We are at the very beginning of tick season. Everyone knows what a health concern that ticks pose to our kids, pets, and ourselves. It never hurts to take some preventive measures to guard our loved ones from the onslaught of these pesky parasites.
As RVers, most of us spend a tremendous amount of time outside by the water and in the woods. Having already been camping several times, I have noticed a significant increase in ticks this year. Much more than I have seen the last several years.
A major contributing factor of this in my area is that we had no real winter this year. We had less than an inch of snowfall, lots and lots of rain, and fairly mild temperatures. The ticks are back with a vengeance, and I for one am ready to combat these parasites head on. Here are some tips to follow to help keep your family safe this camping season.
1. Use an herbal shampoo
We began noticing ticks in early April. After walking in the woods on one of our first trips out to our camper, my husband had a tick in his hair. Lately, we have been using Suave’s Rosemary and Mint Shampoo. It was because of this that the vermin didn’t latch on, thank goodness!
This product is fantastic. It has a strong, fresh smell that’s not too overpowering. It is very affordable and leaves my hair feeling great too. Ticks hate the smell of mint, so this will be one of the first lines of defense against these pesky buggers!
2. Use essential oils
There are many natural ways to deter ticks. Making a spray from essential oils will be safe to put in your child’s hair, behind their ears, under arms, and delicate areas to keep these suckers at bay. Lemongrass, lavender, and peppermint oils are all great deterrents against ticks. Here’s a recipe for a homemade tick repellant:
- One small spray bottle
- 1oz. of water
- 1oz. of vinegar
- 5-10 drops of lavender oil
- 5-10 drops of lemongrass oil
- 5-10 drops of peppermint or Eucalyptus oil
Mix well and presto, you have an organic alternative to tick prevention. You can adjust these oils to fit your scent preference.
3. Use bug spray
Organic and natural remedies are wonderful and I use these as often as I can. However, sometimes you have to use something stronger when combatting against parasites that can harm the health of your children and pets.
OFF! Deep Woods, to me, is one of the best and most effective bug sprays on the market. If you are heading to the woods, covering with this bug spray is a necessary line of defense to prevent tick bites and latch ons. No matter what, the kids get a quick spray as soon as we get out of the car!
4. Wear a hat
One of the easiest things that you can do to prevent ticks is to simply wear a hat. Wearing jeans and long-sleeved shirts in the woods is always a good idea too. Once it gets hot though, we will most likely be in tee shirts and shorts, our summer uniform.
By adding a hat though you are preventing ticks from getting into your hair. By utilizing this magic bug barrier you will not have any hideous surprises later, at least not on your head or in your hair.
If you are going deep into the forest hiking or backwoods camping, by all means cover up as much as possible and don’t forget the hat! As for my bunch, we generally walk down a cleared path in the woods to get to the lake. Wearing a hat is a super easy preventive measure. And it’s always a good idea to wear a hat on a sunny day anyway!
These are just a few helpful hints in the battle against ticks this year. A few easy steps are well worth the effort if it means avoiding these horrible buggers. Using a little preventive maintenance early on will save you lots of heartache later! Pulling a tick off of a child really is the worst. Using the measures mentioned above should keep you and your brood tick-free and healthy this camping season!
