Tick Check Tips for Spring, TX Families This Season

With tick season running from spring until fall in the Spring, TX area, you'll need a plan to combat ticks this season (and every season). Getting a tick bite may seem like "not a big deal," but one tick bite has the potential to alter your life completely.

Here's the good news: ticks never bite immediately upon contact. They typically climb and search for a place to attach first, which gives you a window to find and remove them before they bite and attach. 

But, above all, ticks are good at hiding. They will hide themselves to complete their mission: to bite you and your loved ones. Consider this your guide to reducing the odds of that happening.

What to Check First When You Come Back Indoors

Playing outside, having a backyard barbecue, running through the woods, or lying out on the grass are all activities where a tick could attach to you (or a member of your family). So the first thing to do when you come back indoors is to check yourself (and others) thoroughly.

A full tick check covers four things:

• Clothing
• Gear
• Pets
• Your body

Make sure not to skip any of these areas. 

A Head-to-Toe Check That People Often Rush

Start your tick check with the easy-to-miss areas. Ticks love to ride inside on clothing and backpacks just as much as skin. So, check your clothes and anything you had outside with you. 

Pets carry ticks in too, often without anyone noticing until the tick has already found its way onto a person or a couch cushion.

Showering within two hours of coming indoors will help wash off ticks that haven’t attached. 

Then, here are the common places to check on your body: 

• Under the arms
• In and around the ears
• Inside the belly button
• Back of the knees
• In and around the hairline
• Between the legs
• Around the waist

Quick tip: Use a hand-held or full-length mirror, or have a second person check the spots you can't see yourself.

Lastly, if you’ve found a tick already attached, here’s what to do: 

Using fine-tipped tweezers, grasp it close to the skin, and pull up straight with a steady, even pressure. Avoid folk remedies like petroleum jelly, burning it off, or twisting it. If the bite develops a rash or fever in a few days, seek medical attention. 

What to Do With Clothing, Gear, and Pets

Ticks are sneaky. So, they often hitch a ride on items of clothing, backpacks, and pets without anyone noticing. 

Here are a few tips to make sure they don’t come in your house: 

• Throw any clothing worn outside in the dryer for 10 minutes - high heat gets rid of any ticks clinging to the fabric.
• Check all extra gear - backpacks or other bags set down in the grass could be carrying ticks too. 
• Check your pets - run your hands over your pet’s fur to find any possible ticks crawling or already attached. 

When Yard Tick Pressure Calls for Professional Control

Following tick check guidelines helps a lot, but they won't do it all.

And that's where yard-level treatment comes in. Mosquito Squad's Yard Defender program treats the vegetation, wooded borders, and ground-level areas where ticks love to be, and we keep coming back. This way, you’re always covered (no gaps). 

No treatment gets rid of every tick, but our program delivers up to an 85-90% reduction. Our consistent tick control treatments will help reduce tick populations around your yard.

Need help reducing pest activity around your Spring property? Call Mosquito Squad of Houston at (713) 597-4202 or request a free quote online.