Of the approximately 899 species of ticks worldwide, more than 90 of them inhabit the United States. Ticks can transmit diseases such as Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. While not all ticks carry these pathogens, if you have found a tick attached to your skin, pull it out promptly. Ensure that its head has left the wound to reduce your risk of an infection. You could save the tick for future identification, just in case you become infected. Otherwise, dispose of it so that it cannot attach to another human.
Place the tick into a hard plastic container and seal it tightly to save the tick for identification. If you do not have a container handy, place it on a piece of clear tape and fold the tape over itself to trap the tick.
2
Place the tick into rubbing alcohol to kill it if you do not wish to save it for identification. If you do not have rubbing alcohol, flush it down a toilet. If the tick is in a sealed container, you could also throw it in the trash.
3
Dispose of the tick by crushing it between two rocks if you are outdoors and have no supplies handy.
Tips & Warnings
After disposing of the tick, wash the affected area of skin with hot, soapy water. Dab an antibacterial ointment on the skin.
Handle the tick with tweezers, rather than your fingers, to prevent it from reattaching to your skin.
Monitor the area of skin in the following weeks. If you develop a rash or symptoms of a flu, see your doctor immediately for a Lyme disease test. Early treatment of this disease is critical to preventing dangerous complications.
As you pull the tick out of your skin, avoid squeezing it with the tweezers. This can cause it to release its body fluids into the wound, which may increase your risk of being infected with a disease.
Protecting yourself, family and pets from ticks is important if time is regularly spent enjoying the outdoors, particularly around wooded areas. Ticks...
