Soft ticks are nuisances that can cause serious illness. Removal is the best way to prevent health problems that can occur after a tick bite. Learning properly remove a soft tick could make all the difference in keeping yourself, your family and your pets safe from ticks and tick-borne disease.
Tick Identification
There are two kinds of ticks, soft and hard. The main difference between the two forms is that the soft tick lacks the back plate, or scutum, that protects a hard tick. Soft ticks are also more round-bodied. Soft ticks are considered to be more dangerous than hard ticks because they can transmit disease within minutes of a bite. The easiest way to tell the difference between a hard and a soft tick is the head: hard ticks have a clearly visible head, while the head of a soft tick is difficult to see due to the pronounced roundness of its body.
Tick Dangers
Soft ticks can transmit disease much more quickly than hard ticks can. A soft tick's bite is often painful, while you may not even feel a hard tick's bite. Common diseases that both soft and hard ticks can spread include Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever and relapsing fever. A more uncommon affliction is tick paralysis, which can be cured by removal of the tick.
Proper Tick Removal
The proper way to remove a soft tick is to use a pair of curved tweezers. Wash your hands and put on a pair of disposable gloves. Grasp the tick at the base closest to the skin with the tweezers tips. Slowly pull the tick out, making sure not to yank, squeeze or twist it. If the head of the tick remains embedded in the skin, apply a warm compress to help draw it out. Seek medical assistance if you cannot remove all the tick's parts. Wash the site with antiseptic cleanser.
Save the Tick
When you remove the tick, place it in a sealed plastic bag or a small vial and label it with the date. Keep the secured bag or vial in your freezer and save it for a few months. If you develop any medical problems or symptoms of a tick-borne illness, your doctor will want to identify the tick that bit you.
How Not to Remove a Tick
Do not cover the soft tick with rubbing alcohol, clear nail polish or lighter fluid before removing it, and do not burn the tick with a match. These methods are dangerous and ineffective; worse, they can actually cause the tick to regurgitate into your body, leading to a greater chance of infection and disease transmission.
Warnings and Tips
If you experience fever, headache, vomiting, rash, muscle weakness or poor coordination following a soft tick bite, call your health care provider immediately. If you are pregnant, seek medical attention for a tick bite. When walking in an area known to harbor ticks, wear long sleeves and long pants, sneakers or boots, and light-colored clothing so you can see any ticks on your clothes; apply tick repellent as well. When you come indoors, always check yourself, family members and your pets for ticks on the scalp, back, neck, and groin area.
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