Just because we’re in the last weeks of summer doesn’t mean that we’re “out of the woods” with ticks just yet. In fact, ticks still thrive during this time of year, and it’s easier than you might think to track them into your house after spending time outdoors.
Straight from your local tick control pros, here are some tips for surviving the rest of tick season and keeping your family and pets safe.
High Risk Areas Outdoors
Ticks love areas with lots of moisture and also the hot and humid weather of summer. In the outdoors, ticks mostly live in tall grass and wooded areas. Many of our favorite summertime activities put us at risk of tick exposure, such as camping, hunting, and gardening.
How to Avoid Bringing Ticks in the House
As summer turns into fall, ticks tend to invade buildings in search of warmth. Ticks often take up residence in damp basements, attics, and even inside walls. After you spend time outdoors, check all of your clothing for ticks. It is a smart idea to wash clothes in hot water and tumble dry with high heat to kill ticks that have latched onto clothing.
Take a shower as soon as you come in from the outdoors to get any potential ticks off your skin. Some of the most important parts of the body to inspect for ticks are inside the belly button, in the armpits, in and around the ears, the back of the knees, and around the waist. Talk with your dog’s veterinarian about getting your pup on a preventative medication for ticks so that you don’t have to worry about a potential infestation after every walk.
How to Get Rid of Ticks in the House
There are some cleaning measures that you can take to ensure that the interior of your home is tick-free as well. One solution for how to get rid of ticks in the house is to do a thorough vacuuming to remove ticks and their eggs in the house. This should include vacuuming everything from the carpet to sofa cushions, cabinets, pillows, and especially areas that are frequented by pets. The crevices and folds of pet beds are notorious for harboring ticks, so these should be washed regularly.
You can also wash household linens, comforters, pillow cases, and rugs to get rid of ticks. Cleaning up clutter and treating tick-prone areas with a pesticide will help alleviate the problem too. It is advised to contact a professional to utilize pesticides for the chemical control of ticks, especially for the safety of kids and pets.
Pro Tips for Tick Control
If you don’t effectively eliminate ticks from your property, you could be putting your family at risk of developing diseases like Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tick-borne meningoencephalitis, and Lyme disease. The best way to avoid the risk of a tick infection is by having an experienced New Jersey tick control specialist come out to your property.
Our exterminators will inspect hard-to-reach areas, like gaps and crevices in your home, to look for ticks. We’ll also remove nests where ticks like to live before latching onto a human or animal host. From there, we’ll use a commercial-grade insecticide to apply to problematic areas and offer advice on how to keep ticks away for the rest of the year. Being mindful about where ticks live is the first step to prevention, so always keep this in mind after spending time outside!