How To Safely Remove A Tick
22nd Oct 2018
Ticks are most active in warm weather, but that doesn’t mean they completely disappear in fall. It is important to be aware of them, especially when you are spending time outdoors hiking or hunting. Even if you follow prevention tips, you could still find a tick that has attached itself to you or your pet. Use these tips to safely and easily remove it:
- Stay calm and carefully pull back any hair from around the tick to expose the surrounding area.
- Locate the head of the tick and grasp it as close to the skin as possible. This can be done using a fine-tipped tweezers and gently squeezing. Try to avoid grabbing the body because this will increase the chance of the tick’s blood getting into the skin.
- Pull outward in a straight motion until the pressure pulls out the head of the tick.
- Once the tick has been removed, clean the bite area thoroughly with soap and water, or rubbing alcohol.
- Wrap the tick tightly in tissue before disposing of it, but don’t try to crush it. If you squish a tick, you could get infected with whatever disease-causing bacteria it may be carrying.
- After you’ve safely removed the tick, keep an eye on the tick bite. Watch out for a rash, fever, neck stiffness, nausea and other symptoms within the following weeks and contact your doctor if any of these occur. Ticks can be carriers for serious diseases, like Lyme disease.
Have more questions about ticks? Contact a friendly pest expert from K&C Pest Control.