Some things in life are only dangerous, sometimes. Tick bites are a good example of this. These pests regularly bite people in our area, however, they are not always a threat to health. It is only certain ticks that are capable of causing an individual harm. To help you understand why ticks are harmful in Mobile and to give you some pointers on what you should do if you are bitten, here are some things you should know.
The Reason Ticks Are Dangerous
A tick is only as dangerous as what it eats. If they were just born and are biting someone for the first time, they pose no threat at all. It is only when one of these pests bites an animal or human that is carrying a disease that they become a threat. For instance, dogs, horses, and cattle can be hosts for Lyme disease. Deer ticks can pick up this disease and then spread it to other animals and people that they bite. This same concept is true for other sicknesses like Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tularemia, Heartland virus, Powassan disease, babesiosis, and anaplasmosis.
How To Remove A Tick If It Bites You
Ticks are a lot like cattle. They take as much time as they want while eating. If allowed to, these pests will stay latched onto their prey and will draw blood for over a week. This rarely happens to people. If you are bitten, you are likely to find the tick the next time you undress or take a shower. If you find one of these pests burrowed into your skin, grab a pair of fine-tipped tweezers. Use these tweezers to firmly grab the tick as close to where its head is under your skin as possible. Next, pull outwards with steady force. Do not yank, twist, or tug. If the tick's head is left under your skin, you can get it out with a sterilized needle or leave it in until your body naturally pushes it out.
What You Should Do After You Remove A Tick
Lyme disease is one of the most dangerous diseases ticks spread. It is also extremely difficult to identify and treat without the vector that caused it. After removing a tick from your body, store it inside a plastic bag in the freezer. This will give doctors a potential vector to look at if you become sick and will help them identify which strain of Lyme disease you have so that they can treat you properly.
Some Strategies To Reduce Your Chances Of Getting Bitten
If you regularly travel through tick-dense areas, then you should be taking precautions to reduce your chances of being bitten. To help with this today, here are some great prevention strategies to keep you safe.
- Wear long pants and closed-toed shoes.
- Tuck your pant legs into your socks.
- Avoid tick-dense areas where the grass is high and there is thick undergrowth.
- Wrap heavy-duty adhesive tape, sticky-side-out, around your ankles.
- Apply tick repellant to your body before going outdoors.
- Keep your grass trimmed short and clean up sticks and debris.
The Benefits Of Tick Control
There is no reason you should have to tuck your pants into your socks and wear tick repellent on your property. By hiring the pest control experts at EnSec, you will gain access to quality tick control services for your yard. We will make sure any existing ticks are eliminated and ensure that future ticks are kept off your property.
Contact us today to discover more about our control methods and schedule your Mobile property for a visit.