personal protection in the heat, ticks, poison ivy?

[BBFarmer]

I have several friends that have had, and Still have issues with tick borne diseases. One guy is now allergic to eating red meat.

Well that's mostly concerning!

Considering last saturday morning I hear this ole boy rambling in line at kroger about Bill Gates is going to unleash ticks on Americans that'll make em allergic to red meat. My goodness he was right!

I feel bad to cause I told that ole feller to calm down it wasn't even 7 am yet LOL! We had a good laugh.

 

[BBFarmer]

@BBFarmer

You can get Guinea fowl to roam around your property and they will greatly reduce the tick and general bug population. They also act as an alarm system.

They have to be raised on (or contained for some time) so they don’t roam off.

I have no idea if they can survive around coyotes but I think they do nest in trees at night.

Huh, that might be something to look into.

Wonder if that's why I see them for sale every month in our local market place bulletin.

 

[Scm]

Guinea fowl

Absolutely. I check my dogs three times a day for ticks and this year has been awesome because of the Guinea fowl. Not many at all. We (they) just hatched 3 more this week.

Unfortunately my little dog will sometimes chase a rabbit through the field fencing and end up in the woods covered in seed ticks. It can take my wife and I 2-3 hours to get them off. one by one with tweezers.

Pro tip: Sticky lint rollers do a great job at taking the walking ticks off.

 

[Scm]

I have several friends that have had, and Still have issues with tick borne diseases. One guy is now allergic to eating red meat.

Considering last saturday morning I hear this ole boy rambling in line at kroger about Bill Gates is going to unleash ticks on Americans that'll make em allergic to red meat. My goodness he was right!

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

@BBFarmer

You can get Guinea fowl to roam around your property and they will greatly reduce the tick and general bug population. They also act as an alarm system.

He's a blueberry farmer, so....maybe not the best of suggestions.


Blueberries: I have to keep my blueberry bushes covered or the Guinea fowl clean them completely. Guinea fowl love blue berries and they are just fine to give as a treat. Blueberries are packed full of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals and relatively low in sugar. Too many can turn the poop runny and blue.

 

[Russell King]

He's a blueberry farmer, so....maybe not the best of suggestions.


Blueberries: I have to keep my blueberry bushes covered or the Guinea fowl clean them completely. Guinea fowl love blue berries and they are just fine to give as a treat. Blueberries are packed full of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals and relatively low in sugar. Too many can turn the poop runny and blue.

I had no clue they liked blueberries! That plant doesn’t grow well in Texas.

 

[Scm]

Sulfur (MSM, orally) is good against ticks.

https://www.lsonews.com/craig-nyhus-28/

 

[NorthwoodsLife]

Does it ever occasionally itch?

Been rockin' a spot like that on my left shoulder blade now for several years.

It does itch on occasion. But I am in my 60s and itch and scratch is a part of life. When I was young it was something like: "What the heck is that on my skin"!!?? At my age now, I don't worry much about it. But my wife does! Lol

Had some stage 3 cancer skin stuff removed months ago. It itched. It's gone now. Still itches on occasion. The tick bites are the least of my worries.

Being in the tractor getting stuff done. Working the chainsaw or wood splitter... makes it all worth it.

I've been taking something called Turkey Tail. It is a mushroom, in capsule form. My wife buys it and has me take it along with oregano capsules. Sometimes grape seed capsules.
Several growths on my skin have just fallen off since I have been taking turkey tail. They itch a little, look like a mole wart thing... with taking turkey tail almost all just fall off!

 

[Shawn T. W]

I spray Bifen IT around the house for an insecticide, that's what the school used once a month after the students left for the day, once dry it's safe for kids and pets, even useable in the kitchen ...

My plan for the permethrin was to spray my clothes, once dry, wear ... But was concerned about if the cats came on my lap for there required loving, or even rub up against my leg like they are known to do . . . I believe that permethrin can be applied directly to dogs, I know it is used in chicken coops ...

I just read from - https://cats.com/permethrin-toxicosis-in-cats

In part it says -

Topical products for dogs may be as high in permethrin as 45%, while concentrations in household sprays and pre-treated clothing are less than 1%. At concentrations less than 5%, toxicity concerns with cats are rarely seen.

Dr. Means says that while there may always be an individual cat with a higher sensitivity than the general population, “If you are spraying a 1% solution on clothing and it dries, it’s unlikely that you’ll see any problems in the cat.”

So while dog products and agricultural products are a high toxicity risk, there is no evidence showing that treated clothing is a concerning route of exposure for cats.

I got "Rocky Mt Fever" awhile back from a tick bite ... Not fun at all ... At the time I was still officially living in Arizona, but picked up the tick while wandering the woods and fields of Missouri while looking for property to move too ... I seriously considered just staying in Arizona where we only had rattlesnakes and scorpions!

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

I had no clue they liked blueberries! That plant doesn’t grow well in Texas.

Blueberries don't grow well by me either, or at least "the ones I planted didn't grow."

Ticks like a certain environment, like Public Land. Not sure what the government and I do different, but my woods has few and theirs is loaded. I think it has to do with my doing some work to reduce underbrush and undesirable plants in general. Or maybe the Government just attracts blood suckers and leaches, don't know.

 

[chim]

I haven't had much trouble with ticks and can generally avoid poison ivy. When I do need to be out in the sun, my attire is lighter-colored lightweight pants (like decommissioned khaki), wide brimmed hat and a loose fitting white / very light cotton shirt. My arms feel cooler with a white shirt than exposed to the sun. Had a couple skin cancers removed so intentionally tanning isn't something I do.

