Ticks, and more ticks

I spent the better half of 20 years in Durham, NC, and yet I never had a tick (or chigger) on me until I got Mia, who attracted ticks year round. If you do a search here for related threads, a lot of people have looked for a natural spray. Unfortunately, IME, they simply don't work as well or as long as DEET (on the human) and an oral tablet (e.g. Bravecto, for the dog).

For the dog, Mia is old enough that topicals were still prevalent when she was young. The dogs hated them, I hated them, and they didn't last the whole month between swimming and hiking. I regularly found ticks, dead and alive, on Mia, and some were engorged. I would pick 20-30 off of her after a hike, and still miss a few. She now tests positive for exposure to several tick-borne illnesses (without checking her records, I think they are RMSF, ehrlichia, lyme).

About 7-8 years ago oral tablets became available. There was a lot of hub-bub about safety, but they've proven themselves to be safe and effective. Mia is on Bravecto, and while I still find a tick or two on her from time to time, they're dead.

For people, there's simply nothing better than DEET if you're heading into the woods. It's safest to use a 5% spray and reapply often rather than use a higher percentage and reapply less frequently.

If you're stuck on wanting to use something natural, don't go into the woods. I found natural oils might keep me tick free while walking through my neighborhood, where I was unlikely to pick a tick in the first place, but that's about it. I had better luck with a tomato-based spray in development at NC State, but it wasn't something I would take to the woods -- maybe a friend's wooded backyard. These sprays didn't work on the dogs, either, and it didn't help that the sprays probably brushed off in the tall grass or washed off crossing creeks.

For the yard, try diatomaceous earth. DE is awesome. Make sure to wear a mask when applying, because the particles are small and will get into your lungs. I tried applying to the dogs, but it dried out their skin, so I stuck to using it around the yard/garden.

Final thought: chickens eat ticks. I haven't had a backyard coop, but this alone makes it tempting.

I sometimes use a picardin spray on Annie's head
and neck, or on her harness when we are camping. Basically only areas she can't lick. DEET is very toxic for dogs. , Picardin is not approved for dog use, but part of the approval process for it to be used on humans, was putting high doses on the necks of beagles, daily, for a year, with no bad effects noted, and the oral LD50 is very high. And then I give her a bath at the end of the trip.

I also use it on me and find it as or more effective than DEET and much less smelly. At minimum, on my ankles and shoes.

Here's the safety data:


Ticks have been really bad these last few years here and I really don't like her bringing them into my tent and my car to share!


Edit- oh, and I've started blowing Annie out with a HV dryer outdoors as soon as we get home from walking in the woods, before I even let her in!

This is such a difficult problem. It is hard to know what to do. Two things that weigh heavily on me.

1. I know of a 6 year old poodle who died of tick borne diseases -- Lymes and something else. She was on Frontline Plus. Her owner's property backed up to the woods, a natural deer habitat. Her owners were diligent about taking her to the vet as soon as symptoms appeared, leaving her in vet hospital, and taking good care of her when she briefly returned home. But she died in about a week or two. So ticks are a very real danger. Personally I would not trust natural remedies.

2. The FDA has issued a warning about the tick medicines that are normally given by mouth. FDA says: "Isoxazoline products have been associated with neurologic adverse reactions, including muscle tremors, ataxia, and seizures in some dogs and cats." My 12-year-old girl Cammie has had 4 episodes, one a couple of days before her 7th birthday, and 3 when she was 11. The "episodes" were like a seizure, but not as severe as a grandmal. She suddenly lost use of her legs, was shaking her head, and appeared to be conscious but terrified for 5 minutes or more. I took her off of her oral tick meds, and we have not had any episodes since December 2022. She is now on Frontline, and we're cutting back on walks in the woods.

Bottom line as I see it is that there are serious risks with ticks, and there are also serious risks with the most effective tick remedies. Here's the FDA warning.

we use a product that is a "coat" of sorts. it covers about 80% of the dog yet it's been tested to be completely breathable. sophie doesn't mind it at all. the coat also protects her from collecting burs that stick relentlessly to her hair. the brand of sophie's coat is "K9 Top Coat" but i've seen other brands on the internet. here's a screen grab from a video of sophie playing in her Top Coat!