Do you remember when men’s magazines were about fishing, hunting and politics? Popular Mechanics, Time, This Old House are what I remember seeing at the Doctor’s office when I was a younger. If there was any sort of magazines on the waiting room table at all that is.
Remember when Doctor’s offices didn’t have t.v.’s in the treatment rooms? Like we can’t sit there for 5 minutes staring at the wall? Is this what my co-pay is going towards? Men’s magazines with articles about XXX in them and televisions turned to MTV? If I had to bring a 5 year old into a treatment room would I want them watching that junk? No. Would I want to have to go through the trouble of getting a nurse to turn it off? No.
Saturday evening while I was planting sweet potato slips a tick crawled up my pant leg and decided to embed itself in the back of my knee. I didn’t feel anything, and didn’t even notice it was there until about 2 hours later when I was getting ready to hop in the shower.
Something on the back of my knee itched, so I took a look and what do you know…. there was a tick wiggling around and trying to dive deeper into my skin. I wanted to hurl.
Luckily I kept calm and pulled it out with a pair of tweezers {I tried using a tick twister, which have worked beautifully on Lucy but the tick was too small}. And then I couldn’t sleep the rest of the night because I felt like bugs were crawling all over me and in my hair.
As soon as I got up the next morning I checked the tick bite area and noticed the area surrounding the bite was red and a little puffy so I headed to the urgent care center to get it looked at.
The nurse was super nice and said he sees about 10-15 tick bite patients a day and that about 50% of the ticks in our area carry Lyme disease. {Greaaaaat}. He gave me 2 doxycycline pills and told me to keep an eye on the area for the next month. If I see a bulls eye rash, have joint pain, stiffness or swelling or flu like symptoms to come back in and he’d put me on a 3 week cycle of doxycycline pills. Good times.
I told him about the garden, and all the freakin’ grass we have and that we live in the woods and wouldn’t it just be easier for him to send me home will a bottle of pills because chances are I’m going to be a frequent flyer and it would just save everyone a bunch of time {and MONEY} if I could just have the pills NOW.
He was mildly amused but told me no, that they had plenty of pills at the office and I could come back anytime for more.
And then he asked me where I was from and when I told him Seattle he said what everyone says “Wow, doesn’t it rain a lot there?” and I said “YES, and the skies are grey 60% of the time and I AM SO HAPPY TO BE HERE even if there are ticks, snakes, bears and wild turkeys who sit in our garden, and a creepy unidentified animal {the size of Lucy but shorter} that slinks out of our barn everyday.”
And then I recalled a conversation I had with the 2 worker guys who were at our house the day before and how while we were standing outside talking, a tick crawled on one of the guys and he told me that we needed to get our property sprayed. Like right away. It’s what people do here to cut {way down apparently} on ticks and mosquitoes.
Seriously? If this is true, I think New England needs to issue some sort of operators manual for people moving to this part of the country. Information on deadly bugs, how not to burn down your house, what type of snowblower you’ll need come winter, why nobody says AWESOME but everybody says WICKED, and why nobody tries to pressure you into buying anything or over communicates with you unless you initiate it. You know, just a few things I think would be helpful to newcomers.
The learning curve, it’s serious here. 😉
~Mavis
Kay Bowles says
Hi Mavis! Not to alarm you, but please take Lyme Disease seriously and watch for those symptoms. My husband is disabled due to Lyme Disease and had we known what to watch for and expect, things might have turned out differently. But that was in 1994 at Fort Bragg, NC and Rocky Mountain Fever was the only thing folks were concerned about at that time. Take care!
Deborah says
I got a small tick off of me, too. So far, so good. I am keeping an eye on it. We have an acre of land, but are surrounded on three sides with wooded areas. We have deer across the road from us, so of course there are deer ticks. They have a white spot on them, and do carry Lyme disease. I did pick one off of hubbys shirt about a month ago. Cedar trees and ticks go ha d and hand here in Texas. It makes me want to cut them all down, but they do beat pine trees, in my opinion.
What do you spray for ticks? Curious minds want to know.
Mrs. C. says
Bullseye rashes show up only about 50% of the time. Don’t rely on that alone.
The best tick eaters are guineas. We are thinking of getting some for that purpose.
Jess McCarthy says
Yes! My husband contracted Lyme disease and he never had a bulls eye rash. I would seriously take the full course to be on the safe side after watching what he has gone through. He was in very good shape, rarely ever sick. It took a couple of months before he got really sick.
Mrs. C. says
If Lyme and similar diseases aren’t enough to scare everyone, a bite from the Lone Star tick can cause an allergy to meat. Seriously. Do a web search for articles on it. Three people in my town have had this happen to them.
