It is not uncommon to be bitten by a tick despite all precautionary measures. In this case it is then: Act fast! Because the little arachnids can transmit diseases. What you need to look out for a tick bite and how to remove a tick correctly can be found here.
Not only animals are often stung by ticks – on human skin, the small arachnids can attach themselves. The problem with a tick bite is above all the probability that diseases such as TBE viruses or Borrelia can be transmitted. So you should act quickly when you discover a tick and remove it immediately. But usually the bite is not noticed immediately. The reason for this is a type of narcotic which secretes the tick into the wound via its saliva. In doing so, she creates a window of opportunity to soak up the blood of her victim undisturbed. The necessary support she gets from small barbs, which are located on their stinging apparatus. These also make it difficult to remove the tick in some cases, if you do not know exactly how.
Remove a tick with tick tongs, card and tools
To remove a tick there are various aids. The easiest way to do it is with a sharp tweezers or a special tick card, tick tweezers or tick loop, also known as tick licking. These tools are available, for example, in the pharmacy. If you do not have any, you can also use your fingernails in an emergency – but you should be very careful to grab them well. In addition, you should never grab the tick only on the body, but pull out as close as possible slowly and controlled! This prevents your head from breaking off and getting stuck in the wound.
Tweezers:
The tick tweezers work much like human tweezers. To remove a tick properly, bring the forceps close to you and reach as far down as possible. Make sure that you do not squeeze the body! Close the pliers and pull the tick straight up.
Tick Card:
Grasp the tick with the v-shaped cutout of the card. Here it is urgent to note the size of the V has. If the recess is too large, the tick could not be gripped well and removal would be difficult. Unlike with the pliers or the lasso, the tick is not pulled up at the card, but pushed more. The map serves as a kind of lever.
Tick Lasso:
Also in the case of the lasso, the tick should be pulled out close up. To do this, place the lasso on the affected skin around the tick and tighten the noose while holding the handle upright. Then remove the tick with a straight pulling movement upwards.
How you should never remove a tick!
There are some myths about removing the ticks, which are unfortunately quite persistent. So you should never turn out a tick! This can cause the head to be twisted, get stuck in the wound and cause inflammation or, in the worst case, disease. Even home remedies such as oil, alcohol, disinfectants, glue or nail polish remover are strongly discouraged. Although the tick may not suffer from these remedies, it could also cause it to empty its bowel in the wound, secreting pathogens such as Borrelia.
Dispose of ticks
After you have successfully removed a tick, it goes to the disposal. Unfortunately, it is a very persistent parasite, which is protected by a solid body and is always looking for the way to a new food source. Therefore, you should never just throw the tick in the trash. She could crawl out again. Also, it is not recommended to rinse them in the toilet. In fact, they even manage to survive a wash cycle at 40 degrees. To make sure that the tick was really made harmless, it is proven to burn them. There is also the option to drown the creepy-crawler in high-percentage alcohol or disinfectant, or to crush them with a hard object.
Once the tick has been properly removed, disinfect the affected area with alcohol or an ointment containing iodine. In addition, you should also search the rest of the body for the little crawling beasts – a tick rarely comes alone. Immediately after a tick bite it may come to redness of the skin. However, this should subside within a few days. If it s not the case that you are advised to consult a doctor. Even with flu-like symptoms such as fever, headache, body aches, etc., the person affected should contact a doctor.
If something of the tick is left in the skin, that’s not a cause for panic. Often this remainder is repelled by the body in a natural way. However, if you still feel unwell or do not dare to remove the tick properly, you can have it done by a doctor at any time.
