What’s more annoying than having biting bugs that irritate your skin? Having biting bugs that irritate your skin that you can’t see!
Chiggers are common yard pests that can irritate humans and pets throughout the warm months in Minnesota and Wisconsin. You can put a stop to these irritating pests by preventing chiggers in your yard, treating chiggers in your home, and treating chiggers in your house, if it comes to that.
For more immediate results, contact the experts at Done Right Pest Solutions for a free quote on chigger control. Otherwise, read on to learn 5 ways to prevent chigger, how to treat chiggers in your yard, and how to treat chiggers in your house.
Table of Contents
- About chiggers
- Chigger bites
- How to treat chiggers naturally in your house
- How to treat chiggers in your yard
- 5 ways to prevent chiggers in your yard
- How we treat chiggers
- Conclusion and next steps
About Chiggers
Chiggers are actually a younger age of a harvest mite so since it’s a variety of harvest mite, it’s not misconstrued to have called chiggers mites. Chiggers are a type of mite.
Jiggers, on the other hand, are a type of flea, but the chiggers being discussed here are a type of Trombiculidae. Chiggers or harvest mites are commonly found in forests and dry grasslands or other dryer areas.
We’ve seen them in the summer months when there’s not as much rain. A fun fact is that chiggers are actually a relative of ticks, but they’re very almost microscopic. Chiggers are 1/60th of an inch in diameter.
One adult harvest mite or chigger can actually lay up to 15 eggs per day and they can live between 2 and 12 months depending on the weather and climate conditions.
It is common to experience chigger bites. I bet many people have experienced chigger bites in the past before but just misconstrued as a simple rash that that’ll go away if the bugs aren’t on them.
Chiggers are found in the northern states of the US, i.e. the Midwest, during May through September, the warmer months. While they don’t pose much of a threat besides being a nuisance, in Asian countries they can spread a disease known as scrub typhus.
A fun fact is that chiggers are actually a relative of ticks, but they’re very almost microscopic. Chiggers are 1/60th of an inch in diameter.
For the best chigger control services, look to your experts at Done Right Pest Solutions. Otherwise, read on to learn more about chigger bites, 5 ways to prevent chiggers in your yard, how to treat chiggers in your yard, how to treat chiggers in your house, including how to treat chiggers naturally.
Chigger Bites
It isn’t common but occasionally chiggers can feed off of humans. Another fun fact is that chiggers or these harvest mites can actually attach to your body, but they don’t burrow under the skin. They can attach to your body and live on you for up to 3 days but they typically enjoy the grassland so this is not they’re not going to live for years on you.
The digestive enzymes in their saliva can cause very itchy welts for very few cases. This isn’t common at all, but it is possible though. The best advice when one is experiencing chigger bites is to remove your clothes, take a hot shower or bath to reduce the itching. Wash your clothes on a high heat setting and dry them on high heat.
Harvest mites or chiggers, unlike their relative the tick, do not carry near as many diseases. Typically they don’t carry any diseases but it has been studied that they can carry rickettsia and typhus. Mice and rats also carry these two diseases, perhaps because mice and rats are often infested by mites.
For a complete mouse control guide with step-by-step instructions, click here.
Mites do not burrow into the skin and so it’s not necessarily important to treat the skin in terms of rubbing alcohol or other at cleaning methods as they’re no longer on your skin. They don’t imbed in the skin but you can use a topical cream to help aid the healing process of the rash is caused by the bites.
It is best to consult a dermatologist or medical professional, but Benadryl, anti-itch cream, or hydrocortisone creams can be applied and help ease the discomfort. Essential oils may also help repair the red and inflamed skin.
Another fun fact is that chiggers or these harvest mites can actually attach to your body, but they don’t burrow under the skin.
If you’re wondering how chiggers work or how chiggers spread, we’ve got the answer: they live in taller grasses and will cling to a host. Chiggers can spread through people or animals walking through a tall grass.
For a free quote on chigger control, call Done Right Pest Solutions at 651-342-9489. Continue reading for some DIY tips on how to treat chiggers naturally, how to treat chiggers in your house, how to treat chiggers in your yard, and 5 ways to prevent chiggers in your yard.
How to Treat Chiggers Naturally in Your House
Since chiggers can’t live long inside your home anyway, there may not be a need for you to treat for chiggers. You may simply be able to wait them out. Chiggers can last between 1 and 3 days in a home without their natural environment.
While unpleasant, once the chiggers die off, the biting and itching feeling should subside in a day or 2 afterwards as well.
You can spray some dawn dish soap and water solution on the areas that are affected, since soap is pretty harmless to items and animals in small amounts. You can also spray some vinegar and water on the areas that are affected. These are simple ways to treat chiggers naturally in your home.