 

[tghs]

wrangler cotton blend cargo pants, lightweight longsleave cotton shirt,, tall cotton socks.. I do dust down with some menthal body powder (socks and shorts) seems to deter the chiggers and ticks.. they do sell gardening sleaves that will protect the glove to cuff region..

 

[Bmyers]

Tick borne illnesses are a big problem. My wife has Lyme disease. She was walking on her mail route and when she got home she noticed a tick on the back of her leg. Went to the doctor to get it removed. Since her tick bite didn't have the red bullseye, the doctor said no concerns. 10 years later after being treated for RA related issues (which the test all came back negative for RA, but she was showing the joint damage), another doctor tested her for Lyme and sure enough she had the markers for Lyme. Sadly, the damage has already been done.

At work, we had an operator who was bitten by a tick and developed alpha-gal syndrome. It has taken three years for him to get to a point where his body will tolerate a little red meat, but nothing like he use to eat. My understanding there isn't a cure for it, some people will slowly decrease their sensitivity to the red meat reaction.

 

[BBFarmer]

He's a blueberry farmer, so....maybe not the best of suggestions.


Blueberries: I have to keep my blueberry bushes covered or the Guinea fowl clean them completely. Guinea fowl love blue berries and they are just fine to give as a treat. Blueberries are packed full of antioxidants, vitamins and minerals and relatively low in sugar. Too many can turn the poop runny and blue.

I had no clue they liked blueberries! That plant doesn’t grow well in Texas.

I reckon that makes perfect sense though. Our chickens go crazy for blueberries, only treat the hens will actually come right up to me with.



We had to fence them far from the berries we were first got them. They to would do a number on a bush.

Ripping and pulling leaves and limbs down as well. Then best of all, after a few too many, large blueberry filled craps all over our concrete by the house. Which actually stains by the way, its terrible LOL!

 

[Youbet]

Really liked Youbet's posting (#18)!

I have been avoiding brush-cutting for the last two summers, ever since i contracted Babesiosis. This is yet another tick-borne disease and presumed to be at least as common as Lyme disease. Very similar epidemiology, but the medical establishment has not caught up to it yet - the diagnostic testing is not as developed as it is for Lyme... I went through 2 months of lethargy and weakness before I started peeing coffee-colored urine. [That's hemoglobin residue from destroyed red blood cells!] It's easier to treat than Lyme, but the diagnosis is frequently missed by the medical establishment because they typically only test for Lyme. It was only after I ended up in the ER that it was diagnosed! The prescribed treatment (antibiotic and antiparasitic) provides a complete cure.

[For you cattlemen, this disease is the same as Texas Cattle Fever in cattle!]

Seems that, in 1994, the US Army studied the effects of permethrin-impregnated BDUs on the health of soldiers. I found this paper at the NIH website:

Summary - Health Effects of Permethrin-Impregnated Army Battle-Dress Uniforms - NCBI Bookshelf

They considered dermal exposure only. They looked at both acute and chronic toxicity. They looked at dermal, ocular, neural, liver, immune, gene, reproductive, and developmental toxicity. They also looked at carcinogenicity.

Here are the conclusions:
"The subcommittee analyzed the risk of adverse health effects to soldiers who wear permethrin-impregnated BDUs and the risk to garment workers who handle permethrin-treated fabric. Based on the review of the toxicity data on permethrin, the subcommittee concludes that soldiers who wear permethrin-impregnated BDUs are unlikely to experience adverse health effects at the suggested permethrin exposure levels (fabric impregnation concentration of 0.125 mg/cm2). The risk of adverse health effects in garment workers who handle permethrin-impregnated fabric is even smaller because their exposure to permethrin is estimated to be less than that of soldiers.

Permethrin-impregnated BDUs are effective in preventing insect-borne diseases in military personnel in insect-infested field areas. The most beneficial use of permethrin-impregnated BDUs will be in overseas field settings, where exposure to disease-bearing insects is substantial. The risk of vector-borne disease in the United States is considerably less but not zero. Military personnel wearing permethrin-impregnated BDUs in field operations in the United States will benefit from protection from tick and mosquito bites, which, in turn, will protect them from endemic diseases, such as Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and viral encephalitis. They will also be protected from other routine insect bites that often become infected and require medical treatment.

The subcommittee notes that in situations where soldiers are in protected environments, such as offices, where insect contact is remote, there is no tangible benefit from wearing impregnated BDUs."

My personal conclusion is that the toxicity is NOTHING compared to a tick-borne disease!

I did some calculations and if a 36.8% solution of permethrin concentrate is mixed 2 oz/gallon of water, using the Army's 0.125 mg/cm2 'dose', then about 10 square yards of clothing can be treated with a quart of diluted solution. I figure a T-shirt or a pair of pants is about 1 square yard...

Looks like Youbet was diluting the concentrate 1.7 oz/gallon. I'm going to go with 2 oz/gallon, because that's easier to measure - it's an even Tablespoon per quart spray bottle filled with water.

Thanks a million, Youbet, for bringing this to my notice!!!

Now, I can go finish the brush removal on my property. I only have about an acre left to do on my 12-acres.

-Paul, DVM, retired



It is time this morning to spray my cloths again. I have 5 sets of farm work cloths that I roll through.

You mentioned measuring out the permethrin to mix.

My technique is I measured 1.7 oz of water and put it in a clear cup and marked it. I then can quickly use that cup each time to measure for my 1 gal of mix.

I always mix 1 gal at a time and use that to fill my spray bottles. I do use a mask to spray, I have it for other tasks so I might as well use it.

Hope this helps.

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

@Shawn T. W : Thanks for mentioning Bifen IT, it caused me to remember to restock that and permethrin, we've had a bad year for deer flies and mosquitos and I should do something about it.