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0 pointsjjeaff7y ago0 comments

As someone from the south, tools sold for the removal of ticks just makes me giggle.

Just use your fingernail, scratch it off carefully. I can't imagine trying to use this or one of the crazier, "heat a needle" or "spread vasaline on them methods" when trying to remove the sometimes hundreds of ticks and chiggars you might have after working in the wrong field for a day.

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Fomite7y ago

As someone who lived in the south and worked with people who specialized in tickborne illness, none of them recommended the fingernail approach.

Most "tools" are just a specialized set of tweezers, which aid in the pulling process in a way that doesn't separate the body from the head, and are generally recommended by the medical profession.

And the heating, Vaseline, etc. methods aren't just more work - they're actively harmful.

tapoxi7y ago

Doing it without a tool risks leaving the mouthparts embedded in your skin, leaving you prone to infection even after the tick was removed.

stronglikedan7y ago

Ridiculously terrible and potentially dangerous advice aside, not everyone has fingernails.

jjeaffOP7y ago

Unless you bite them down to a nub, all you need is a normal, close trimmed fingernail.

Ridiculously terrible and potentially dangerous to remove a tick with your fingernail? I scoff at the ignorance. The great majority of ticks will be unknowingly scratched off before you even notice you have one dug in. So I guess you could use special tools to remove those last 10% that you happened to notice before scratching them off.

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