Carrie says
My father in law and cousin had this happen here in NC.
LAURI COATES says
We live in humid southern IL….ticks, skeeters, fleas, the whole nine yards. I give our jackabee Bubba (beagle and Jack Russell mix) monthly treatments of Advantage Multi, good for fleas, ticks and heartworm prevention. We also have the grounds sprayed every month for fleas and ticks, as well as mosquito treatments. Just contact some local pest companies, most of them treat around here. Amazon also sells some tick treatments that are tube like, and stuck into the ground like stakes. My daughter uses them in addition to the spraying, along a wooded area behind their proprty line, Before hubby and Bubba go for walks, they both get sprayed with a 50%-50% mixture of water and original listerine,,,works like a charm and seems to keep gnats, etc from bothering them, too. I keep the back of the house (kitchen/pantry area surrounded with a crazy growing mint bed. Really repels the mice in the fall, as well as house ants, etc. all summer long. POSSUM love to eat ticks too, but of course guinea are cuter……..just some ideas
Mrs. M. says
Hi!
We’ve had a few opossum in our yard. When the dogs go after them and make them “play possum,” we can see they’re infested with fleas! My husband carries them (while they’re playing dead) away from our property and releases them, but our outdoor cats have fleas now and have to be treated.
Opossum may be great tick eaters, but I wouldn’t encourage them to live in my yard!
Mandy says
Any particular type of mint?
Lesa says
If you let your chickens free range in your yard, they will eat the ticks so that should mostly solve the problem.
Lissa says
If this is true, I think New England needs to issue some sort of operators manual for people moving to this part of the country. Information on deadly bugs, how not to burn down your house, what type of snowblower you’ll need come winter, why nobody says AWESOME but everybody says WICKED, and why nobody tries to pressure you into buying anything or over communicates with you unless you initiate it.
This is perfect :). I guess the chickens could eat a bunch, but not sure how to combine that with spraying the yard. So much to learn is right! So sorry about the tick. IIRC from nursing days, I think it has to be impeded for 2 days for transmission. Hoping the brain is correct because you found it quickly.
Lissa says
IMBEDED
Patty P says
I contracted Lyme over 25 years ago. I had been bit less than 24 hours before it had been found that I had Lyme.
Nancy D says
The creepy slinking animal describes an opossum accurately. They love rooting around outbuildings and under houses and are nocturnal. Not sure where you are in New England, but here’s an interesting article on Opossums and ticks…
http://www.unionleader.com/article/20180518/OPINION04/180519280/1029/news22
Anne says
Get out and socialize with the locals and they will give you the ins and outs of New England living .thats what the pilgrims did
Elise says
My SIL is from Lyme county CT… Even here in Northern California, we have more Lyme than people realize. My daughter had a tick (from WHERE!?!?!? – it was a weeknight and she hadn’t been anywhere except home, school and ballet class). I wracked my brain to figure out how long it could have been there (in the middle of her upper back), and then I remembered seeing her with her hair up and her back exposed in a leotard the day before, so less than 48 hours. Yes, 48 hours is the key, but in NE they are very conservative and medicate all tick bites now.
As my doctor says (for moles, but it applies to ticks as well) “turn it into something that could be fun with your husband (partner) and to a whole body check occasionally” 😉 And/or get a full-length mirror!
Jennifer Jo says
My dad has had lyme four times now, maybe…. Caroline just got treated before we left. It’s part of life: take it seriously, but no need to be alarmed.
Carolyn Krueger says
Our vet recommended a Lyme Disease vaccine for our dog this year – can’t wait until there’s a human vaccine so none of us have to worry anymore! I read somewhere that Khaki Campbell ducks also help with tick control? I don’t have them (yet) so I can really say for sure. Sounds like a good excuse to get some ducks though 🙂
I’m not sure how much help it really would be but I might douse it with Redmond’s Clay to at least ease my mind and “think” that the clay is sucking any bad stuff back out. It’s my go to for all kinds of skin afflictions.
andrea d says
Pennsylvania, where I live, is known for having some of the highest numbers of confirmed Lymes cases. Though I know it is something to pay attention to, having lived here all my life I don’t worry too much. We don’t spray, probably never would. (If I did anything, it would be looking into using essential oils to make a bug spray that might deter them or finally getting the chickens I’ve been dreaming of.) We check ourselves every night and keep an eye out for any suspicious ‘bulls eye’ rash.
