Carmila cattleman lucky to be alive after paralysis tick bite

The 48-year-old, who runs cattle, a horse stud and the pub at Carmila, Qld, 75km south of Mackay, Qld, with his wife and son, found a tick on his head last week.

Assuming he picked it up while shoeing a horse at the family property, he asked a friend at the pub to have a look later that day.

The next few hours almost proved deadly.

"He took it out and it was so fast. Within three minutes Grant said, 'Oh, I don't feel well'," his wife Kerry-Anne said.

"He used to be a bull rider, so he's not one to worry about pain and stuff like that so much."

Initially she thought about driving him to Sarina Hospital, but instead she and their son Damon decided to take him to the Carmila ambulance station.

"Within 10 minutes he had needles galore in him and a code one call was made to send an ambo with two officers quickly, as he was going downhill fast," she said.

"It was a big shock. It happened so fast we didn't get time to panic."

He was rushed to Mackay Hospital, with Kerry-Anne and Damon following in their vehicle.

Mr Quantock needed five adrenaline shots, seven steroid shots, and two blood transfusions.

Once they arrived at the hospital and he was stabilised, the intensive care unit doctor told them how close he was to dying.

"They actually told us if we had driven him in, he wouldn't have made Koumala, and Koumala is only 20 minutes from where we live, so it was quite scary," Ms Quantock said.

Ms Quantock said she was told the severity of symptoms sometimes depended on what a tick attached itself to prior to a human.

Mr Quantock is now back at home recovering, with bad headaches expected for another week.

"Grant is home a little worse for wear but alive, and that's what I am so thankful for," Ms Quantock said.

He's not in the clear yet though, as he still needs to be tested for Lyme disease, which is caused by bacteria transmitted in a tick bite.

"The scary part is to know that you can get Lyme disease from ticks. He's got that booked in, so fingers crossed, because that stuff can kill you too," Ms Quantock said.

Paralysis ticks, also called dog ticks, shellback ticks or scrub ticks are a serious parasite occurring on the east coast of Australia.

They inject a toxin causing paralysis that can be fatal in domestic animals, both pets and livestock. The toxin can also affect humans.

Paralysis ticks are native to Australia and their natural hosts are marsupials, principally bandicoots, but also others such as echidnas, possums and wallabies.

They also infest cattle, horses, sheep and goats and domestic pets.

Paralysis ticks tend to be associated with bushy or scrubby areas which harbour the native animal hosts but they can still be picked up in open paddocks and other areas.

The ordeal has made Ms Quantock reflect on how serious ticks can be and together they are using his story to raise awareness.

"I have never been so shocked or scared in all my life," she said.

"It was a bit of a wake up call, and to think that it could have happened so quickly.

"You get ticks all the time living on a property. We've had paralysis ticks on us all our life and sometimes you get a headache and sore where they are, but that was a bit of a shock.

"Being rural, we're very lucky we have an ambulance station, but our property is 15 minutes west, so I often think if that were to happen at home, it's a bit of a worry. Were we even going to get him to the ambulance station?

"If you've had a paralysis tick, get straight to an ambulance. Don't muck around."