[texanatheart]

We found a tick on ds1 this morning, and were able to remove the body (after a HUGE struggle with ds

). It is red and puffy/hard about 3/4 inch diameter around it. It was not a deer tick. We weren't able to get the head out. We spoke with his pediatrician, and he said that we should just get as much of the head out as possible. I asked if it's worth a major stuggle with ds to get it (or even just more of it) out, and he said no, that it will work itself out, keep some peroxide on it, and just keep an eye out for signs of infection (increased swelling, pus, etc). It has likely been on him since Thursday last week, when he was with his babysitter on her farm, so that's 5 days.

Does the doctor's advice sound right? I'm cool with going with his suggestion, but dh would rather struggle with ds to work on it to get it out...and I don't want to help hold him down. What would you do?

 

[New_Natural_Mom]

I, personally, would take my DS to be tested for tick borne illnesses. I know someone who died from a treatable tick borne illness (rocky mountain spotted fever) because it wasn't treated in time. I think other mamas might take a more relaxed approach, but this would be my course of action.

 

[kjbrown92]

I would wait until she was asleep and get the head out. It just seems like more of an infection risk. If it's a dog tick I wouldn't worry AS MUCH about it, but I'd still keep an eye on it for 4 weeks (that's what I do, and my DD2 has already had 2 dog ticks on her this season).

 

[marrymeflyfree]

Here's a trick for next time that we used when I worked in the ER for getting the whole tick out: smother it with vaseline, tape it down as tightly as you can, and leave it alone for 10 minutes or so. Every time I've done this trick, the tick backs itself out, so no worries about the head being left behind.