Wood tick infestation

[queenbit]

A friend and I are battling a woodtick infestation the likes of which I have never seen. We both breed shelties and you can imagine what it is like finding ticks in the coat of a sheltie. Except for heartworm remedies we both stick to organic treatments and gardening. However this one has us stumped.

When I say the dogs and yard are infested I mean crawling with the critters. Walking through the yard can leave you with 12-25 ticks on you. That is w ith the grass cut as short as the lawn mower will go. The house is also becoming infested. There appear to be two types of ticks, the usual brownish red one that turns tan when engorged with blood and a much smaller version that is a very deep brown or black.

We use nematodes and such for the usual yard critters, but without avail this summer. No doubt the wet and cool weather is part of the problem.

Just for the health of the dogs we are both considering one of the topical flea and tick treatments if we cannot get this situation under control. I would appreciate any help or ideas. We would prefer to stay away from such toxins and the yard sprays that kill anythingn with an exoskelton.

The only good news is that the praying mantis population seems to be happily increasing.

[Dirt Doctor]

Spray the area including up on the trunks of trees and sides of structures with Eco-EXEMPT, Bioganics or other plant oil product.