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* Use insect repellent containing DEET (eg, RID, Tropical Aerogard, Bushmans)
* Wear long sleeved clothes
* Tuck your trousers into your socks
* Wear a wide-brimmed hat
* Mitey Tick-Off device - ultrasonice pulse repellent
While no product is 100% effective, these methods may reduce the risk of tick bites.
It is also important that parents remember to check their children's bodies after walks in the bush, especially their heads and necks. Young kids will often scratch the tick bites, which can cause the ticks to release toxins.
It is very important not to disturb it during the process of removal, so the best way is to FREEZE it with ether-containing spray,
e.g. MEDI FREEZE TICK OFF - Freeze it, don’t squeeze it!
DO NOT USE TWEEZERS TO REMOVE LIVE TICKS!
Place the spray approx. 0.5 cm above the tick and spray 3 times. The tick should die instantaneously. If the tick still moves 10 minutes later, repeat the process. Wait for the tick to drop off (up to one day) or, if it doesn’t drop off on its own, remove it with tweezers - it is ok now as the tick is dead - still taking the utmost care to not compress it.
Ticks are parasites, which feed on blood from the host (humans or animals) to which they are attached to. If you are a resident of Sydney’s North Shore area, you are likely to encounter ticks, as they tend to dwell in bushy areas with lots of trees and in moist and humid conditions. Most of the time, animals and humans get ticks from brushing past bushes or trees where these parasites are located.
The most common tick in Australia is the paralysis tick or Ixodes Holocyclus. Tick bites can cause serious health problems for humans and pets, and if not treated correctly, even life-threatening conditions. This guide will help you to be prepared to remove the tick bites correctly in order to minimise the risk of the tick releasing its allergenic protein (which can happen when it is disturbed, e.g. while being pulled out with tweezers) and to avoid developing the mammalian disease and anaphylactic reaction.