You may have heard of several folk remedies for removing ticks such as covering them with petroleum jelly, painting them with nail polish or applying heat to encourage them to detach. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, none of these remedies is effective, and they may even increase the odds for the tick to pass on a tick-borne pathogen such as Lyme disease. Removing ticks promptly is the best course of action to prevent the transmission of disease. Home tick removal is simple and the same for humans and animals.
Step 1
Grasp the tick with the tweezers as close as possible to the area where it is attached to your skin. Pulling a tick too high up can split the tick, exposing you to its blood and possibly transmitting disease, according to the CDC.
Step 2
Pull the tick upward with the tweezers in a slow and steady motion. If any tick parts remain on your body, remove those with the tweezers as well.
Step 3
Place the tick in the jar, pour in rubbing alcohol and attach the lid firmly. This will effectively kill the tick, reports the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Step 4
Label the jar with the date and, if known, approximately where the tick was picked up. If more than one family member has a tick, store them in separate jars and write your names on the jars. You will need this information in the event the person who was bitten contracts a disease from the tick bite.
Step 5
Disinfect the area where the bite occurred with a cotton pad soaked in rubbing alcohol. You and anyone else who handled the tick, should wash hands with soap and water, according to the National Institutes of Health's informational website, MedlinePlus.
Step 6
Check bitten family members for a rash at the bite site and note if anyone who was bitten comes down with flu-like symptoms. If you suspect you, a family member or a pet may have contracted a disease, visit your doctor or veterinarian and bring the jarred tick with you. This will allow your doctor or vet to determine what type of tick it is and what type of infection it may have caused.
Tips and Warnings
- If ticks on your pets or children is a chronic problem, check your yard for tick-friendly areas. To make the area inhospitable for ticks, keep the lawn mowed and eliminate tall weeds. Don't store garbage or broken household items in your yard, as this will encourage mice and other rodents that carry ticks to live in the area. If you don't have a jar or rubbing alcohol available, you can also store the tick in a sealed bag in the freezer, according to MedlinePlus.
- Do not remove ticks with your bare hands. If tweezers are unavailable, use latex gloves or a tissue to remove the tick by hand.
Things You'll Need
- Tweezers
- Small jar with cover
- Masking tape
- Pen
- Cotton pads
- Rubbing alcohol
- Soap
- Water