Last year my 9 yr old daughter had our first ever case (first in my family, I mean). There was never any rash; we never saw the tick. One morning she woke up and her knee was swollen and sore. She was on a 28 day course of antibiotics that cleared it up quite well. It remains to be seen if she will have any long term effects, but so far no other issues.
Every year I see so many articles claiming ‘Worst year yet for ticks’. I haven’t noticed any increase from year to year. Since my kids were little (really since I was little) it isn’t unusual to find 3 or 4 ticks on a daily basis- of course I have five kids who run around in fields and forests all day long.
Lindsey says
I had Lyme and it did not have the traditional bull eye but more of a rash around the bite. Symptoms took 4 months to show and they started with disabling headaches. Doxy alone didn’t cure it but hopefully for you it will be fine since you started on it immediately.
Ellie says
Get yourself some tall socks and tuck your pants in. Then spritz with a homemade cedar spray.
Years ago in my soapmaking days, I created a dog shampoo bar with neem oil, lemongrass and cedar wood essential oils. It helped with fleas. I also made a spritz that I mist onto their bedding and used on myself before heading out. Never had a problem with biting insects. Ticks hate cedar so maybe whip up a batch? Just get a bottle of witch hazel, cedarwood and lemongrass essential oils. I usually added about 20 (15 cedar + 5 lemongrass) drops to a 4 oz sprayer. Give your socks a spray before heading out.
I have a ton of supplies and would be happy to make and send you some to try. Let me know!
Cindy says
You should get Lucy the Lyme vaccine. I’ve had several dogs get lyme and have to be treated.
Lisa C. says
I treat our clothes with a permethrin soak. Hope you allow links. This is not the exact article I have printed out, but it is very similar. We found such a difference with mine and my husband’s clothes being treated and our son-in-laws not being treated, we had no ticks on us at all, while he found about a half dozen crawling on him.
https://sectionhiker.com/permethrin-soak-method-guide/
Practical Parsimony says
Chickens allowed to free range will clear up the tick problem. Just have the guys spray the perimeter and not anywhere the chickens will be. There is a commercial spray for your clothing. I have been allergic to meat all my life, so I might have gotten a tick early. there is a test for lyme. But, it is not a good test. There is a better test, more thorough.
Nick Duffy says
Guinea Hens are awesome little tick predators also. It takes them a bit of time like chickens, and some folks don’t like free range guinea hens.. So it’s good to be on good terms with your neighbors.
UpstateNYer says
ALWAYS wear your white socks outside of your pants bottoms. Use a rubber band on the bottom of your pants if you need to. This eliminates the ways for bugs to get up your legs. Be sure to check in your shoes too when you take them off outside. It looks silly but it keeps you safe. Never garden or mow the lawn in shorts.
Jennifer says
Just diagnosed with Lyme! Literally, 6 weeks of 2 different antibiotics and I’m Lyme free now. Have no clue when I was last bitten by a tick but with animals and as much as I’m outdoors, not a surprise. Only reason I knew was that my left knee swelled up and I was non-weight bearing. A friend randomly suggested Lyme, lo and behold!!! I was positive. Only bad thing, Lyme left me with arthritis in the knee so I hobble a little. At 38, arthritis is a little hard to swallow but it’s a better diagnosis than not eating red meat for the rest of my life.
My husband uses permithrin (sp?) when he goes outside. It works for him.
Laura says
OMG…this is making me so glad to be living here in the PNW. So far, ticks are not a big problem around here (though I suppose that could change over time). This makes being outdoors such a challenging thing and I LOVE to be outdoors.
Sounds like you are getting some good advice on how to handle things going forward. I hope that you are cured and that the chickens do the trick. Good luck!!
Joy says
As a long time Massachusetts girl, yup, ticks are the worst. We found that a combination of free range chickens (!) and Tick Tubes helped a lot. The tick tubes are filled with treated cotton balls that the mice use as bedding. Ticks start out on mice so by treating the bedding you greatly reduce the next generation of ticks. Sadly, it’s not a first year fix but we found it absolutely worth it to put them out.
Lori says
I am sorry to hear of the tick bite. Hope you don’t have any further problems. I do think some of the readers or workers have warned you about the ticks and the wood stove.
Susan says
This is true. Kinda makes you feel that she writes her posts but never goes back to read the comments people make, also she doesn’t listen to advice when New Englanders DO give it to her. If she is going to stay on her property and never inter-act
with other people, (who could give her useful information), she has no reason to complain.
Sue P. says
Seriously? She totally reads the comments. Maybe you should read them too to read her responses. I happen to totally enjoy her blog and her writing does NOT come across as complaining. It comes across with a ton of humor and I crack up reading it.
