How to Safely Remove a Tick

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Step 1

Sterilize a pair of tweezers with rubbing alcohol (if available), if not then hit the tip of the tweezers with a match or lighter then allow to cool. If no tweezers are available, use a napkin or piece of paper to grasp the tick with your hands, without actually having contact with te tick.
Step 2

Grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible, gently. If you don't do this gently or carefully, you risk seperating the head from the body. If you keep squeezing the tick and it's alive, after 30 seconds to a minute it may let go on its own.
Step 3

If it does not respond to the pressure, place a drop of alcohol onto the tick. Only do this a couple times, because if you put too much on the tick it can regurgitate.
Step 4

If this does not work, gently pull the tick out on your own.
Step 5

Once the tick is removed be sure to check that the head has not seperated from the body. If it has, you can either use the tweezers to go back and remove the body, or you could schedule an appointment to have it professionally cleaned.
Step 6

Crush the tick between napkins to be sure it's dead, or flush it down the toilet. Do not just throw it away, because it could still be alive (and in your house).
Step 7

In the future, especially if you live in an area known for ticks, use tick repellents to avoid any problems. This is key if you live in an area that is known for Lyme disease. Below in the resources are a couple of tick repellents.

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