Summertime is a great time to get the family outside and enjoy a good old-fashioned camping trip, if you can tolerate the pests that come with it.
If you’re bitten by a tick, you need to remove it without breaking the head in order to prevent risk of infection or contracting one of the many diseases they carry.
The first video below has been gaining popularity on the internet, but the CDC warns that it is “folklore medicine.” In this method a cotton swab is doused in water or petroleum jelly and the tick is slowly turned until it detaches. This method and other “tick agitation” techniques such as burning or suffocating the tick are potentially dangerous as the tick may discharge its bodily fluids into the wound. The CDC recommends removing the tick with a pair of tweezers as shown in the second video below.
If you need help dealing with flies, pests, or other creep crawlies, try some of these homemade remedies:
- Homemade Fly Trap: Everything you need to know to keep out flies
- Keep out flies with a bag of water and a few shiny pennies
- Save money and get rid of ants with this simple cotton ball trick