Mavis Butterfield says
Actually, I do read all the comments. 🙂
Tracie@SomewhatAwry.com says
😉
Cheryl says
Seriously???
Cheryl says
I meant that to be under Susan, not you Mavis, I know you read the comments.
Mim says
It’s the grossest thing to find a tick on you, isn’t it? I used to get totally paralytic when I was a kid and we would go to Cape Cod (where they are epidemic, believe me). I always got them there and it was the worst. Even now, if I find one crawling on me, like you, I feel it for days. You itch all over and imagine they’re everywhere.
I don’t know how you feel about chemicals, but this is one place where I swear by serious bug spray. Deep Woods Off is rated to be the best, and I apply it everyday before I go into the garden or the meadows. With it on, I never see ticks and I am comfortable wearing shorts. If I forget, like I did the other day, I inevitably find one crawling.
BTW, I have had doctors tell me the thing about how they have to be embedded for 36-48 hours to transmit Lyme. This is absolutely false and I don’t know where it came from. You can brush against a tick, it can bite you and leave/get brushed off, and you may get Lyme. This I know from two docs who I really trust. So don’t let people tell you you don’t need the medication if it wasn’t embedded for 36-48 hours.
The learning curve here really isn’t that bad. I’m sorry about your experience with the wood stove, but that wasn’t anything you could have known about and I don’t think any native would have come into your house and instantly looked at the installation and told you it was dangerous.
As for snowblowers, they’re not worth it, in my opinion. What you need is a wonderful plow guy.
Hang in there — you’re doing great! (And wear bug spray and treat Lucy with vaccine and Frontline Gold — it’s the least invasive to her system and works the fastest. Because you don’t want her bringing ticks into the house. Oh, and the lint roller by the door really works — roll it over her when she comes in and it will pick up any tick that’s on her.)
Julie P says
Mavis this is hideous! It’s making me cringe. We do have occasional ticks on the dogs but as far as I know I’ve never had one on me, my husband or kids. Yuk! Yuk! Yuk! You need to eventually write the welcome pamphlet for newcomers to your area! I wish I hadn’t read this before bed! I know giant ticks will be in my dreams.
Carolyn says
Your post interested me so I did some further research and found —-
Tick-borne anaplasmosis surging in Maine as well as NH, MA, RI, VT – and it’s worse than Lyme.
The illness produces more severe symptoms than Lyme disease and is more difficult to detect; reported cases surged from 52 five years ago to 433 so far this year. Cases of anaplasmosis, an illness with flu-like symptoms that are similar to Lyme but typically more severe, have jumped from 52 a year in Maine five years ago to 433 this year, through Oct. 24, according to the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Of this year’s 433 cases, 113 were hospitalized, according to Maine CDC statistics.
Anaplasmosis symptoms are flu-like and can include fever, chills, fatigue and joint pain. About 25-30 percent of all anaplasmosis cases result in hospitalizations, compared to about 5 percent of Lyme cases.
You can read more at the following link —
https://www.pressherald.com/2017/11/13/anaplasmosis-cases-surging-in-maine/
Mimi says
You are scaring me into never leaving the PNW with all this tick talk. 😀
Mavis Butterfield says
Mrs. HB said keeps telling me I should just move back.
Terri says
Mimi – I’m with you… most dangerous thing we have here are slugs… big Gigantic Banana ones if you hike in the Olympic mountains or forest… Big and slimy… yeah no – nothing to fear here.
Mavis you seem so happy with your choice – I guess this is something you just have to be aware of. You have a lot of good advice from the natives… I’m with you – you should have been given a prescription right then and there. If you don’t need them now – bets are you’ll need it soon enough. And get a new doctor – he should have known the bulls eye symptom was not accurate.
Best wishes for a less eventful summer.
Seattle Terri
Mama Cook says
Yeah, but if you’re bit by a slug will you get “slime disease?”
Always cracking myself up over here!!!!
Mavis-Praying you’re through the worst of it!
Cass says
I disagree with giving out Rx for doxy willy nilly cuz you are afraid that the tick that bit you might be infected and pass that infection on to you. That is the Quickest way to make a pathogen drug resistant. And when it comes to insect born illnesses the LAST thing we need is for the drugs to stop working on them.
Write down the date you got bitten on your calendar and if you develop “flu like symptoms” in the next 4 – 6 weeks get to the doctor….the same one that has it in your chart that he treated you with prophylactic doxy for a tick bite and get the Rx for the full month’s worth.
Otherwise, live your life. Bugs are everywhere….some are worse than others, for sure….but you aren’t going to escape them no matter where you live.
