Do It Yourself » MYO Pesticides » Easy Tick Removal & Kid Safe Repellent

Easy Tick Removal & Kid Safe Repellent

fb iconpinterest iconpinterest iconlinkedin iconbuffer icon

Tick season has struck and those nasty little buggers are plaguing kids, pets and outdoor enthusiasts alike! Here is a simple, painless easy tick removal tip to remove an embedded biting tick- as well as prevent future ticks from climbing all over you!
easy-tick-removal-kid-safe-repellent

Ticks can transmit a number of painful, debilitating diseases including:

  • Lyme Disease
  • Tick Paralysis
  • Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever
  • (HA) Human Anaplasmosis
  • Babesiosis
  • Southern Tick-Associated Rash Illness
  • Ehrlichiosis
  • Powassan Virus
  • Tularemia
  • Bourbon Virus Disease
  • 364D Rickettsiosis
  • Heartland Virus
  • B Miyamotoi Infection
  • Colorado Tick Fever
  • Relapsing Fever
  • Rickettsia Parkeri Rickettsiosis

Recently there have been cases in which people have developed paralysis and even allergies to eating meat following a bite from a tick. That’s the bad news, the good news is- in order to get one of those illnesses, a tick must be feeding on its host for 24 hours, which means that you have nearly a full 24 hours to find and remove a tick before it can transmit one if it’s nasties to you!

Easy Tick Removal

Here is a simple, effective, yet painless way to remove an embedded tick from a pet, use a tick tornado tool. This simple tool allows you to quickly and painlessly remove the tick with the mouthparts fully intact without squeezing or touching the tick with your hands. It’s the most effective method we’ve found to date and we use it on our own kids and pets.

In fact, this is how I removed a tick from my grandpuppy’s ear using the painless Tick Tornado:

To successfully remove an attached tick it is imperative that you twist in one direction only. This helps ensure that the tick detaches with its mouthparts intact, rather than breaking off into the skin which can cause a secondary infection.

If you don’t have the Tick Tornado, here is the last resort method for removing a tick:

Tweezer Method to Remove a Tick

Grasp the tick firmly with a pair of tweezers as close to the head as you can, pull straight up using steady pressure, inspect the tick to ensure that all of the mouthparts are still attached to the tick and not embedded in the skin. Be sure to remove any parts still embedded using tweezers.

easy-tick-removal-kid-safe-repellent

Image Credit: CDC.gov

Tick Removal Methods you Should Never Use

Here is a method that is frequently shared on Social media that you should never use to remove ticks:

easy-tick-removal-kid-safe-repellent

Squirt a glob of liquid hand soap to a cotton ball, Cover the entire tick with the soaked cotton ball for a full 20 seconds. The tick will cease biting, back out, and will remain stuck to the cotton ball when it’s pulled away.

This method has been shared stating that the ticks head is also removed and is not accidentally left in the skin, which commonly occurs when they are “yanked” out using tweezers. However, this method causes the tick to regurgitate the entire contents of its digestive tract into the skin of its host, thereby INCREASING the chance of contracting any diseases the tick may be carrying.

Never attempt to use vaseline/petroleum jelly, peanut butter, nail polish, or hot matches to detach ticks as these methods cause them to regurgitate into their host, spreading disease and increasing the risk of infections. Ticks only breathe 3-15 breaths per hour,  so suffocating them really isn’t a viable option.

Once the tick has been safely removed, wash the area thoroughly with rubbing alcohol, iodine or soap and water to clean the bitten area.

Preserving the Tick for Testing

If you are unsure of how long a tick has been embedded in your skin, place it in a jar in rubbing alcohol so that it can be tested for Lyme and/or other diseases.

Embedded Tick - Budget101.com

If you have a tick on your person and it is not yet biting, you can apply a piece of scotch tape to the tick, it will stick to it, fold the tape closed and throw it away. No need to burn it and have the nasty smell linger in your home, it won’t be able to get free.

Safely Discard a Tick using Tape- Budget101.com

DIY Repellent Spray To Prevent Ticks:

Tick Repellent №1

1 cup of water
10 drops geranium essential oil
5 drops cedarwood essential oil
3 drops lavender essential oil
3 drops lemongrass essential oil

Add 1 cup of water to a small spray bottle, then add the essential oils. Seal tightly and shake gently to mix. Apply the spray to clothing, gear, skin, and footwear prior to going outdoors. This is a wonderful blend that we use while camping with great success. This blend is safe for dogs and kids alike.

Tick Repellent №2

1/2 cup white vinegar
1/3 cup water
20 drops eucalyptus essential oil
20 drops lemongrass essential oil
10 drops citronella essential oil
10 drops lavender essential oil

Combine water and vinegar in a small spray bottle, then add the essential oils. Seal tightly and shake gently to mix. Apply the spray to clothing, gear, skin, and footwear prior to going outdoors. This blend works wonderfully to discourage ticks and other biting pests.

 

Other Effective Methods for Avoiding Ticks

  • Wear light clothing
  • Fill a small Spritz bottle with water, add 40 drops of Tea Tree Essential Oil, shake and spray on liberally.
  • Apply a solution of 0.5% Permethrin on clothing or gear
  • Avoid wooded areas and shady grasslands, stay within marked trails and always inspect yourself, your children and your pets daily to detect and remove any ticks as soon as possible.

Check your Pets for Ticks- Budget101.com

References:

View More Frugal Living Ideas

More DIY Projects

View More MYO Pesticides

15 thoughts on “Easy Tick Removal & Kid Safe Repellent”

  1. Does the tea tree oil work on pets as well. Is it safe for dogs and cats. Spraying them before outings sounds like a good idea if safe

    Reply
    • Tea Tree is toxic to cats and dogs!

      I did not know Tea Tree is toxic to cats and dogs! Thank you so much for sharing! We have house dogs and I am glad I found this.

      Reply
    • what can you use for dogs and cats then???:helpme:

      I believe I read an article that says that you can use Essence of Rosemary Oil on animals… and on people! 🙂

      Reply
  2. bad idea, regarding using soap or doing anything else – you want the tick out asap – follow the cdc’s recommendations: use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp tick as close to the skin’s surface as possible. pull upward w/steady even pressure. don’t twist or jerk; this can cause the mouth-parts to break off/remain imbedded.

    if this happens, remove mouth-parts w/tweezers. after removing tick, clean the bite area & your hands with rubbing alcohol, an iodine scrub, or soap & water.

    cdc – tick removal – ticks

    Reply
  3. This soap method works like a charm! Also, the tea tree water works just as fantastic!

    The problem with the CDC’s tick removal method is that most people yank the tick off without getting the head or all its parts…then you have a bigger issue because getting the head out easily is not always possible.

    Using the soap method is just as quick as going slow enough with a pair of tweezers and with the soap method, there is zero risk of any tick parts being left under the skin.

    This same method works with vaseline because both the soap and vaseline keep suffocate the tick; that is why it has to pull its head out. However, most people don’t have vaseline just laying around, but many households, cabins and trailers have liquid hand soap quickly available.

    Great post!

    Reply
  4. I made the tick repellent No1 that you shared in your post and the 6 of us used it over the past week while camping. I have to tell you that I was Utterly amazed that we did not have a single tick on us the entire time. it’s the first time i’ve ever camped and not gotten at least 1 tick on me.

    Thank you Budget101.

    Reply
  5. I never knew that tick bites can make people allergic to eating meats. A couple of weeks ago, I found a tick climbing on the outside of my house while I cleaning the windows. It seems like it would be a good idea to gather more information on this creature so that I can protect my family from developing illnesses.

    Reply

Leave a Comment