The Best Tick Repellents

Though they are small, rather inconspicuous looking creatures, ticks actually pack quite a powerful punch. Not only do their bites cause extreme itchiness and irritation to your skin, but ticks are also the carriers of infectious disease, some of which result in symptoms like nausea, fevers or chills – whilst others can lead to even more serious issues like long-term neurological problems, or even death. The most famous disease ticks are known for transmitting is, of course, Lyme disease, an affliction which can cause joint pain, inflammation of the brain, and eventually death (what’s more, the global incidence of Lyme disease has been steadily increasing since the 1990s).

Tick basics

First of all, ticks are actually arachnids – not insects. This means they bear a closer relation to spiders than mosquitoes or flies. They even look similar to spiders, with four sets of legs, zero antennae – and they don’t jump or fly either. Rather, to feed ticks will latch onto a prospective (animal or human) host that comes into the vicinity of their nest. From there, they scout about for a bear batch of skin that they can easily penetrate in order to extract the blood within.

And unlike mosquitoes, when a tick bites you it will probably hang around feeding for a few days – not minutes. Because these creatures are so small, you probably won’t even notice their presence. They don’t immediately start spreading whatever disease they happen to be carrying, either. For example, it takes at least 36 to 48 hours before the bacteria that spread Lyme disease are able to infect you. Which means that if you are able to remove a tick within the first 24 hours, you will be immune to this plus most other diseases that ticks carry. The symptoms of tick-borne diseases don’t start showing up until after a few days either.

Ticks set up their nests in areas containing dense foliage and vegetation. It is usually by attaching themselves to your animals that they migrate to human habitations – once inside your home ticks will set up camp just about anywhere, including your bedding, the furniture, and soft fittings. And because they are hard to detect and breed quickly, before you know it you could have a full-blown tick infestation on your hands.

How to treat ticks?

When it comes to removing individual ticks, avoid yanking the creature away from you or your pets’ skin – or squeezing it with your fingers. Both of these methods will cause the tick to inject it’s (pathogen-containing) bodily fluids into your bloodstream.

This means regularly cutting back any dense foliage that borders your property, and where your pets like to roam – this is where ticks choose their nesting places. It also means avoiding these places as best as possible when out in the great outdoors, particularly during summer, which is peak tick season – and when that can’t be done, wearing good, thick clothing – preferably treated with insecticide – and having as few areas of exposed skin as possible. When you are out hiking, fishing, camping, another good tip is to do frequent tick checks, examining your skin for the presence of ticks every two or three hours, say.

When it comes to protecting your pets from the predations of ticks and fleas, there are numerous good options out there for both preventing and eliminating the creatures, including medications, topical treatments like Spot On and Frontline, shampoos, collars, and flea powders. Washing and grooming your pets on a regular basis is another fine way of preventing ticks from gaining a foothold.

Another good choice, and perhaps the only viable one in the case of large-scale tick infestations – where ticks have spread from your animals to the interior of the home itself – is a good tick repellant. If there are still ticks and tick eggs or larvae in your carpets, rugs, furniture and soft fittings, as well as your pets’ bedding, your animals will quickly be re-colonized by the blood-sucking pests. Because tick repellant generally comes in the form of a spray, it can be applied to all these surfaces and more – in addition, the residue left by the chemical provides lingering protection against future insect incursions.

Tick repellants are devices, usually in the form of an aerosol spray (although you can also get repellant lotions, gels, roll-ons, etc.), which contain a chemical that – you guessed it – either repels or kills outright those ticks that come into contact with it, including the eggs and larvae. DEET is the most common active ingredient in tick repellants – though recently, because of concerns about it’s environmental friendliness and toxicity to humans, other alternatives have been appearing on the market. For example, pyrethrins-based tick repellants make use of a chemical which is industrially produced but acts similarly to a naturally occurring extract from the chrysanthemum flower. Other tick repellants now appearing on the market make use of all-natural, eco-friendly ingredients like citronella and rosemary essential oil extract.

When it comes to the ongoing war against ticks, a good tick repellant is one of the best allies you can have by your side when toughing it out down in the trenches. So hopefully by looking at the nature of the problem posed by ticks, what tick repellants are and how they work, as well as listing the best tick repellent sprays currently on the market we were able to help you ensure a tick and tick bite-free summer.