My dog and I served as "tick flags" for a fellow graduate student of mine who was studying Lyme's disease in northern California. After we had walked through clearcuts all day checking pitfall traps, I would clear us both of ticks and save them for my colleague, and this often required pulling out embedded ticks. The wildlife diseases instructor said the best way was to grasp the tick's body firmly with index finger and thumb (getting as much of the body as you can between them) and pull gently but firmly straight out. This worked on large "dog" ticks and also small "deer" ticks. Twisting the tick, as is sometimes recommended, can break off the mouth parts. In removing dozens of ticks over that time, I never broke off the mouth parts or caused injury to myself or my dog. Good luck.
Nancy > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Eric Enrique Flores De Gracia" <[email protected]> > To: <[email protected]> > Sent: Thursday, February 11, 2010 1:36 PM > Subject: [ECOLOG-L] Advice on how to take out ticks > > > Dear all > > A friend of mine is intended to extract some ticks attached to a snakeć„€ > skin. > Somebody have an idea on how to collect them safetly without harming the > snake neither the ticks? (he wants to preserve the ticks for later > analysis). > > Any suggestion welcome, thanks, > > -- > Eric Flores De G. > > """""""NO EXCUSES...EXECUTE""""" > > > -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > > > > No virus found in this incoming message. > Checked by AVG - www.avg.com > Version: 8.5.435 / Virus Database: 271.1.1/2681 - Release Date: 02/11/10 > 07:35:00 >
