How to Remove Chiggers from Your Dogs and Yourself

Ahh the great outdoors. So much fun soaking in the sun, sleeping under the stars, hiking through the flowing waters and beautiful trees. Then, you get home and see this………

It looks the same on a dog. Not to worry. These aren’t ticks. They’re chiggers – also known as the juvenile form of a mite. You can pick up these little guys in any type of field or forest, including parks, golf courses, or other town located areas (so all my city friends – this post pertains to you as well). The good news is they aren’t dangerous. The bad news is they’re incredibly itchy and will drive you nuts, and they don’t go away on their own. Chiggers are very tiny and can only be seen with a magnifying glass. In case you’re curious, here’s what they look like under magnification.

Gross, right?! They typically crawl into places that have a tighter form and less breathable area. This includes tops of socks, groin area, armpits, and around collars. A common misconception is that chiggers burry into the skin, so many people try to fix them with suffocating type ointments. This will do nothing except harm your skin. Chiggers actually produce a digestive enzyme they inject into the skin, which in turn, causes decomposed tissue forming a hard lump or red spot. The chigger then feeds upon the dying tissue. I hope you weren’t eating lunch while you read this.

Chiggers are also incredibly common on dogs. After going out into tall grasses to take Fido on that walk, make sure to check the under belly area, especially the folds around the legs. If there are red bumps, you’ve got chiggers. If you have a black or dark coat dog, the bites will be more of a darker black color. Your dog will scratch or lick like crazy.

Now that we’re caught up on the grossness of chiggers and what they do, how in the heck do you get rid of them?

GETTING RID OF CHIGGERS

It’s so easy you’re not going to believe I had to write a whole blog post to tell you. Remember my previous post on Epsom salt? It comes in handy again! Place your dog (or your own affected area) into a warm bath and add in 2 cups of Epsom salt. Again, this is around $5 at any major store. I like to run my hand through the bath to dissolve the salt a bit. Take a cup and pour the water all over your dog. When he/she is good and wet, wash him/her with a dish soap. Any dish soap you already have in your kitchen will do. I would like to specify that this is the liquid soap. Please don’t put dishwasher packets into your bath water. Just sayin. The soap will kill the chiggers immediately while the salt will stop the itchiness. This works on any human part as well.

That’s it! Easy as that. Get out there and enjoy the great outdoors, itch free!