My husband infested with ticks!!!

[jamzots]

Please help me, my dh came home tonight after a hard day at work. He came in , played with our 4 moth old baby, laid on the bed and then took a shower. He did some paperwork and then asked me to look at his back because he was itchy. This is not out of the norm for him, he likes me to touch his back. Anyway i see what looks like a tiny splinter in his back and I remove it after much moaning and complaining on his part. It was so tiny, but it HAD LEGS AND IT WAS MOVING!!! i FREAKED!!!! We determined it was a tiny deer tick and living on Long Island it is not that uncommon. BUT he proceeded to tell me that he took a pit stop on the way home to check on his deer stand in the WOODS!! (He hunts) In checking his back more thoroughly I removed 6 more of these tiny suckers!!! They are so small the size of a pin head and they blend in with his skin so they are hard to see. What do I do now?? He was all over the house, holding the baby, laying in my bed. He took a second shower but I still managed to pull 2 more off of him afterwards. I made him take all the sheets, pillows, ect. off my bed and put them in a large plastic bag. Do I take them to the dry cleaner?? What about my couch?? It is multicolored and there is no way I would see anything on it. I didn't even check his head or the rest of his body thoroughly because these darn things are just so tiny and there is only so much I can do.
Should he go to the Dr.?? He is not sleeping in our bed tonight, I have him camped out on the pull out downstairs. Does anyone know how long these things can live in my house?? What is the lifespan of a tick?? Should I move?? (just kidding on that last one but it is tempting!!!!) Sorry I am just so skeeved out right now. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

 

[susieh]

I did a quick look on the UK health web sites - found this info

http://www.netdoctor.co.uk/health_advice/facts/ticks.htm and this:-

Dress appropriately in areas where deer live - wear long sleeves, long trousers (even tucked into your socks), check yourself regularly for tick bites and wear light-coloured clothes to help you see the tick as soon as it lands on you· Be aware of the signs and symptoms of Lyme disease and go to see your doctor as soon as you can if you think you might have been infected

But the rest of the advice was about getting ticks out of animals. They seem to drop off of their own accord once they've had their fill of blood. It may be worth calling your local pet store and seeing if they have anything that will kill any larvae etc.

I would imagine if you thoroughly clean the place that any ticks that he did bring home will just die and the problem will be resolved. Not sure how you can stop it recurring though.

 

[ClarabelleCow]

keep close eye on his back, look for bullseyes around where you pulled the ticks out. I would call the doc and find out how soon he should be tested for lymes, they may put him on the antibiotics asap, or wait for a reaction. I would be concerned because they are so small. The way I understand it is the large ones aren't as bad as the small ones. This spring both my kids came down with the bullseyes, so both had to be treated. But its not something you want to sit by and wait, I would call the doc.

And I agree with Diane, you had me worried also, thought this happened at VWL or something!!!!

 

[dianeschlicht]

You had me worried this was at a DVC resort! You might want to put this on a different board.

 

[garydeb]

jamzots,

Keep a eye out for bulleyes on him. If they were not on him longer than 24 hours you have a good chance that he will be fine. I had a deer tick on me earlier this year and the DR. said that it has to be on you for 24 hours for the poision in be injected into you. The best way to get rid of them in you house is to vacuum everything and wash all the clothes in HOT water with bleach. When he goes back out in the woods make sure he puts on a DEET product.
Good Luck,
Debbie

 

[Lynn CC]

I had a deer tick bite in my back so I went to my doctor (with the tick in a jar) the same day and he gave me a strong dose of antibiotic. That is the treatment now. If he could go today I think they would still give it to him.

 

[Pluto 2]

first of all relax and calm down. just check him and the baby and have your husband check you.

 

[chris1gill]

We have a lot of deer here, but OMG, I would totally freak out if DH came home like that!!! I'd get the trusty old vacuum out right away & vacuum every place he went & even keep an eye on your wall's... more than once I've found the things on my wall's just waiting for one of us to walk by GROSS... anyhow, if your DH can get to a doctor today, I would totally recommend it....

BLECH, you have no idea how much I hate ALL tick's, they are so disgusting....

 

[jamzots]

And I agree with Diane, you had me worried also, thought this happened at VWL or something!!!!

Sorry didn't mean to panic anyone I was in a panicked state myself! Thanks guys for all your help!!

 

[FoodLover]

Keep an eye out for any more ticks on the bed, sofa, etc. They can infest the place and believe me, it is YUCKY to deal with them. They will hide in carpet and crevices, then creep out at night and attach themselves to you or any pets.

We once had a bad infestation in a guest room from our dog bringing them in and sleeping on the guest bed. We kept the mattress covered with a waterproof cover because we knew she slept in there sometimes. Well, I went in to remove and wash the cover, and ewwwww... hundreds of ticks. So gross. This happened in less than a week, too!

(Fortunately we discovered this when we had no guests in the house!)

I did some reading up on how to treat a tick infestation. We disposed of the mattress and box springs, vacuumed like crazy every day for several weeks, and used Drione Dust (a low-toxicity pesticide that works as a dessicant on insects -- basically they dry up and then you can vacuum them up) several times, several days apart.

I can't tell you how much this icked me out. I cleaned that room and everything in it like a fiend. Never saw a tick after the disposal of the bed and initial cleaning, but I wasn't taking any chances!

The dog is NOT allowed on ANY furniture now. And we treat her with Frontline every month to keep ticks off.

Ticks, ugh. Good luck!

 

[suzannen]

I would definitely call the doctor just to see if they do advise starting medication without symptoms. If they don't, watch him for a few weeks. As well as the bullseye, if he starts feeling sick and achy like he has the flu, call the doctor. Many folks NEVER get the bullseye, but most will have that flu feeling. Also Bell's Palsy (temporary facial paralysis) was the first clue my nephew had it.

 

[dcgrumpy]

If he got the ticks today he should be fine. I'm 90% sure they have to "feed" for 48 hours to transmit lyme disease. We also live on LI and DH plays softball in a park with a lot of deer. If he forgets his buig repellent forget it, they're all over

 

[PatsGirl]

You might want to be checked for Lyme Disease which I understand can be difficult to detect with or without a bulls eye forming. I would research the affects because I know of two or three people here on the Cape who have become SERIOUSLY ill from Lymes that went undetected for a long time. I was having some health issues last year and this was one of the first things the doctor treated me for. Have had nothing reoccur and doubt it was Lymes but better safe than sorry. I think long-term antibiotics are often offered.

 

[Pugdog007]

This thread is making me itch. I think I have them now too.

 

[Angelrose]

Oh PLEASE make sure a doctor checks him out! Lyme disease is not the only thing to worry about. There is also something called babiesiosis. It starts with flu like symptoms. It's a lot like malaria in that it destroys the red blood cells. You can have liver damage. My husband almost died from it. We got him to the hospital JUST in time. If we hadn't gone to the doctor that day, he would have died in his sleep that night. Have the doctor give him a tick test. The little buggers can stay in your system without any symptoms from a week up to 12 months.