Author Topic: Dozens of bee stings? (Read 8627 times)

Wandering Man · « **Reply #20 on:** August 11, 2016, 11:13:23 pm »

This is not me. It seemed appropriate for this thread:

https://www.facebook.com/beekeeping.humour/videos/603317729851293/

brooksbeefarm · « **Reply #21 on:** August 12, 2016, 10:33:32 am »

Hey iddee, i got stung several times on my belly too, and like you, my swelling ain't gone down either.

Jack

J-grow · « **Reply #22 on:** August 12, 2016, 11:35:25 am »

The lawn mower story has me kinda freaked out ....... I have a yard crew that mowes my yard I would be very upset if they got pimpleized by my pets. Almost as upset as they would bee probably

Jen · « **Reply #23 on:** August 12, 2016, 12:28:01 pm »

Hey Ray4852, glad you're okay from that experience

After your allergy attack did you continue to keep bees? Some say they purchased a high quality suit so they could continue beekeeping during their treatments?

CBT · « **Reply #24 on:** August 12, 2016, 12:41:07 pm »

That's what I did. The ER doc told me to give up bees, l told him I'll buy a bee jacket. He could not understand our addiction. Life goes on WITH BEES

LazyBkpr · « **Reply #25 on:** August 12, 2016, 01:21:03 pm »

Mowing around the hives is situation dependant, it is the same with Weed eating around the hives. So long as the bees are content and do not feel threatened you can do it just fine.. if there is anything annoying them.. well, think of the WIFE coming home in a BAD MOOD.. you DONT purposefully do anything annoying in her presence, and if you do so by accident, you KNOW where the door is!!!!

Mowing around the hives... 4 minutes of Adrenalin packed ACTION!

Perry · « **Reply #26 on:** August 12, 2016, 04:35:10 pm »

Nice tractor, I can't even see where the shifter is. Forward and reverse on a rocker pedal? Turns nice and tight and easy too. My old tractor requires two hands on the wheel.

PS, anyone can mow around hives if you are blowing the grass away from the entrances, it takes someone brave to do it the other way.

lazy shooter · « **Reply #27 on:** August 12, 2016, 07:07:22 pm »

I have a new story that dovetails into this topic. Today we had a line of thunder storms roll through our area today from 3:00 p.m. to about 4:30 p.m. The winds were reported to be above 60 mph, so about five o'clock I made an inspection of my home place. It's a residence on 60 plus acres with a couple of barns and seven bee hives. One of my beehives had blown over. It was an eight frame hive with three deeps and one medium box.

The first trip I arrived on the scene with a ventilated bee jacket complete with hood and gloves. As soon as I picked up the first box, the bees covered my jacket and blue jeans. Their stingers were penetrating my pants, so I abandoned the project with approximately 30 stings on my legs, 20 stings on my butt, and another 20 stings on my ankles, through very thick, heavy winer socks. There were no stings where the ventilated jacket covered my body. This is what I normally wear to inspect these bees and haven't stung me all summer.

The second trip to the hive I was wearing my full body armor, the ultra breeze ventilated suit. This time there were no stings to my ankles and legs, but I did get some stings where the gloves were ventilated, and I had not pulled them far enough up my sleeve to cover all of the exposed skin. The cowhide gloves kept the bees from stinging my hands, but there was some skin covered only with the vented portion of the long gloves between my glove and the sleeve of the ultra breeze suit. It was another 12 stings. The bees were so thick and aggressive that they almost closed my vision while putting the four boxes back on the bottom board.

lazy

Perry · « **Reply #28 on:** August 12, 2016, 07:09:24 pm »

apisbees · « **Reply #29 on:** August 12, 2016, 07:24:38 pm »

Ouch!!! Good for sticking with it and getting then upright and put back together. Just one question Did you use smoke to try and calm the bees and to keep them in the supers rather than them trying to fly out.

iddee · « **Reply #30 on:** August 12, 2016, 07:37:19 pm »

Yeah, Apis, I was just getting ready to tell him about that new beekeeping tool they just came out with. It's called a smoker and helps to keep from getting 20 stings to the butt, since that is literally a PITA.

