Posted on 11/10/2011 9:40:38 AM PST by BuckeyeTexan
Does anyone have recommendations for treating heavily wooded property for ticks? My one-year-old basset hound (Sophie) is an indoor dog, but she has free access to a little over an acre of heavily wooded property. (300+ oaks and pecans.)
I've tried every treatment I can find to put on Sophie to prevent ticks, but I'm still finding them on her once every few days. She sleeps on my daughter's bed, so I'm worried about a tick dropping off in the bed. She's a lemon basset hound so the ticks are easy to see unless they're really small.
Is there anything I can do to treat the property? I don't want to poison the land or kill the trees, so I'd prefer something natural, but I'm not strictly opposed to pesticide if it'll work.
I used diatomaceous earth on my basenji dog this year. This is the first time he had fleas. Rubbed it in his fur and sprinkled it on his bedding. If your dog has worms, you can even put some in their food. Safe and non-toxic. I bought it at my local health food store. (Whole Foods didn’t have it and didn’t know what I was talking about.)
Chlordane worked great when I was a kid, didn’t even need to use it regularly.
I’ve heard chickens will eat them but we free range dogs so we haven’t tried.
Frontline on the dogs and cats, and a good spraydown with insect repellent for the humans seems to work pretty well.
I get some pills at the vet to give my dogs here at the farm. They are not real cheap if I remember right, but they work. I’m thinking we only have to give them to them once a month.I’ll try to get the name of the stuff for you.
Train them to do what?
tick ping
Free range Ducks, Chickens Or Guinea hens will take care of it. Plus you get eggs.
It has microscopic sharp corners that scrape holes in the insect’s skin causing then to dehydrate. It’s the basis for flea powder and is one of the few things that kills bedbugs.
Guinnea Hens or just plain o’l chickens. The Guinneas prefer to roost wild in the trees, so you don’t have to shelter them.
Chickens or Guinea Hens? Does it matter? Will they torture the dog? Aren’t all hounds hunters? Will Sophie kill the chickens/hens?
Follow these steps:
1) remove as much of the tick habitat as possible. Any low to the ground brush. If possible, do a controled burn. If that is not possible, do spot burns. If that is not possible, cut and mulch with a weed trimmer / lawn mower. Move all brush to a safe burn spot or bag and dispose.
2) rake the tick infested area and burn dispose of the rubbish. Remove any ticks from all pets, clothing, and even in the house.
3) use a garden hose sprayer (hand pump sprayers do not work well) with the pesticide Permethrin. You can often find these in garden shops / hardware stors. Start by spraying around the house and work outwards. Give it a good soak. Might take a lot of spray for your area.
4) work you way over to the tick infested area. Spray to about 24 inches in height. If there is any brush left (around trees) spray both top down an bottom up. Dont forget to spray EVERYTHING ... lamp posts, mail boxes, fences, trees etc.
5) Keep your pets indoors for 2 days during and following the spraying.
6) Before letting your pet back outdoors, use Frontline Topspot according to directions.
7) On day three post-spray, lay down lawn insecticide grandules. Heavy two feet around the house, normal in the yard, heavy 2 foot wide path seperating you from the tick infested area. normal in the tick infested area
8) let sit for 2 weeks, then repeat steps 3 though 7.
Should kill ticks for a season in heavy infested areas. May kill for the entire year. Normally has to be repeated every year for most high tick concentrations. In a low tick area or after a hard freeze, may remove the threat for several years.
Also, be sure to check your house for ticks. Fog bombing works well to eliminate most ticks in the house. Wash all clothing and blankets and have and call an exterminator if you find any ticks in the house.
Illegals, fire, nuclear explosion.
*snort*
I’ll be labeled a domestic terrorist and hauled in for questioning.
Frontline Plus® - Prevents and kills fleas and ticks. Topical liquid that is used once monthly. Waterproof
1. Cut down trees
2. Pave landscape
3. Sell to developer as parking lot
4. ???
5. PROFIT!
Sevin dust, available at any hardware store.
Diesel spritz around trees and undergrowth.
No underbrush. Short grass, if any. Definitely no deer. Lots of bunnies. Occassional coyote at night. Longhorns next door.
You will have to train the dog. I convinced my Bassets and Beagles to leave chickens alone. They wouldn’t chase our cats but any stray in the yard was fair game. My Bassets were serious hunters, slower than the Beagles but I’ve seen them run a cottontail to exhaustion and catch it.
http://www.discountpetmedicines.com/comfortis-for-dogs.htm
Kind of expensive but my cousin uses it in Arkansas for his dog and swears by it.
Thanks. I’ll check it out. Will it be expensive to cover most of an acre? (Expensive > $300)
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