Ticks are small insects that seek out animal and human hosts from which to suck blood. These small parasites can spread diseases such as Lyme Disease. Ticks are more common in wooded and tall grassy areas, but they can live almost anywhere. Prevention is key to avoiding ticks, but there are also natural ways you can treat a tick bite. Keep your home clean with these non-toxic tick prevention and treatment remedies.
Protect the Homefront From Ticks
Place cedar chips around your home to repel ticks, mice, ants and fleas. For the best protection, replace chips every year to keep them fresh. Cedar chips can be added around trees and plants as a natural decoration and landscaping selection in addition to protecting the home from pests.
Natural Tick Repellant
Mix two drops of lavender, lemon, eucalyptus, opoponax and basil with 1 tsp. of vodka, and shake in a bottle. Add 1 tsp. of apple cider vinegar. In a pot, bring three to four cups of water to a boil. Once at a rolling boil, remove from heat and add 1 cup of dried rosemary, dried marjoram and dried eucalyptus. Pour the mixture in the bottle into the pot to combine with the other items. Simmer for 30 minutes. Let cool. Drain and pour into a spray bottle.
Spray onto the dog as often as needed, and rub into the skin for added protected. This can also be used on humans.
Petroleum Jelly For Tick Removal
If you get a tick on yourself or a pet, remove it as soon as possible. The longer it is attached, the more blood it will suck and the chances of becoming infected with a disease increase. Rub petroleum jelly onto the skin around and under the tick. The jelly should loosen the tick so it detaches. Alternatively, rub garlic into the surrounding skin, and wait to see if the tick releases its head from your skin.
If these methods don't work, you can burn the tick off. Hold the heated metal portion of a lighter on the tick's back, which will cause the tick to release its head. Use a small, flat scraping device to help remove the tick faster with this method.
Tea Tree Oil
Tea tree oil is said to be a natural tick repellent. Mix a few ounces of tea tree oil with water, and spray anything you'd like to protect: your house, pets and even yourself. Tea tree oil is safe for all skin types and can be found at any pharmacy or mass merchandise chains.
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