Ray4852 · « **Reply #31 on:** August 12, 2016, 08:13:07 pm »

The doc that took care of me at the hospital told me to follow up with an allergy doctor right away. My next reaction could be very serious. The allergy doctor sent me out for a blood test. A week later I have to get the shots if I want to keep my bees. The doc said the program is 98 percent that it will cure my problem. Every patient he put in the program comes back ok after 3 to 5 years getting the shots. I’m 3 years now getting the shots. I don’t think they will release me after 3 years, because I’m a beekeeper. I get a new blood test in January. I never thought of giving up my bees after my reaction. I know a lot of people give up after a serious reaction. You have to experience one to find out if you want to continue to keep bees. My primary doctor said to give up my bees. Allergy doctor said no way I have to give up beekeeping. It’s a very common problem with beekeepers. You can get stung for 30yrs the next time they get you you’re in the hospital. I know a guy now from the bee club that experience a serious bee reaction. He’s afraid to go around his hives now. I gave him my doctor’s name. If you carry an epie pen around with you, get a blood test to see if you are allergic to honeybees. I think it’s a good idea to find out now. I work smart around my hives. I know what they can do to me. I still have to get stung a little. It’s part of the hobby. You don’t have to give up your bees if you develop a serious reaction. Work with your doctor. I’m glad I did.

Ray4852 · « **Reply #32 on:** August 12, 2016, 08:37:01 pm »

CBT
Did you get the shots?

Jen
I didn’t give up beekeeping. I’m still in the program getting the shots. I still get stung a little but I protect myself.

Perry · « **Reply #33 on:** August 12, 2016, 08:47:00 pm »

I know someone in a similar situation Ray. The only thing that seems to keep happening is the schedule gets messed up, or a venom shortage, and it sets her way back. Riverbee had the same thing happen to her.

Ray4852 · « **Reply #34 on:** August 12, 2016, 09:01:02 pm »

Perry I know river bee had a problem. What kind of shortage and schedule do you mean?

Perry · « **Reply #35 on:** August 12, 2016, 09:07:36 pm »

A young lady up here in NS has developed a life threatening allergy to bee stings and she works on a large commercial operation. She travels to the city for her shots but has had her "regular" injections interrupted a couple of times which seems to keep setting her back.

Ray4852 · « **Reply #36 on:** August 12, 2016, 09:49:19 pm »

Her doctor’s office knows she’s on a strict schedule for bee shots. There are not many people that know about getting bee shots. Not many people are told about the program too. There shouldn’t be any shortage. This is sickening. No need for her to go through this. If she misses one shot it throws off her schedule. Healthcare in my country is getting to be a big joke here too.

lazy shooter · « **Reply #37 on:** August 12, 2016, 10:25:52 pm »

@Apis and Iddee:

I carried a well lit smoker with me. I parked the gator about 20 feet from the hive and the bees came to meet me. I started smoking them as I got to the laid over bee hive, but they had my legs covered and were stinging me through my jeans before I picked up the first box. I just had to make a retreat as they were lighting up my legs. When I got into the gator, I sat down on a hundred or so bees and some of them were able to sting me through my pants. There were probably 40 dead bees on the seat of my Gator when I made the second trip. I'm a pretty serious smoker guy. I burn a couple of cords of wood each year in my smoker.

apisbees · « **Reply #38 on:** August 12, 2016, 11:26:05 pm »

You got to them to soon as they were still in the pissed off mood. I have gotten to them after a few Hr when they had already clustered back in the supers some what. Also it was cold enough that the bees were wanting to cluster more than fly.

lazy shooter · « **Reply #39 on:** August 13, 2016, 08:14:23 am »

Apis:

Would it have been better to let them lay on the ground over night? At one time, I thought of doing that, but then I decided I was just being a sissy and not wanting to take care of business at hand. They had probably been on the ground an hour or so when I first met them, or the when they came to meet me.

lazy