A rag soaked with hydrogen peroxide and held on the area for a few minutes will make the tick uncomfortable causing it to release. This way you can grab it and dispose of it without yanking. If your pet is on preventive medication and has been bitten by a tick and that tick died, removal can be a little more difficult.
Pull tick in a steady, upward motion away from skin. DO NOT use kerosene, matches, or petroleum jelly to remove tick. Disinfect site with soap and water, rubbing alcohol or hydrogen peroxide.
Touching it with a hot match is a common one. Others include covering it with petroleum jelly or nail polish (in theory to suffocate it), or freezing it off. These are all supposed to make the tick "back out" of the skin on its own.
The peroxide does not affect the tick or your dog. It helps kill germs in the area. Open the jar and put a small amount of rubbing alcohol inside. Use the tick remover or tweezers to grab the tick body and carefully remove the tick.
It is recommended for tick bites because the oxygen it contains destroys the Lyme disease bacteria. Hydrogen peroxide can be liberally poured over bites on light-haired dogs (keep away from eyes and apply directly to skin!), but because it is bleach, this method is not recommended for black or dark-haired dogs.
Alternatively, you can wipe the tips with a cotton swab dipped in rubbing alcohol or hydrogen peroxide. Grasp the tick with the clean tweezers as close to the skin as you can. Pull the tick in an upward motion, using even pressure. Avoid jerking or twisting the tick to dislodge it.
Use Dental Floss In a Pinch
But if you don't have tweezers around, some dental floss might work as well. Simply tie some thread around the mouthpart area of the tick (as close to the skin as possible), then pull up and outwards. Pull slowly, so you don't break the tick off but rather pull it off completely.
Rather, you can kill a live tick by trapping it in a tightly sealed bag, tightly wrapping it in tape or by placing it in alcohol. You can also flush a tick down the toilet. If you develop a rash and/or any flu-like symptoms, contact a medical professional immediately.
(Note: While alcohol is a good disinfectant after removing the tick, it will not kill or cause the tick to detach quickly.) (Note: While this method may work for the American dog tick, it is ineffective for blacklegged ticks and lone star ticks.
Chuck Lubelczyk, a Vector Anthropologist, offered his own body to test a homemade vinegar and water solution that would supposedly repel ticks. When the solution was applied to his wrist, and a tick placed on his arm – the tick actually made a run for the vinegar solution!
Make an apple cider vinegar (ACV) solution.
This diluted solution is powerful enough to deal with fleas and ticks, but not so strong that you will be able to smell it.
After you've removed the tick, clean the bite site with clean cotton pads or cotton balls soaked with hydrogen peroxide or rubbing alcohol. You can also apply an antibiotic ointment to help prevent infection.
It sounds credible, but it is not true. Putting liquid soap, petroleum jelly, Vicks VapoRub, nail polish or any other goo on a tick will not make it let go faster. Aggravating a tick might cause it to regurgitate saliva into the bite, increasing the risk of infection.
Just use the cotton swabs on their own to remove the tick. Twirl the cotton swab around the biting tick, applying gentle pressure but not squishing it. Continue to circle the tick until it releases its bite and instead attaches to the cotton. Be sure to clean the site to prevent infection.
Cedar Oil. Cedar oil kills and repels ticks by causing dehydration, inhibiting breathing, disrupting pheromones, and emulsifying body fats. You can find cedar oil spray at most garden stores, or you can also make it yourself. In a spray bottle, mix 1–2 teaspoons of cedarwood essential oil with 1 cup of water.
Garlic, sage, mint, lavender, beautyberry, rosemary and marigolds are some of the most familiar and effective tick-repelling plants, and they are great to use in landscaping borders around decks, walkways, pet runs, patios and other areas to keep ticks away.
People used to recommend trying to suffocate the tick by putting things like nail polish, glue, toothpaste, alcohol or oil on it. But it can take a very long time for ticks to fall off that way, so it may even increase the risk of infection.
Vinegar Spray
Be sure to use this once or twice a month, whenever you're giving your dog a bath. Vinegar can kill ticks and prevent infestations in the future, AKC Pet Insurance explains.
The smell and stickiness from spraying apple cider vinegar on your pet's bedding—or directly on your pet—is enough to keep you away, but fleas and ticks aren't as picky. Forcing your pet to drink vinegar will also do nothing to keep away fleas and ticks.
Apple cider vinegar is an easy-to-use natural tick repellant. You can add a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar per quart of water to your dog's water bowl to keep ticks away from your dog. Apple cider vinegar can also be mixed with water to make a tick repellant spray.
Certain Aromatherapy Essential Oils
Not only smell great, but they are also known to be natural tick repellents. Ticks hate the smell of lemon, orange, cinnamon, lavender, peppermint, and rose geranium so they'll avoid latching on to anything that smells of those items.
Bicarb soda creates an alkaline environment unfavourable to ticks, encouraging the larvae and nymphs to drop off. Bicarb soda is useful if you have a high incidence of infestations while spending time outdoors and being exposed to getting bitten on a regular basis.