Kristen Finnemore says
Hi Mavis – ticks go with theNE territory. There are some decent DIY sprays and some pesticide laden treatments too.
I’ve have had many a tick bite me. They leave a mark; you circle it and then observe and report. If it looks worse after a day or so, get to the doctor. but in the meantime, spray your socks, work pants and shoes with repellent. Be vigilant. Every area has their own rodents/bugs/weather.
Welcome to New England.
Mavis Butterfield says
The first thing I did after pulling it out was GRAB THE SHARPIE and draw a circle around the bite. I am very allergic to bees so I’m all about the Sharpie.
Lissa says
One other thing: did you take the tick with you to the doctor? Usually the doctor likes to see what stage of development the stinker is at.
Mavis Butterfield says
No, I didn’t realize I was supposed to save it but now I do. GAG.
Dolores says
Hubby is active outdoors man- hunting and fishing. Over the years he has gotten bitten by ticks a lot. He had none of the basic symptoms–no bulls eye. He started feeling funny in his chest–he described it as just a funny feeling. Overnight hospital stay- several heart tests (over a $1000 out of our pocket in co pays)– no heart problems. At his doctor visit– he asked his doctor could it be Lyme disease. Another test and lo, it was Lyme disease. If there is going to be any odd symptom or strange medical occurrence it seems to happen to him. Thank heavens we don’t have ticks in our yard– good luck on finding a solution.
Practical Parsimony says
Or me!
Jenny says
We went for a walk in the woods one day with our children. When we get back in the car my daughter asks my son what the spot on his shorts was. It was a tick. He totally flips out, starts screaming and flaying wildly to get it off. It goes flying through the car and lands IN MY HAIR!!! I have thick brown hair and it took my husband five minutes to find the thing and kill it. Good times.
Suzanne says
Jenny I know this must have been a terrible experience for you, but your post gave me my first hysterical laugh of the day. My apologies 🙂
Marcia says
again, making my skin crawl. Ugh
Cathy says
You might consider having your gardening clothing treated by a company called Insect Shield. For just under $10 an item (pants, shirts), they will treat it with Permethrin and it lasts through 70 washings. I also have sprayed my sneakers with the stuff. I lived in coastal Rhode Island for 37 years and I’ve had Lyme and Erlichiosis in the past and don’t want it ever again.
Mavis Butterfield says
70 washings!!!! Thanks Cathy.
Katherine says
Not to belittle the tick problem in New England and other places but all the talk of spraying for ticks and mosquitoes concerns me because it also kills all the beneficial insects like bees that pollinate our gardens and lady bugs that eat the aphids to name a few.
Look into how to attract Opossums to your yard. They eat roughly 5000 ticks in a season. They are not the most beautiful animals but they are pretty harmless and will help keep your tick population down naturally.
Practical Parsimony says
The possums will eat chickens!!! Deter them!
Jo says
Seeing all of the mosquito spray yard signs in my neighborhood makes me so frustrated I could scream and cry.
All the beneficial insects of summer (except the dang carpenter bees) are gone. No lightening bugs. No dolly polices, no wasps, no ladybugs,. The bug world had die, good and bad.
They are killing everything with that stuff. It so bad for the plants when there are no pollinators because they been killed by mosquito spray.its also in the air and the water.
Please try every option mentioned before a barrier spray, especially Guienny hens, they work.
Gee says
Ah, Mavis, that stinks. Tick bites stink. And here I was feeling sorry for myself because I’m covered with black fly bites from a weekend in the Adirondacks.
FYI, my brother’s place is surrounded by forest. They used to have deer dragging ticks into the lawn overnight, which then got on the dogs, etc. He finally put an electric fence around the whole yard to keep the deer out and the ticks are gone, too. They still check, but haven’t had a problem since.
Michelle B. says
I am pretty sure that a great many of these comments are going further cause Mavis anxiety, rather than help her..I am sure everyone means well, but..Anyway, Mavis,I am glad you went to Dr right away and I am confident that you will be watchful of any changes in your health..No hopefully you can get to that informative Welcome to New England pamphlet so that other can benefit from your experiences here’s to your health and your new found happiness and contentedness, despite all the unwanted critters and other challenges.
Michelle B. says
*to, now
Lindsey says
I don’t think anyone wants to cause her more anxiety, but because she is not from around here it is important to understand how to prevent and recognize tick bites and how to know when the tick bite is something more serious.
