A tick is an insect that uses animals or humans as its foods source. The tick implants its head inside the animals or humans skin and feeds off of their blood. The tick remains until it is full and then releases itself.
This article will discuss tick removal, lyme disease, lyme disease vaccination, tick myths and tick prevention.
How to Remove a Tick
1) Grasp the tick with a pair of tweezers. Grasping as close to the skin as possible.
2) Grasp tick with tweezers firmly while quickly pulling the tick out of the skin.
3) Squeeze the removed tick with tweezers to kill it and dispose of it.
4) Clean the skin and the tweezers with rubbing alcohol or witch hazel.
5) Wash hands.
6) Apply aloe vera to reduce irritation. (optional)
Lyme Disease
People and animals can contract lyme disease after being bitten by an infected tick. The first symptom of lyme disease is a rash at the bite area. If you notice a rash, see a medical professional immediately. The early stages of lyme disease can cause flu like symptoms, but lyme disease can progress to a much more serious condition if left untreated.
Not every tick is infected with lyme disease and therefore not everyone that is bit by a tick will contract the disease. If you contract lyme disease, it can be treated by a medical professional with antibiotics.
Lyme Disease Vaccination
A vaccination for lyme disease is now available to humans and pets who live in areas where lyme disease is abundant. If you are interested in the lyme disease vaccination, contact your medical care professional to see if it is available in your area and to discuss the pros and cons of the vaccination.
Tick Myths
There are a couple of popular myths surrounding ticks. One is that if the ticks head is ripped off during the tick removal process leaving the head in the skin, that the head will continue to live and burrow its' way inside the hosts body. This is NOT true. If the head is left in, the hosts body will absorb the head and dispose of it. The tick head can not live without the body. Another popular myth is that if you burn a tick or apply Vaseline to the ticks body, the tick will back itself out of the hosts skin. This is also NOT true.
This article will discuss tick removal, lyme disease, lyme disease vaccination, tick myths and tick prevention.
How to Remove a Tick
1) Grasp the tick with a pair of tweezers. Grasping as close to the skin as possible.
2) Grasp tick with tweezers firmly while quickly pulling the tick out of the skin.
3) Squeeze the removed tick with tweezers to kill it and dispose of it.
4) Clean the skin and the tweezers with rubbing alcohol or witch hazel.
5) Wash hands.
6) Apply aloe vera to reduce irritation. (optional)
Lyme Disease
People and animals can contract lyme disease after being bitten by an infected tick. The first symptom of lyme disease is a rash at the bite area. If you notice a rash, see a medical professional immediately. The early stages of lyme disease can cause flu like symptoms, but lyme disease can progress to a much more serious condition if left untreated.
Not every tick is infected with lyme disease and therefore not everyone that is bit by a tick will contract the disease. If you contract lyme disease, it can be treated by a medical professional with antibiotics.
Lyme Disease Vaccination
A vaccination for lyme disease is now available to humans and pets who live in areas where lyme disease is abundant. If you are interested in the lyme disease vaccination, contact your medical care professional to see if it is available in your area and to discuss the pros and cons of the vaccination.
Tick Myths
There are a couple of popular myths surrounding ticks. One is that if the ticks head is ripped off during the tick removal process leaving the head in the skin, that the head will continue to live and burrow its' way inside the hosts body. This is NOT true. If the head is left in, the hosts body will absorb the head and dispose of it. The tick head can not live without the body. Another popular myth is that if you burn a tick or apply Vaseline to the ticks body, the tick will back itself out of the hosts skin. This is also NOT true.
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