Community Chat

[KitTkat]

So, to get out of the house I went for a walk in the woods and came home with a hitchhiker. I have a tick in my upper leg. (It's closer to my backside where I can hardly see it) I've tried apple cider vinegar, a lit match, peppermint, and the nasty thing won't let go. Any ideas out there? I live in the Pacific northwest, and tickborn illnesses here are rare, but that doesn't mean I don't want the thing out ASAP. I'd like to use the doctor as a last resort considering the virus crisis. Btw, I'm single and take care of my mom, and she doesn't have the best eyesight to try to remove it for me. I'll take any help or suggestions I can get. Thanks.

[Witchy Woman]

 @KitTkat 

While not the approved method, I've always just pulled them out with a tweezer if I could reach them. 

Normally, I'm so grossed out when one attaches, I don't want to fiddle around getting it out.  I just take hold and pull it off.

Of course, I cleanse the area with something and keep an eye on it for infection or swelling.  Mine have been mostly the larger ticks, not deer ticks, so easy to see.

[GabbyAnn]

A nurse once told me to soak the area where the tick is with liquid soap, that it would come off.   Never tried it myself, but I do remember her telling me that when my daughter was younger.  

[OKPrincess]

we were told to be sure to get the tick head out of the skin.

I was no stranger to seed ticks spending my younger years in the big thicket of east Texas.

[Boomerdotty]

Sometimes smothering them in Vaseline gets them to pull out and start moving.

[KKJ]

Any kind of oil works well. Baby oil, vegetable, etc.  Just douse area  with oil and tick will come off easily. The oil suffocates them.

[ValuSkr]

A lit match??  Be careful, don't hurt yourself!

[Nbo]

@KitTkat 

How to remove a tick

1. Use fine-tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin’s surface as possible.
2. Pull upward with steady, even pressure. Don’t twist or jerk the tick; this can cause the mouth-parts to break off and remain in the skin. If this happens, remove the mouth-parts with tweezers. If you are unable to remove the mouth easily with clean tweezers, leave it alone and let the skin heal.
3. After removing the tick, thoroughly clean the bite area and your hands with rubbing alcohol or soap and water.
4. Never crush a tick with your fingers. Dispose of a live tick by putting it in alcohol, placing it in a sealed bag/container, wrapping it tightly in tape, or flushing it down the toilet.

[lolakimono]

@KitTkat 

How about some humor for today? 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tiPndMqxLQ

[Carmie]

Oh, I got this.  I live in a highly infested tick area.  The best and easiest way to safely remove a tick from a human or a,pet is to use a Tick Key.

They  are around $8 or so and really valuable to have on hand.  You can see how they work on YouTube.  They are sold at many sites.  I got mine at Pet Expectations which is a small family business on line.