Sandra Guillemette says
I hope these two help everyone
Here are some great pictures of ticks to help identify them quickly.
http://www.tickencounter.org/tick_identification?__s=giq4qp2puskcesihj6sz
https://organicdailypost.com/7-ways-make-yard-hostile-ticks/
Ashley says
Nematodes!!!! If you have a tick issue, get nematodes. They are a non toxic, long term tick killer. My friend used them for fleas and they worked perfectly. She used to do the drops on her dog every 4 weeks and was still having flea problems. Sprayed the yard with pesticides (yuck!) and still infested. One spray of nematodes and they were gone all summer. The next summer, she didn’t have them either. The third year she started seeing them again, but much fewer numbers. She sprays nematodes yearly now and doesn’t have to use flea drops. This is my first year using nematodes but I’ve heard nothing but great things from people who have used them for fleas and ticks. I got mine from arbico organics.
Diane says
I had only heard of bad nematodes before this. I learned a lot by going to the Arbico website and reading how beneficial nematodes control fleas and ticks without pesticides. Thanks, Ashley, for teaching me something new today!
Teri says
I’m curious what the animal is. Possum, raccoon or maybe fox?
Have you thought about getting a game camera so you can see what animals are around. Maybe a nice father’s day gift for the HH.
Sorry to hear about the tick bite. 2 pills doesn’t really seem like it would do any good though but hopefully you won’t need more.
Mavis Butterfield says
I didn’t think 2 pills was that much either but it’s CDC protocol apparently. A game cam is on the HH’s list. I know the animal wasn’t a raccoon but it was a medium to dark brown.
Practical Parsimony says
Groundhog?
Mavis Butterfield says
VERY possible.
Linda says
It’s hard to adjust to living anywhere other than where you grow up, I think, having been transplanted by my husband’s job several times. But you are very resourceful and intelligent, and will be able to successfully confront any challenges that arise. Don’t let a tick bite overshadow the fact that you are in your dream home, in your dream location, with beautiful flowers and plants coming up daily to surprise you, not to mention growing chickens.
I’m guessing either an opossum (grayish, long nose) or a groundhog (waddler, brown in color) is your barn guest. The local hardware store should have live traps, and depending on which you have, you can catch it and release it somewhere else. There are other, harsher methods, but I hate killing anything (ticks excluded)
Toni says
I was told that they way the tick count in an area is achieved, is by dragging a white sheet over the ground for X distance, then counting the ticks on the sheet. So…….dragging a white sheet on the ground seems to attract the little suckers. They can live through the washer and drier, but soaking the sheet in a mild bleach solution for a few hours does the trick. Our flock arrives in a couple of weeks – can’t wait for them to get out there and eat those little demons.
Gina says
My husband had a medical practice in rural Pennsylvania. He says tick bites paid the bills. When I was little in Long Island, my yard backed up to the woods. A tick imbedded himself in my scalp. My mother removed it, but the leg stayed and had to be removed. Now in Florida, we have mosquitos in the summer. We adapt.
Thank you for being so open and please never describe anything as wicked. It’s just not you! Lol
Mavis Butterfield says
I don’t think I could ever trade in AWESOME or RAD for wicked. 😉
Practical Parsimony says
My friend assured me that ticks fall from trees. they don’t.
When my daughter was small, I was watching the ballet class she was in because the ballet teacher had an emergency and had to leave for a bit. One little girl had a tick in her eye. IN HER EYE. It was not on her skin but just inside the inner corner of her eye. It was stuck tight. I would have gotten it from my child’s eye, but not someone’s child. Well, if we were in the woods for a week, I would but mother was there in twenty minutes.
Mrs. C. says
That is just gross! AGH! Poor kid.
They DO fall from trees. I’ve had it happen to me three times!
Ally says
Hey Mavis,
I don’t know how committed you are to peace and quiet, but since my parents have gotten Guinea Fowl, they have only seen about a tick a year on their ten acres of grassy and wooded properties. I would suggest youtubeing them first, since they can make quite a racket, but if you can handle their noise and shenanigans they are a great way to help control ticks without any funky sprays. Ticks are their FAVORITE snack! And I think they are beautiful to look at – we have Pearl Guinea, but they come in all different colors.
I HATE ticks too! Make me scream!
Amy says
Our neighbours have guinea fowl and the noise is a bit like a car trying to start. It’s not a constant call either, but it does carry for a little distance. I love it because every time I hear their calls I think of how their tick and mosquito population is dramatically decreased. Mavis, thank you so much for sharing this and everyone else for commenting. We are moving to Ontario from Alberta and this is all really opening my eyes for how serious ticks are!! We don’t really get ticks here in Alberta much but they are slowly getting worse each year.
