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Post by prairiegardens on Jul 6, 2017 1:48:10 GMT -5
anyone have any suggestions for getting rid of ticks? Up until about 4 years ago never saw any but every year they've been getting worse and now they are making doing anything outside a very doubtful pleasure. I've been bitten at least three times already this year and yesterday alone pulled 6 of them off. Loathsome little creatures. Building a place to keep guinea hens and/or chickens but it won't be ready for a while so they're too late for this year. I'd even consider pesticides.
sharing is one thing, it's getting to the point of not wanting to do stuff outside because they're so ubiquitous and it makes it hard to sleep when every little mosquito landing has to be investigated in case it's a tick.
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Post by mjc on Jul 6, 2017 9:22:51 GMT -5
Chickens, guineafowl and beneficial nematodes...any combination work well. Of course the fowl need to be free-range and there are several nematode species, so a combination pack or one labeled specifically for ticks.
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Ticks!!!
Jul 7, 2017 10:50:41 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by farmermike on Jul 7, 2017 10:50:41 GMT -5
Tick season doesn't last too long here in CA. They tend to subside when the grasslands dry down to a crisp. Probably very different from your situation!
My only suggestion would be to keep wild grasses cut down so they have a harder time grabbing onto you as you walk by -- since they like to hang out on blades of tall grass until someone brushes past them.
I agree ticks are the worst!
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Post by steev on Jul 7, 2017 19:04:29 GMT -5
They can hang out up to a year waiting for prey; admirable creatures, except for, well, you know.
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Post by prairiegardens on Jul 8, 2017 22:46:59 GMT -5
People keep saying they hang out in tall grass and so they do, but I'm absolutely convinced they also hang out in trees, I think they just climb whatever is handy. I don't believe they would or could travel from jeans to cheek without being noticed, most of them try to attach to legs or torso. I'm not that tall but it's still a long way for a tick to get to my temple. Trying to find a source for beneficial nematodes in Canada, the ones I've found so far are not helpful for ticks. Not sure about bringing in such things, Arizona has them but guvmints are persnickety these days.
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Post by reed on Jul 9, 2017 5:30:19 GMT -5
Yes, they do also hang out in trees as well as about anywhere else it seems. We haven't had as many this year as in the recent years past. There have always been ticks in my recollection but now there are LOTS of them and new kinds. You can pick them up just out in the yard, seems like they blow on the wind. The new tiny grayish colored ones creep me out the most. I'v seen them in the winter in recent years.
Tall grass and weeds and in the woods is the worst but they are everywhere. If you go into the weeds or woods avoid trails, that's where they concentrate. You will get less by fighting through the thick weeds than on the trails. If you are hiking with someone who likes to lead, let em, first through gets the most.
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Post by steev on Jul 9, 2017 21:41:15 GMT -5
This is why dogs and kids are useful.
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Post by richardw on Jul 10, 2017 0:08:13 GMT -5
The only time ive ever seen a tick was on sheep years ago, as far as i know none of the sheep stations have infestations of them these days. It was the job of the shed staff to check our backs while we were shearing for them... dont miss those days.
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Post by mskrieger on Jul 13, 2017 16:31:34 GMT -5
yeah, the moist weather here has made for tick heaven. I found a deer tick nymph on my hip just last week, and my uncle had to be hospitalized for babesiosis. Nasty critters. Mowing lawn and wearing long, ligh colored clothing is the only thing to do, until you get your flock of guineas.
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Post by diane on Jul 19, 2017 21:51:35 GMT -5
If you live alone, how can you manage to search everywhere for them - like on your back, your scalp, etc.
Or can you feel them?
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Post by steev on Jul 19, 2017 22:42:49 GMT -5
Actually, they often wander around for a day or two before getting down to business, so yes, one generally has time to notice the little blood-suckers, if one is at all physically sensitive; if one lives alone, one can generally find someone off the street willing to do a thorough inspection, provided one has kept oneself up at all, depending on one's gender inclinations.
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Post by prairiegardens on Jul 20, 2017 10:30:51 GMT -5
17 ticks!! The most I've had in one day is 7 and that seemed very much over the top!! A variation on the old lament, " they can put men on the moon but they can't come up with a tick repellent!" Or at least one that's not as hazardous to us as it is to the ticks, all things being equal.
I've had three this year that grabbed on faster than usual and were already chewing when I found them. There's been a plethora of notices on FB not to just pull them off, but to get a special tick removal tool so nothing inadvertently left behind. Really? Is anyone is going to go find the gadget while the tick is boring in? However right they may be ( or not) instinctive human reaction usually reigns supreme in such matters, at least for me. Get them OFF, ASAP.
One technique that apparently works to make them back out is dropping a little lavender essential oil on them, if one video can be believed.
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Post by reed on Jul 20, 2017 11:43:01 GMT -5
I think it depends on how long they have been attached. Being very allergic to any biting insect, I truly would rather be stung by wasps.
I'v only been bitten maybe three times in my life and then just barely. I seem to have somewhat of a sixth sense about them. I'm knocking on wood as I write this. If one ever was on me long enough to actually start feeding I would come completely apart. Get the damn thing off asap, screw the stupid tool and the people that sell it. I suppose there could be exceptions but I don't buy the part of it stays behind crap. When you pull one off a dog often times a bit of skin or even a little fur comes with it, not the other way around.
Lavender oil? Geesh, if they want a spa treatment their gonna have to go somewhere else.
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Post by steev on Jul 20, 2017 16:20:10 GMT -5
Holding a hot match-head to them is said to work
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Post by reed on Jul 21, 2017 8:12:21 GMT -5
I'v heard that but also heard it makes them regurgitate into the bite. That doesn't sound appealing at all. Adding a burn to a wound already possibly contaminated also sounds like a bad idea. Just pull the damn thing off and wipe it good with alcohol or or betadine.
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