 Removing poison oak and ticks
What is the best way to eradicate poison oak? What is the best way to eradicate ticks and the best way to remove them from pets? — Charlotte S., White City Your questions raise a whole ’nother crop of questions, Charlotte. How much poison oak do you want to clear? How do you feel about poisons? How large a space do you want to clear of ticks? What’s the land like beyond the area in question? A broad-spectrum herbicide such as Roundup will kill poison oak — and everything else it touches. If you’d prefer to avoid chemicals, you can grub out poison oak with a pick or a hoe, but you have to dig deeply enough to get out most of the root or it will grow right back. Whatever you do, you probably won’t eliminate the weed entirely, says Pam Rouhier, of Medford’s Grange Co-op. "You kill a patch, you cut it out, and next year some of it comes back," she says. "Getting rid of poison oak is as hard as getting rid of blackberries." Rouhier says you can keep ticks off your pets by treating them with a tick repellent. These substances, applied to a dog’s skin, make the animal’s blood unappealing to the little suckers. The most effective repellents (sold under trade names such as Top Spot) are sold only by veterinarians. Eradicating ticks would require spraying your yard with insecticide. The spray could also kill spiders, ladybugs, bees, butterflies and lots of other beneficial or attractive insects. Your pooch will rid itself of ticks in all the places it can reach. You can help by checking your pet daily in the places it can’t reach — ears, neck, shoulders, back and muzzle If you find a tick, pinch it with a tweezers as close as you can to the dog’s skin and pull it off. Dig out any tick parts that break off to avoid infection and apply a little antiseptic to cleanse the wound. ("Since You Asked'' is a daily feature in the Mail Tribune that answers questions from readers on virtually any topic of general interest. To submit a question, e-mail us at youasked@mailtribune.com Please include your name, address and phone number for verification. If you have specific questions about our Web site or other questions about the Mail Tribune, please send them to tellus@mailtribune.com ) |