Mrs. C. says
Something else that is very important, especially if you have animals, is something called tick paralysis. A tick will latch on and if not discovered for a long time, will produce a neurotoxin that it regurgitates (gag) into the bloodstream. Dogs, horses, humans, etc., become paralyzed, usually in the hind quarters for animals. The unfortunate thing is that a lot of animals are euthanized, when simply discovering and removing the tick would reverse the symptoms and bring about full recovery.
Paula says
My grandfather who move to the Northwest from back east said he was finally in God’s country…he hated the bugs….I would say the sun is out in the NW way more than it ever has been in the past. We haven’t had a good rain forever. My garden is dry as a bone.
Sarah says
This might sound weird but use Avons skin so soft for ticks and mosquitoes
Lauren says
Hey Mavis, you should see the animals, insects, spiders and snakes we get in Australia – the great outdoors!!
I hope those Chicks get cleaning them up soon 🙂
Lisa-Marie says
Ticks and other nasty critters are a part of the wicked Maine outdoors. I told you about getting half an old sheet,put it on a pole like a flag and drag it along your area you go mostly and the ticks latch on. You can tell if you have a lot and the area you need to cut back. chlorine will kill the ticks.When your chickens start roaming free they will snap up those buggers. I wouldn’t spray but wait for the chickens. You probably have a porcupine sneaking around your property or a woodchuck. No possums here. Also keep your lawn cut low so the sun can dry them up.I love it here and now the roadside stands and sales are starting! Love sitting in my dooryard and enjoying this place. The ocean in my front yard and the woods in my back yard.
Nancy from Mass says
“awesome” is so western states….”wicked” is the way to go!
Also, you’ll hear “all set” often.
Oh! and you never ask for “a cup of coffee” you only ask for “a coffee”. “Do you want more coffee?” “Nope, all set”. see how that works!
not sure where you are…but check out the Common Man restaurants in NH. The food is amazing.
Nancy from Mass says
another thing! NH state capitol (and the town in MA) is pronounced “conquered” as in, “I conquered the 7 seas”. Not “Concorde”, as in the jet. That always bothered whenever i was watching a movie supposedly based in New England. Anyone from around here knows how to say that town. (and yes, most cities are referred to as a town. I always say “I’m heading into town” whenever i’m heading into Boston.)
Wendy says
Ben’s 100% Deet (small orange spray bottle) works for me. I believe Amazon sells it or you can get it at any camping supply store. I only spray it on my clothes and baseball hat when gardening and it keeps everything away. Also, you new furry tenant is probably a woodchuck and will do a number on your garden if it isn’t properly fenced. We have a resident woodchuck, but with the garden fencing we live in harmony (he is very cute and loves to eat apples that fall from the tree in early fall).
Mavis Butterfield says
The entire backyard is fenced {I think about 4 1/2′ or 5′ high} with split rail fencing and 2″x 2″ wire. Hopefully that will keep out a woodchuck. Unless they dig. Then I’m in trouble.
Tracie@SomewhatAwry.com says
Mavis, when we put up our fence on our property we took the same fencing, cut it into foot wide sections and wired it to the bottom of the fence and buried it a few inches deep in the ground. This will keep anything from digging under the fence. I hope that made sense! The animals can dig and dig and all they will encounter is the fence under the dirt. Let me know if you are interested and I’ll find a photo for you.
Love, love, love all of your updates!
Mavis Butterfield says
I think burrying the fence 1 foot deep would be an excellent idea. It would also be a HUGE undertaking for the HH. Ha!
Tracie@SomewhatAwry.com says
Hahahaha, please don’t tell him whose idea it was! It did keep our 150 pound Chesapeake Bay Retriever inside our fence line for over ten years though! We just reversed the way the fence went into the ground. He couldn’t did out, but other things could come in. Much to their dismay……
Betsy in MN says
I would like to weigh in with a more natural remedy. I live in MN and we have lots a ticks. Picking them off our dog’s ears is a nightly tradition. I prefer to not put insecticide on my pet.
My mother had lyme’s a few years ago and was treated with Teasel. There is much written on this plant and the success of treating lyme’s. I would highly recommend getting a bottle of the tincture or seeing an herbalist. Only a couple drops a day is all that is needed.
Last summer my herbalist thought maybe I had lyme’s and started on Teasel. My symptoms disappeared and I am doing better.
For a tick that is embedded in your skin, I would recommend a product called PRID. It is a drawing salve that will remove the tick without medical intervention. I am a believer after it removed a tick head from my son’t armpit and shards of glass from my daughter’s foot. It will also remove slivers. I got my tin at Walmart.
