Guarding your Yard & Pet against ticks!

The past couple of days my dog has come back into the house after a little jaunt through the yard and I have found several ticks! I currently apply Advantix on her – I usually use Frontline but her vet gave me Advantix the last visit. Granted she is due for her “treatment” with it next week- but it wore off quickly – no?! Also my nephew has been working on cleaning up my mother’s yard which entails moving wood piles and fallen branches – raking leaves – essentially cleaning up all the places where mice and this in turn means ticks like to call home! I am convinced that the cleaning up has “unearthed” the little suckers because Foxy walks a few feet in the grass and she is covered – the heat also has drawn them out!

So with this- I set out on finding the best line of defense for the yard and Foxy – and everyone else! I started with my doctor (who is top Lyme Specialist very involed in ILADS) asked him what he thought- first asked if i could apply Frontline to my own body?? He said sure go ahead and then grimaced at me! Obviously Humans SHOULD NOT USE FRONTLINE…. So please don’t take that statement seriously!! BUT in all seriousness- he told me to find an effective yard spray that will get my yard 90% under control. He also said that the premise to tick tubes is excellent- Damminix makes Tick Tubes which contain cotton balls in them and the cotton is treated with permethrin – which is one of the best lines of defense against ticks! The thought behind them is the mice which carry the Lyme and ticks feed off of – will use the cotton for their nests and this will kill the ticks! It is 100% environmentally friendly – does not harm the mice or other wildlife (except their is question about harmful to cats) and in fact it is safe for humans – i am not saying go out and eat some cotton balls treated with permethrin but it is safe! The downside to these tubes if the cotton gets wet – soaked & drenched before mice use for nesting – my doctor questions how effective the cotton will be once drenched… I asked my doctor which spray is safe & effective… He said he didn’t know – chuckling! He said and i am quoting this one ” don’t buy the one that kills you and many of them can!” I laughed – nervously and asked what did he mean – he said most sprays are very toxic and harmful- think damage your organs toxic & harmful… he said ask around and find a safe one that works… he didn’t know the name.

With all this – Foxy came back in this morning with THREE more ticks on her – I though this is it! So I hit Google and here is what I found – I will list everything including links and I would appreciate comments on what helps you- your family and yard!

My search immediately yielded a very helpful website that’s all about environmentally friendly prevention of ticks – which shared a great source for research on pesticides and insecticides - GARDENS Alive… They referenced BIRC which is a research center for least toxic pest & insect applications.

http://www.gardensalive.com/article.asp?ai=568

First let’s start with Gardens Alive mentions Frontline is the safest application for your pets — so there is answer #1 for Foxy! So tonight I ordered more Frontline off 1-800-Petmeds!

http://www.1800petmeds.com/Frontline+Plus-prod10459.html

They also mention Tick Tubes as well – here is link:
http://www.ticktubes.com/

Then i read that they recommend not spraying your yard but spraying permethrin on your clothes – supposed to be safer then other options and lasts couple of weeks.

I then moved over to the BRIC website and searched in old catalog for pesticides for ticks… this is where i found some great info! check out the Directory…
http://www.birc.org/

I found a product called Perma-Guard which is all natural and supposed to be great against guarding yard and animals against ticks! See link…
http://www.perma-guard.com/Products.html

Health Hazard Data (from the product information page on website for Perma-guard)

Flash Point: None Flammable Limits: None
Extinguishing Media: None
Special Fire Fighting Procedures: None
Unusual Fire and Explosion Hazards: None

Threshold Limit Value: 10MG/M3 Total Dust: Nuisance Dust
Possible Effects of a Single overexpose
Acute Accidental Exposure would be non-specific.
Inhalation Symptoms might include coughing, wheezing, difficult
Breathing and Upper Respiratory Tract Irritation.
Skin Contact No Known Concern
Eye Contact May Cause temporary discomfort and irritation
Ingestion No Known Hazard

Possible Effects of Repeated Overexposure
Chronic Overexposure May Cause Pneumoconiosis (dusty lungs)
-No Known Hazard-
Emergency and First Aid Procedures
Remove to fresh air. If breathing is difficult,
INHALATION oxygen and call a physician
Of no general concern. Simply wash with soap and
SKIN CONTACT water.
For acute exposure, flush with water. IF irritation
EYE CONTACT or discomfort persists, call a physician.

Ingeston No Know Hazard.
Notes to Physician
There are no specific antidotes to acute overexposure. Treatment should
be directed at control of the symptoms.

My mom found an all-natural environmentally yard spray called “Natural Pest Control” – Tick Solution Mom plans to try it in our yard- recommended Pine tress as they harbor most ticks! Interesting – will let you know what we think… i couldn’t find link to it but found great resource for enviro-friendly gardening! I plan to try & use many of these products!

http://www.cleanairgardening.com/pestcontrol.html

Lastly- i saw Neem oil may be good for preventing ticks to come near you and it definitely is good against eggs and larvae… I found a “dust mite spray” from local store in my neighborhood that is all neem oil – Mites Out – see link and they sell at Gracious HOme in NYC! I plan to spray my clothes with it before going out in lieu of the permethrin- and will see how it works.

http://www.gracioushome.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay_10001_10051_13862_-1_13557_10004

That’s it – please send me emails or comment if you have other helpful tips & products to share – or if you disagree… tried something i mention and think it failed!

Be well and keep those ticks where they belong- off you and in the woodlands!!

UPDATE – 4/11/11 – Lymechick shared this with me CedarCide- she & her family use this on their pets and in their yard. i plan to try this as I am back using Frontline again on my dog and it is not working this year. Check it out:
http://www.cedarcidestore.com/cedarproducts.html

XO

NOTE: This is all my personal opinion and experience with these products – I am not an expert and just trying to help with sharing my research on safe and effective products to guard all of us against ticks.