Time to de-tick the yard?

[maestramommy]

Originally Posted by lisa g

A friend made them for us (using tp tubes) - sorry I can't tell you where they are sold. Good luck w/your bifenthrin!

EVen better! How did your friend make them? Just soak cotton in Permethrin, dry, and stuff into the tubes? Dh wants to make our own, I just want to make sure there isn't some special way of doing it. I looked up the Daminix tubes online and they are expensive!

[BF66389]

I'm imaging thats it...

Additionally if you forget where you put the tubes- the toilet/paper towel rolls will degrade fairly quickly.

I'm going to try this myself...

[Valerie C]

Does it kill ticks, or just repel them? I wonder if it's so much about reducing the tick population, as it is about reducing the number of ticks that take their first blood meal(s) from a mouse that may have the bacteria that causes Lyme Disease. Remember, while the ticks pass along the disease to humans, they acquire it from mice. Gonna have to do some reading on this one...

For the more Lyme-literate among us, I wonder if the co-infections (babesiosis, ehrlichiosis, bartonella, etc) are also started from mice? Anyone know?

Originally Posted by BF66389

Do does getting mice/etc to take tick repellant back to their nests actually work?

If so that's a really cool way to reduce the tick population...

[BF66389]

I believe its a repellant as its commonly combined with DEET to form a stronger repellant. That said if the ticks can't find food in an area...their population in that area will decline; so it really makes sense that it would work.

Of course you are relying on the little critters to actually take the treated cotton...

I believe bartonella is from the tick itself...not sure about the others.

[Valerie C]

OK, so we weren't talking specifically about Lyme Disease, but it's obviously on people's minds... Tonight (4/21/09) Channel 5, Boston's Chronicle will be broadcasting "Ticked", a special about Lyme Disease. Not sure if this is the same one that was on last winter, but definitely sounds worth watching.

As a Lyme-Mom, it was somewhat satisfying to hear (after the last Chronicle Lyme special was on) from people (family, teachers, etc) who, in the past, acted as though the Lyme diagnosis was some made-up illness, and that all of the mixed-up symptoms, days home from school and other issues were just me "not being a tough enough mom".

[rmcewan]

You're referring to Tick Tubes: Damminix Tick Tubes

The chemical spray is not very persistent. It is sprayed, the ticks die (as do many other insects) , and then the chemical breaks down (absorbed, destroyed by sunlight) or is washed away by rain. It works well for the whole season because ticks lay 1,000s of eggs in the fall which hatch in the spring. You kill most of those 1,000s with spray in the Spring, and now only those hitching a ride on deer come on to your property.

Tick tubes with the laced cotton will be right there still for the toddlers to pick up. However, I'm considering those too because a multi-tier defense a good idea.

Yes, you are putting chemicals on to the land. However, there is a tick epidemic right now. I hope not to have to do this in 5 or 10 years.

Originally Posted by maestramommy

The lyme thread reminded me that recently I saw a thread here on safer ways to get rid of ticks on your lawn. Someone posted a link to a site that talked about soaking cotton balls in some kind of chemical (starting with a P), then putting them in cardboard tubes, and laying the tubs in various places on your property. The assumption was that rodents would use the cotton as nesting material and it would stop ticks at the source. Does anyone remember this thread or site? Has anyone tried this strategy?

We really don't want to spread pesticide all over our lawn because we have toddlers that like to run around. Our grass is cut pretty short, but our yards are surrounded by woodsy portions.