Tick prevention
Equipment
What is the best system and products to use. It gets ticky when Turkey hunting
I use permethrin spray on my outer clothing and boots, especially when I am in pennsylvania for a couple weeks in early May. Seems to have helped in the last couple of years, I no longer have at least several attached ticks at the end of my hunt!
Sawyers Spray (permethrin)on sleeves and pant legs
It's like magic. Use carefully because anything that works that good is powerful.
Ditto. Works well-no ticks. You'll still want to check hands, head and neck. Those little seed ticks are hard to see and seem to get to those places.
What the guys above said, is spot on. Permethrin, use it as directed.
No real problem with ticks in my state, but I use Permethrin on all my clothes before going to Africa each time, and it seems to work great.
Find some 10% permethrin concentrate and mix your own. Sawyers is a huge rip off!!!! about $20 for a 24oz bottle of sawyers or $30 to make 16- 18 fl oz bottles of your own... you be the judge. Save the sawyers spray bottle if you have one.
I attached a link for the aforementioned concentrate which I've been using for years. I should note, I don't submerge or soak clothing. My thought process is; what good does it do to have the permethrin bond to the insides of my garments? I want it on the "outside" only. But spray garment till nearly saturated in appearance.
One 8fl oz bottle of this can make approx. 16 - 18fl oz bottles of spray with a .5:18 ratio. Enough to last many many years of spray treating garments. You can literally watch the ticks trying to get off of you shortly after they latch on.
Also... in my experience about 90% of the time ticks are picked up from shin to knee/ thigh height. I have averaged 200 miles for the last few springs looking for sheds in some tick infested areas. The only time I've had one bury in me is when I broke my own dress routine (treated pants at a minimum) and tucked in shirt. Went shed hunting in work clothes and when I got home not 20 minutes later I had one embedded.
If you do nothing else; treat your pants and tuck in your shirt.
I fancy myself a pretty good shed finder :)..... so naturally after walking through a tick infested area one day, I decided I should be able to find some ticks! Didn't take long to find some as they were predictably waiting and ready, at knee height, with their little legs reaching out for a host....
Sitka Equinox System is designed just for that.
I soak all of my hunting clothes, including under layers in Permithrin, then I hang outside to air dry. I use RYNO SKIN as my base layer. I spray my boots down as well. They are the only thing that I am afraid of in the woods. Just a side story, last year an article was published about an African tick colony that was gifted to a NY State College. The professor who kept the ticks had them feeding off of rabbits and mice. After a few years, he took their hosts away. Several died, including all of the males. After, I believe, 38 years he reintroduced a host, and several females, who had been dormant, returned from their sleep to feast. One of the females even laid eggs. Since the males had been dead for decades, the female was able to store their sperm until an optimal condition presented itself. Talk about being resilient!!!!
I don’t know Bou, try Avon’s skin-so-soft or lemon juice or some home remedy. Lol
Permethrin is king. Soak it. Dry it and go hunt.
1 oz of the 10% concentrate mixed with 19 oz of water gives you the .5 % solution, same as the stuff by Sawyer.
Pretty easy to see why ticks are so easily picked up after checking out SaddleReapers photo!! Questing is a very successful method of transmission.
Does anyone know if there are any studies being done to eradicate ticks all together? Mosquitos even. I believe it would be money well spent.
Permethrin-treated clothing plus spray exposed skin with picardin-based repellent. I keep a few pairs of socks treated with permethrin as well as a pair of work pants and long-sleeve shirt.
I treat the lower legs of the pants and also the inside of the waistband.
We've used Sawyers, Repel and Permanone for several years to prevent getting eaten by ticks and chiggers.
Spray your clothing, boots, belt and gloves with the aerosol until the material looks a bit damp and let it the clothes dry completely.
We can treat 2 sets of clothing (socks and gloves included) with one can. The permethrin will remain active for a week.
FWIW - It works for mosquitoes too.
I spray everything, pack, stool, socks, boots, bino harness.. Leave nothing to chance with those evil little buggers
What is the best system and products to use. It gets ticky when Turkey hunting
I don't like using strong chemicals like permethrin either but when you consider the diseases that tick carry, not just Lyme disease, I think it worth it. Especially since you put it on your clothes and let it dry first.
There is also a new insect repellent called Picardin. I used it bear hunting last year and it's the real deal. It's supposed to be natural. I wonder how effective it is on ticks?
bou, I'll be in penna first two weeks of May, first thing I do is hang my clothes outside, put on a mask and gloves, and spray down everything inside and out with a regular permethrin spray bottle, Then I let it hang until dry. Only have to do it once and it is supposed to last a month or more. I also use regular backwoods repellent with deet around face and hands on a daily basis if bugs are bad. I used to pick 6-8 ticks off my clothes after every hunt but last couple years none.
Permethrin isn't extremely toxic to humans. 2% concentrate is an ingredient in some baby head lice treatments. I have used a 14% solution from farm stores and diluted it but it had a very strong odor.
This is what I have used for over 20 years. I put 8oz in a gallon sprayer and a gallon of water lay clothes out and spray them down. I then hang them up and let them dry thoroughly. I am then ready to go for the year plus they still repel after several washings.This is the same formula Sawyers came out with many years ago when they sold the concentrate for you to mix with directions to go with it.They discontinued this and I’m guessing the reason was either liability or maybe it was more profitable to sell the spray. I still have their directions sheet.Good Luck Lewis
Thanks guys. Don’t normally see so much alignment on feedback around here. Looks like clear cut answer.
What do you all use to protect your dogs?
Same stuff not sure about the best formula and it’s been used for years Good luck Lewis
Picardin comes in a lotion for skin, made by Sawyer, looks to be similiar to peramthin. My son just bought some so im reading it right off the bottle.
Yes you can use picaridin on the skin. I looked at the chemical formula and it is quite different from pemethrin and more biodegradable.
Burning Question: Does picardin eat plastic? DEET ate the nose pads on my Rx sunglasses and it’s hell on fly lines, the finish on your bow, and on and on… Seems like the more expensive it is, the more damage DEET will do…
But it sure does keep the bugs off….
Forget deet go with permethrin Lewis
In answer to your dog question Keith, I use Bravecto. The 1st time I took Annie out mushroom hunting after giving her a tablet the tics were climbing off of her on to me. Its good for 3 months. Wish they made it for humans cuz I am a tic magnet. I have not seen any tics feeding on her since we starting using it.
I spray the heck out of my outer camo layer and turkey vest. Anything I will be walking through the woods with.
I also spray my boots.
Last fall, I shifted from rubber/neoprene boots to my hiking boots with gaiters. So if it's really warm and I go that way, Ill spray the gaiters and boots really well - the gaiters I spray outside, and the lowers on the inside as well in case one of the little jerks makes it past the edge.
Generally speaking, that strategy has worked great for me over the years here in MA and in CT.
Corax, picridin is much less harsh on gear than deet. Glasses clothes fishing ling etc.. also works better repeling flies than deet.
Good to know. I’ve had a couple pairs of boots fall apart on me and I am fairly certain that it has a lot to do with being hosed down with DEET a few times too many.