For immediate relief from bites, crush some plantain leaves and and place on bite. Help is around us if we know where to look!
PollyS says
Last year when my son was preparing to go to Boy Scout National Jamboree, my husband found an article saying that vitamin b1 helped repel mosquitos.
Even though I thought this was total hogwash, we bought the boy a bottle of b1 and he began taking it morning and night 5 days before his trip.
He reported back that he had no mosquito bites several times during the 3 week trip.
When he got home, his arms were covered with bites. We asked what happened. He said he forgot to take it the last night of the trip and the mosquitos got him.
Wow! It did work!
I just checked, and Mr. Google says it works for ticks too.
Maybe you should check it out?
debbie in alaska says
Well, we could have told you what to expect in New England — but you’d probably have taken it with a grain of salt and just taken the “wait and see” approach — which seems to be your style. So it’s usually better to just let people figure these things out in due time. You’ll be a pro in no time. And as you say — life is just one adventure after another. You got this.
Debra Beeuwsaert says
I use straight Neem oil on myself or clothing for the ticks. For my dog, I do use Frontline Gold and she gets a heartworm medication as well. I reside in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, lots of woods or forests around. Plus I work for MSU in a forestry area, even though I’m not working outside, the guys that do bring the ticks in on their clothing and usually will sit and pick them off and kill them. To me, the only way to kill a tick is hold it in a tweezer and put a match to it.
Also for tick checking, make sure you check between your toes, the toe nail and belly button area as well – places that a lot of people don’t think to look.
Lauren D says
Tick tubes! Get tick tubes! It works by targeting the vector who carry the baby deer ticks – chipmunks and mice- by offering them pesticide-laced fluff for their nests – (don’t worry, it’s a low mammalian danger pesticide, permethrin) and kills the ticks on them BEFORE the ticks move to their next instar and find a bigger host – like you and Lucy.
We live in NH, I’ve used them for years and went from 50+ ticks a day (no joke) to maybe one dog tick every few weeks. You can diy them, the ones from the store are stupid expensive; it’s really easy.
And it avoids spraying pesticides all over your yard- killing bees and butterflies and ants… 🙁 I hate it when my neighbors do that. :(. How does spraying work against insects that fly into the yard? I laughed when my neighbors did it, and pointed out the swamp next door….
I use a thermacell thing for mosquitos, it works so well!
Tick tubeS! Save your TP rolls!
It’d be a great blog post. 😉
Lisa says
This might be a controversial post, and it goes against everything we’ve been taught about Lyme and ticks, but I think it’s worth sharing. I’ve lived in the East for 25 years, have raised my family here and have battled Lyme with my youngest child. There’s a theory out there that Lyme disease isn’t the result of ticks, parasites, or bacteria, but that Lyme is actually viral. Viruses in the herpes family can cause all of the same symptoms of Lyme and they can lie dormant in your system for years. Different triggers can cause the virus to emerge when your immune system is weaker. One of those triggers is insect bites. Spider bites and bee stings can be more common triggers for Lyme symptoms than tick bites (believed to be accountable for less than 0.5% of Lyme disease cases). A bite that leaves some of the critter or their fluids in your skin can result in an infection (along with a bulls-eye rash), which in turn weakens your immune system and the virus then takes that opportunity to emerge. It may take a while for the symptoms to show, but the trigger itself isn’t behind the symptoms, a virus is. This will probably sound unbelievable to most, so I share it only as a theory and for those who have the illness and are still searching for answers. I was blessed to have a friend knowledgeable in herbs who shared her wisdom and my daughter was able to avoid long-term antibiotic use to address her Lyme diagnosis (she’s doing great, by the way). Looking back at her experience and the experiences several of my friends have had with the disease, the viral theory makes much more sense to me. And it has reduced my awful fear of ticks so we can more thoroughly enjoy the great, beautiful Eastern outdoors!
Mel W. says
Hey Mavis! Sorry about the ticks! Gag! I’m from upstate NY and we say “wicked awesome.”. Or we did, when I lived there. Who knows what the young people are saying these days…
Elaine says
Hi Mavis! I live down on Long Island and we deal with ticks too. My friend was MIS-DIAGNOSED with all kinds of nonsense and it turned out to be Lyme’s disease. Everyone has had such great suggestions… Mine are – take it very seriously and get the medication now and basically, cover up!
We have crazy hot/humid weather but I never work in garden in shorts and I usually wear long sleeves too. Covering up is your best prevention. And socks and boots. I sweat like a maniac but I’d rather sweat then get attacked by mosquitos and ticks!
Good luck!
(I also use amazing soap that keeps bugs away!)