Be sure to check for ticks

Be sure to pull the tick firmly with a pair of tweezers where it is attatched.

Summertime is here and so are ticks, just waiting for you on the ground or on the tips of low-growing plants. And they love bales of hay you might want to sit on.

If out hiking, walking in the woods or working in your yard, tuck pants into your socks if possible, and always do a tick check when you and/or children come inside. Look at places where clothes are tight and always check your scalp with your fingers and check children's heads before they go to bed. It only takes a minute to run your fingers through their hair or to show older children how to check themselves.

Certain ticks can carry lyme disease-a rash and flulike symptoms could mean you have come in contact with just such a tick. Sometimes it takes a week or two. This is why any ticks you take off yourself or others should be saved in a small jar or zip-lock bag in the refrigerator. If symptoms appear, take the tick to the doctor with you for examination.

A tick is like a balloon with a hypodermic needle that is shoved into your bloodstream. Therefore, do not squeeze it, just remove as close to the head and your skin as possible with a pair of tweezers. It sounds gross, but if you irritate the tick it can vomit into your bloodstream so keep it calm. Do not use kerosene, nail polish remover, petroleum jelly, or burn it with a match.

DEET repellents offer some protection (keep away from eyes and face). Hunters and campers spray their clothing (never skin) with products using permethrin. Lay them on newspaper, spraying one side and then the other and let them dry overnight. This treatment remains active for weeks so the same clothes can be worn every time you hike within that period.