Raising bees?

[Bettacreek]

Ok, I couldn't find the other bee thread. But, I've been interested in raising bees. For some reason, I REALLY want to do it. I don't eat honey (at all), but could trade or sell it for other stuff. My one big question, however, is... how often do beeks get stung? I'm "semi-allergic" to bees. Meaning, if I get stung, I swell up like a goofy SOB. I don't have issues with breathing, just look like I got into a tango with a boxer. I think that's part of the reason why I want to raise them so darn bad, one of those, get over your "fears" (though I actually like bees to be honest, and don't mind them near me). Maybe it's just a sick "fetish", lol. Either way, do people get stung often, while mucking around in the hives?

 

[me&thegals]

Being allergic is not shown by swelling, it is not being able to breathe. Most people get large swollen areas from bee stings.

As for the search, did you try the key word "beekeeping"? There are a LOT of threads on beekeeping here these days

 

[bibliophile birds]

i can only speak for myself, but i rarely get stung- maybe once a year. and every time i get stung, it's because i wasn't paying attention. i'll put my arm down and trap a bee against my side and get stung. or i'll lean against something and trap a bee against me and get stung. or i'll hop in the car without making sure there aren't any on my butt or back and get stung.

if you wear gear and pay attention to where the bees are, you should be fine.

 

[Bettacreek]

Being allergic is not shown by swelling, it is not being able to breathe. Most people get large swollen areas from bee stings.

As for the search, did you try the key word "beekeeping"? There are a LOT of threads on beekeeping here these days

Being allergic isn't actually only not being able to breathe. Either way, if you'd like to call it "hyper-sensitivity" then that works for me. If I get stung, whatever limb was stung, the entire limb swells. Most people get a nice sized welt, not an entire limb swelling up like a balloon. When I was younger, I was taken to the ER because my parents thought I had broken an arm or something, since my arm was so swollen. Here it was just an itty bitty bee sting, lol.

Thank you BB. I knew that they were pretty easy-going, and knew they only stung when they figured they were already going to die. A good guesstimation on how often one might get stung is really important to me. If I'm going to be swollen and gimping around half of the year, I'm not going to bother with bees, lol. Do you wear gear or just go "naked"? I know I'd have to wear head gear, to keep them from cutting off my airway (asthma and major swelling from a bee sting in the throat are NOT a combination I care to mess with).

 

[bibliophile birds]

it varies on whether i wear gear. with newly established hives, always. no point taking risks. with hives i've worked a lot before, it depends on what i'm doing. if i'm just doing a check, i usually only wear my veil and gloves (in which case i duct tape the ankles of my pants, cause bees up the pants is no fun, even if you don't get stung). if i'm robbing hives for honey, i usually suit up again just because that takes a while and the bees don't really appreciate it.

i've got 2 hives in the yard that i can run the lawnmower right up to and not have a single problem. i've got 2 other hives in the main apiary that are particularly aggressive (even though they are a few years old) when being worked, but i still check them without gear. they really just send out lots of reinforcements to buzz me, but i've never been proactively stung.

i would suggest getting the whole kit and then seeing what you and your bees are comfortable with.

 

[keljonma]

We installed our bees on May 1st of this year. I had been stung only a couple times when it wasn't caused by beekeeper stupidity, which I talked about a couple times in my journal.

When I was harvesting honey from the hive in August, I got stung by 3 bees on the top of my right hand and it was swollen for a week. (I wasn't wearing gloves at the time.) I took some antihistamine as a precaution, but did not have any problems except the swelling. It didn't hurt or itch, just looked awful.

So I have been stung a total of 7 times since installation.

It is important to pay attention to the mood of the hive and stay focused when working with bees.

For me, working with the bees is very enjoyable and has been, for the most part, a zen-like experience.

However, TR (my dh) refuses to go closer to the hives than he has to when I decide to open them. However, he keeps the grass trimmed around the hives and hasn't had any problems.

 

[beerman]

I got stung once this year while installing bees and it was my fault I smashed a bee with my hand. I don't use any gear for my hive they are very mellow.
Brian

 

[Rebecka]

I have been stung twice this year, but again.. stupid beekeeper was the cause. You are going to get stung. The mood of the hive is what decides how much gear I wear. When I have to get in and they are not in the greatest mood, I do the full suit. Most of the time its just a veil and gloves. The gloves are mostly because I dont like the sticky stuffs on me We always wear veils though. I saw too many pics of what happens when a bee sting gets a nose, eye or ear.

I am convinced that some people just tick bees off. You might go visit another beekeeper , check out the hives. Get close to them and make sure you can produce the 'bee calm' aura.

 

[rhoda_bruce]

I am a beekeeper and also a licensed nurse. I agree that swelling is a typical reaction and will vary in severity depending on your sensitivity. A true allergic reaction is a medical emergency.
Now allow me to tell ya'll that doctors don't know everything. Without going into details, I will say that my co-workers and I have saved many of our patients from their doctors and have been responsible for many patients changing their doctors.
That being said, I will also tell you that the epi-pens are used to take care of a normal reaction, when it would be best left alone. If the throat is not swelling, leave the epi alone.
DH is the one that introduced me to bees. It was not something I throught I would get into. But I'm glad I did. I get stung about 30 times a year if I'm lucky. I hope to be stung. It helps with various pains I have. I had an accident that caused a lot of pain to my right foot and then went to extract a swarm from a wall and got stung on my right ankle and looked up and said,'thankyou,' and went right on working. There are people that pay for bee stings. In fact the correct way to treat true allergies to bee stings, is to inject a small amount of the stuff, under MD's care, with an epi pen ready, but hopefully not used and when they do fine send them home and sch another visit in a week and inject just a bit more until they can take one or two full sized stings. I read that and it makes sense to me because my first few stings in beekeeping were painful and I did get red and puffy, but now they aren't even as painful and really fast the evidence of the sting is completely gone in me. My body seems to be ready and willing to accept whatever those little bugs want to give me.
Most of the stings I get are when I extract a swarm from a wall they have made a home in. They don't like that. Also I get stung collecting honey, if I didn't take certain precautions. I don't have to get all these stings. I can just stop digging into walls and only catch a swarm from trees and bushes. That is easier anyway.

 

[Blackbird]

Isn't that the most amazing thing? I've read about that before, healing by the bees! Unfortunately within seconds of a sting I stop breathing so meds are always within short distance, just in case.