Over the last couple of weeks I’ve had a couple of very scary tick experiences. I don’t like ticks and they don’t like me. Well, that’s not true. Perhaps a more accurate statement would be that they like me too much.
My body’s reaction to a tick bite is no fun, I have massive, skin-based allergic reactions to the little buggers. The doctors like to call it contact dermatitis which I think is somewhat of an understatement. I prefer to call it the nasty, oozing, itching, ring of hell, but then I’m no medical doctor.
Anyway, I am fine and have mostly gotten over the trauma of having a tick get way too friendly. But it got me to thinking about tick safety and thought someone might could use a roundup of useful tick tips.
So here goes…
1. How to remove a tick and other stuff that’s good to know.
I see that we did several things wrong when removing my most recent tick. Of course, it was all I could do to be still after I discovered the thing hanging off my leg. Running away from an embedded tick does not work. Experience talking.
2. How to reduce ticks around your yard.
People tell me all the time that you can use Sevin Dust around your yard to kill ticks. I don’t know if it works or not. We don’t use it because it kills all the beneficial insects (like lady bugs) that eat the bad insects chewing on the garden. Maybe I need some more chickens to eat the ticks?
Bleee… itching, itching, itching now… I just didn’t need to know all that.
4. What the CDC has to say about tick-borne illness
Please excuse me while I go all hypochondriac for a moment.
Okay, I’m going to stop here because frankly I’m a little skeeved right now and can’t handle anymore. I really don’t like ticks at all. And after reading a bunch of (really scary) stuff on the internet, I’m hanging my hat on the first article I have linked up there where it says most ticks don’t carry disease. I never would have known that if I hadn’t gotten bitten (again). Anyway, hope this is helpful.
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