Natural Tick Prevention

Keep yourself healthy and safe during tick season. Use non-toxic alternatives to avoid tick contact.
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In all things of nature there is something 
of the marvelous.   
                        —Aristotle

10 Tips to Prevent Tick Bites 

Questing tick waiting for victim
Ticks are not nice. I’m a big fan of nature, but ticks are just unpleasant. They show up just when the weather is starting to get warm and we want to be outside. We encounter ticks when gardening, doing yardwork, or hiking. Don’t you hate that tell-tale feeling of something crawling under your sleeve? 
Tick bites can potentially infect humans with bacteria, viruses, or parasites. Lyme disease is a serious illness. Don’t let the dread of tick season keep you from the outdoors.  Try out some of these ideas below.
10. Learn Where to Expect Ticks    
  The best way to prevent ticks is to avoid tick encounters. Know and understand tick environments. Ticks are most likely to be found:
  • In moist, humid environments.
  • In or near wooded areas around leaf litter.
  • On or near shrubs or tall grassy areas.
Questing ticks always seek a high point. The walk upwards along a stalk or out to the edges of leaves. They stand, waiting, on back legs and reach out with the front legs to grasp on to whatever may be passing by, as in the illustration above. Whenever possible, walk in the center of trails, so that foliage doesn’t brush against your legs.
9. Dress Defensively
  When you must go into areas with ticks, dress appropriately. Wear long pants and long sleeves, even on hot days. Ticks climb up, so tuck your pants into your socks, and your shirt into your pants. Wear beige, white, or light colored clothes so that you can see any ticks crawling on you before they reach skin areas. Wear a light colored, rimmed hat and avoid low tree branches. 
8. Spray a Tick Repellent
  As much as you may not like the smell, do use a tick repellent on clothing and on skin. There are natural tick repellents that you can purchase or make at home. Essential oils, vinegar, almond oils, and herbs can work to deter ticks and are safe on skin—humans and pets. Read more about Safe, Natural Tick Repellents. If you choose a commercially prepared tick repellent be aware of the ingredients, especially DEET or pyrethemin. These work really well, but are toxic and/or irritants. If you must, use only on clothing, not on skin.
7. Carry Sticky Tape
  Ticks are tiny. When they are crawling on you, try using a piece of masking tape to lift and hold ticks until you can dispose of them. You could even carry one of the clothing lint sticky rolls to pick up any ticks crawling on your pants or shirt as you hike.
6. Shower Immediately
  When you get inside from an outdoor activity, remove clothing on a bare floor, such as tiles in a bathroom. Then shower or bathe right away. Streams of water and soup suds should carry away most ticks that have not attached themselves, yet. Some ticks are too small to see and a shower is the best way to remove them before they bite and attach. 
5. Use a Clothes Drier
  Take your outdoor clothing that you have carefully removed and immediately wash all pieces, using a hot clothes drier. Simply washing them may not lose any ticks that are tight in seams or folds. A hot drier will do the trick. If you don’t have time to wash the clothes, just run all clothing, including underthings, in a hot, 30 minute spin in the drier.
4. Do a Thorough Check for Ticks
  Checking for ticks should become a regular habit in the warm months. Do a full-body check with a full-length mirror AND a hand-held mirror. Start at the bottom and work your way up. Check over all parts of the body, especially:
  • Back of the knees,
  • Between legs,
  • Between buttocks,
  • Inside belly button,
  • Under the arms,
  • Back of the neck and ears,
  • Through all hair.
Inspect yourself, your family, and your pets thoroughly soon after being outdoors. Children, and others, will likely need your help with this. Also, leave your packs, bags, and equipment outside until you can check them. Ticks will happily ride a bag into the house.
3. Remove Attached Ticks
  Not all ticks transmit diseases, and there is no need to panic if you find one attached. Remove it as soon as you find it. Work carefully with tweezers or a purchased tick removal tool. Gather at hand: fine-tipped tweezers, an alcohol swab, soap and water. Follow these steps:
  • Use the tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin as you can.
  • Pull straight up and out with an even pressure.
  • Don’t twist or jerk the tick.
  • With the tweezers, remove any mouth parts that remain, if necessary.
  • Clean the bite area with the alcohol swab.
  • Wash and clean the entire area and your hands with soap and water.
Don’t do any of the “folklore” removal systems, like painting the tick with nail polish or holding a hot match to it. You want to remove the tick right away and not wait for it to “back out” on its own.
2. Create a Tick-safe Lawn Zone
  Clean-up landscaping around a home to create a “safe” zone that has few or no ticks.
  • Mow the lawn frequently.
  • Remove leaf litter regularly
  • Clear all tall grasses and brush from around houses.
  • Make a 3-ft wide barrier edge around the lawn with gravel or wood chips. Ticks are not likely to cross it.
  • Stack wood away from the house and lawn areas. Mice and rodents can carry ticks to an area.
  • Keep play areas and equipment away from the edges of the lawn.
You may want to try mixing up some home-made tick repellent sprays for the lawn. Find some natural insect repellent tips here.
1. Let Chickens Loose!
  Ticks don’t have many natural predators in the wild. But it turns out that chickens like to eat them. If you have chickens, they can potentially eat as many as 10 ticks per hour. Ducks and ducklings, French Guinea hens, and other poultry eat ticks and other pesky insects, as well. Read more about Poultry Pest Control at Mother Earth News. Cluck, Cluck!
Follow-up On Your Observations
  If you do get a bite, track it for several days, and keep an eye on it for up to 30 days. Use a non-toxic marker to circle the area of the tick bite so that you know where to look. Look for:
  • A rash or an obvious “bulls-eye” appearance of rings.
  • Any signs of fever or chills.
  • Aches and pains, including joint pain.
There are a number of different tick-borne illnesses that may have similar symptoms. If you suspect a tick-related disease, immediately contact your healh-care provider.

If you liked this article about Natural Tick Repellents, you might enjoy reading Natural Tick Repellents and also Natural Remedies for Bee Stings.

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