(Human) tick prevention

[QHEventer]

Our farm is surrounded by woods and this time of the year I cannot step outside without finding ticks crawling on me. I normally spray myself with Deep Woods Off, but I’m pregnant and want to avoid using anything like that.

Has anyone found any natural repellants that seem to work or anything else that may be helpful? Please don’t suggest guinea fowl or more animals - that’s the last thing I need right now and I already have chickens. Grass is mowed weekly by lawn company, I don’t know what else may be helpful. Any ideas?

(Horse’s get bi-weekly topical application which works very well, so no worries about them!)

[BrendaJane]

from the grunts at a state park:
Gold Bond Medicated Powder.
The gentleman telling us that said the invasive plant erradicating crews who go far off the beaten trail were using that. If it works, believe you me, I’d walk through the bushes like Pigpen, leaving a cloud of powder in my wake!

[QHEventer]

Thank you! That’s easy enough, I’ll give it a try

[Djones]

you might try this? I have some of their indoor spray and it does work.

Tick Spray For Yard - Wondercide

[PaddockWood]

I was just going to suggest Wondercide too. And wear white. White jeans, white long sleeves cotton tops, tall boots. Just plan on them getting stained. So what. You see a tick easier when you’re dressed in white.

[Simkie]

I find the Cedarcide tick spray to work really well. I’d never spray the yard, of course anything that keeps ticks away will also do the same to all the beneficial bugs

[amymoyer1]

Fishman friend of me recommended Green Beret insect repellent. It’s cedar oil and liquid quartz. All natural. Safe to use on dogs/cats, adults and small children. It Kills ticks when sprayed on them. It’s a little pricey for bug repellent, but it really works. I use it on myself and my lab cross when we go hiking in the woods.

[PaddockWood]

I also highly recommend the sun block fabrics. I have a couple silky Columbia OMNI shade long sleeved hooded tops for mowing etc and they are really pretty cool - in block the temps. Also serve as a physical block to ticks. Mine go straight in the washer when I come in from outside.

We have a client with Lyme disease and seeing what she went through. No thanks. I’ll do all I can to avoid that.

Ebay listing of Columbia sunshade tops:
https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_nkw=columbia+long+sleeved+hooded+omni+shade&_sacat=15724&LH_TitleDesc=0&_sop=15

[QHEventer]

Does white repel them or just make it easier to see them?! Never heard of this!

[PaddockWood]

Just easier to see.

[Mosey_2003]

I’m gonna try that Wondercide. Maybe that will give me enough buffer from the pasture to keep the ticks away from the barn and dog, I cannot STAND ticks…

[Nova2000]

Are you able to have some Guinea fowl? They are great tick eaters

[Mosey_2003]

@Nova2000

Are you able to have some Guinea fowl? They are great tick eaters

Was this to me, since OP said no guinea fowl?

If so, I am perfectly able. And completely unwilling

[Lusoluv]

I use any of the cedar oil sprays. I think they’re like 10% cedar oil and a couple other inert ingredients. Our friend’s lake house in WI is literally set in the middle of Tick USA. I actually don’t like visiting as my skin starts crawling the minute we arrive. I spray myself and my dog liberally with cedar oil mixture. My friend uses Symparico for her dog and uses Deep Woods Off for herself. After a long weekend visit, she found about 10 embedded ticks on her dog - even after daily inspections and brushing. She found over 50 on herself over 3 days, 4 of them embedded. I found 6 on my dog and about a dozen on myself - NONE were embedded - just crawling on the surface. Yuck, but no harm done!

[Nova2000]

I totally missed the part where OP said no fowl. Usually I do a better job reading the original post!

[lorilu]

I saw this idea - wrap ankles with duct tape sticky side out.

[Pico_Banana]

Some essential oils solutions do work, it’s just a question of finding the right one.

For my dogs when we go on walks in the woods, we use this https://www.amazon.com/Vets-Best-Treatment-Repellent-Certified/dp/B003QS6JL2?th=1 It makes you smell like cloves (my DH says they smell like an Easter ham), but it works super well. It is especially effective if you really douse their feet in addition to a general all over spray. Of course, it doesn’t say anything about use on humans so maybe not so helpful. Although I have occasionally sprayed it on myself.

Also consider having some dedicated clothes that you can treat with a repellant like https://www.rei.com/product/768970/sawyer-permethrin-pump-spray-24-oz These work quite well. I would just change as soon as you come back inside considering you’re pregnant. I wore clothes sprayed with this stuff all day everyday for two weeks while on safari with no ill effects.

Ticks are the worst. We also have a lot of woods around the farm and I’m considering using this https://mosquitobarrier.com/ticks.html this year. I had to treat one horse for a tick illness last year and the cost of that more than covers the cost of the garlic spray. Also, I read somewhere that this is what Disney does for bug control and I have to say, Disney is strangely bug free . . .

[Posting_Trot]

You could try putting out tubes, like those used for toilet paper rolls, stuffed with fabric or cotton balls treated with permethrin. The idea is that mice will take the cotton balls back to their nests where the permethrin will kill the ticks that are on the mice.

Also, just following some links above, I found that Finnish entrepreneurs have a clever “tick trap” that the sell (for $89) that attracts the ticks in the the specific area that you’re trying to “de-tick.” Looks interesting:
Tick Buster

[Weezer]

I used to have the same problem until I bought these tick repellent gaiters. I throw them on anytime I’m going in the woods or mowing the lawn and I haven’t found a tick on me since I started using these last spring. I only washed them once last year but my plan is to just spray them down with fly repellent once they loose the repellent that they were made with.

Unisex Tick And Mosquito Repellent Gaiters

[Weezer]

I agree that you see ticks more easily on light colours but I think the ticks are also attracted to lighter colours. I always find more ticks on my palomino and my predominantly white paint than I do on the chestnuts and bays. Last year there were two time when we went trail riding and then checked the horses very closely for ticks. The palomino had several crawling up his legs and the chestnut only had a couple. Based on that, I’d prefer to wear dark clothes that don’t seem to attract them.