- Wear clothing that covers the body, particularly the legs.
- Protect exposed body parts with skin repellents suited to temperate zones: Moustifluid Protective Body Lotion Temperates Zones and possibly complement this with repellents for clothing, particularly in areas of endemic diseases (Lyme disease, tick-borne meningoencephalitis, etc.).
- Avoid tall grasses, bushes and undergrowth.
- After hiking, carefully inspect the skin and hair of pets.
- The tick must be removed whole, without breaking the rostrum (ask your pharmacist for advice).
- Disinfect the bite carefully.
- Monitor the appearance of the bite over the following days: if, after about 7 to 20 days following the bite, there is a black spot centred on the bite surrounded by a red ring, or if inflamed (swollen) red patches are present, consult your doctor or pharmacist. Do the same if, following the bite, flulike symptoms arise: fever, shivering, headaches, etc.
If you have been bitten:
How to remove a tick :
Do :
Grab the tick's body as close as possible to the skin, preferably using a Tick Remover (available at pharmacies) or using a flat tweezer or hair removal tweezer.
Twist 2 to 3 times from right to left, and extract the tick, pulling in the direction in which it is attached. If the head remains in the skin, it must be removed.
Don't :
Use ether, which can make the tick regurgitate and thus increase the risk of infection.
Push too hard with the tweezer, because this can cut the tick's body and leave the head beneath the skin.