - especially for horseflies who seem quite partial to me but not others around at the same time.
We have something similar with the one posted by BelgianMum. I ordered it from Amazon. The principle is very simple. The tip gets hot, thatâs it. It hurts for a few seconds, but in the end it helps you a lot. Unfortunately, itâs hard to explain it to the kids that they need to suffer for a few seconds in order not to suffer for the next few days.
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perfect time to explain them the principle of test & control. one mosquito bite is treated with the pencil, one is not, and then the day after, they check which one of them itches⌠
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No, I donât think thatâs right. From a UK gov site What is Lyme disease and why do we need to be tick-aware? â UK Health Security Agency
Studies in Europe estimate that 1% to 5% of tick bites can lead to Lyme disease. On average, approximately 4% of ticks are infected in England and Wales, although this range can fluctuate in different areas and across years, and can be on average as high as 8-10% in some areas.
Surely one treated with the pencil and another with a âplacebo pencilâ would be a better test -especially on a child?
Actually, having a third untreated bite would be best - your control!
@Ace - I just quoted the map from the Austrian Tropical disease institute in Wien.
It is true that 40% is as such, not accurate â it can be UP to 40% (in deer-rich forest areas).
my partner had borreliosis; I have been lucky to date, but it is a rather serious disease, so better safe than sorry particularly as I see often parents taking photos of their babies / kids rolling on high grass in spring⌠gives me the creepsâŚ
Here are several scholar articles that have made in-situ studies (i.e. researchers picking up several thousand ticks in delimited areas, and checking for Borreliosis & Encephalitis bacteria/virus on them
The results are very much region dependent - .
Infection rates of Borrelia burgdorferi in different instars of Ixodes ricinus ticks from the Dutch North Sea Island of Ameland | Experimental and Applied Acarology
Frontiers | Two decades of research on Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato in questing Ixodes ricinus ticks in Slovakia
we donât need to fight for it the researchers fight for that themselves⌠Prevalence of Borrelia burgdorferi-infected ticks from wildlife hosts, a response to Norris et al. | Parasites & Vectors | Full Text
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We have some clinical trials profis around unavoidable, being in SwitzerlandâŚ
Not me Iâm afraid but have been married to a scientist for a few years so understand the concepts!
As a beekeeper, I give faith of the bee one. But thatâs only on day 2! (the first day all is red, and you cannot see the actual sting site
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