You may also want to consider an essential oils mixture, like mentioned in the section below, but do NOT do this if you have pets. Some essential oils are not pet safe, so please consult an essential oils expert prior to any application in your home.
You learned how to treat chiggers naturally and how to treat chiggers in your house. Keep reading for more tips on how to treat chiggers in your yard, including 5 ways to prevent chiggers in your yard.
How to Treat Chiggers in Your Yard
When it comes to repelling chiggers, there are many different methods from which you can choose. You may want to choose a DEET repellent for your clothing or around the yard. You may not. You may want to choose a more natural approach.
HGTV suggests using a mixture of these types of essential oils to repel chiggers: lavender, peppermint, tea tree, citronella or thyme.
There are also plenty of ways to not attract chiggers to you in the first place, like by covering your skin with long pants and long sleeves, don’t walk through grass or vegetation but instead choose a paved path, walk in the sunlight, etc.
There are also other methods of deterring biting chiggers, like eating strong foods such as garlic, or simply brush yourself off before you come inside after a day outside, and shower right away.
Homesteading suggests spraying your clothes with vinegar before you go outside since chiggers don’t like pungent aromas.
You can prevent chiggers from becoming attracted to your yard by keeping your lawn mowed regularly, plant flowers that chiggers don’t like (for example: marigolds).
So if you’re wondering how chiggers work or how chiggers spread: they spread through the grass.
5 Ways to Prevent Chiggers in Your Yard
Going off of the tips mentioned in the section above, here are 5 ways to prevent chiggers in your yard.
- Keep your lawn mowed regularly.
- Plant flowers chiggers don’t like
- Treat routinely using DEET products around harborage areas.
- Treat harborage areas with an essential oil blend of lavender, peppermint, tea tree, citronella or thyme.
- Hire a pest control company to treat preventatively and proactively.
If you already have chiggers in your yard, it may be best to call in the professionals, otherwise you can try the DIY methods listed in this article. Be sure to repel them from your person for the best defense against the itchy bumps from their bites.
Now that you know the best 5 ways to prevent chiggers in your yard, if you do get a chigger infestation and want more immediate relief, call the experts at Done Right Pest Solutions for a free quote on chigger control: 651-342-9489.
How We Treat Chiggers
Done Right Pest Solutions has expert technicians that will fully inspect your yard or home for chigger and chigger activity prior to treatment. If your yard needs treating, there are a couple of different products and techniques the technician may use, depending on the infestation level.
We have a handheld sprayer, a backpack sprayer, a power sprayer, and a fogging machine. Typically a backpack sprayer or handheld sprayer application method would be most common for low infestation levels in yards. A power sprayer may be needed if the yard is simply a large yard. Finally, the fogging machine we have has had tremendous success in chigger treatment. The product is stronger, so no one can be in the yard for at least an hour to two. And the oil-based application will last for at least a couple of months.
For interior treatment, we may treat along baseboards, window frames, and door frames. Chiggers like shade and so they may be attracted to wall voids. If the technician finds that your infestation is coming from the wall voids, he will treat using a powder or dust in the wall voids to eliminate the chigger populations within.
A follow-up treatment may be needed, so if you notice any chigger activity after 2 weeks, give us a call for a free follow-up service: 651-342-9489.
FAQ About Chiggers
Q: How do chiggers work?
A: Chiggers are a type of mite that live in tall grass. When an animal or human walks through the grass, they can come off on the skin, fur, or clothing.
Q: How do chiggers spread?
A: Chiggers spread through tall grass and clinging to a host that have walked by.
Q: How many chigger bites is too many?
A: This answer depends on the person. Some would say 1 is too many, some would say a clump of bites is too many. When it comes down to it, chiggers don’t typically spread diseases, not like mosquitoes. So, how many chigger bites is too many? The answer varies. But 1 mosquito bite is too many.
Q: How much do pest control companies charge for chiggers?
A: The answer depends on the area we are treating. Typically we will treat the yard, and many times seasonal treatments are needed. Now, with our seasonal treatments you would see a decrease in other pests as well, like mosquitoes and ticks. It also depends on if we are treating the interior of your home.
Q: How often do chiggers reproduce?
A: One adult harvest mite or chigger can actually lay up to 15 eggs per day and they can live between 2 and 12 months depending on the weather and climate conditions. So, in Minnesota or Wisconsin, you’re not going to have chiggers in your yard year round reproducing.
Q: Are chiggers hard to kill?
A: It depends. Because they are so small, they can be hard to kill. Because they cover a wide area of land, they can often be hard to completely eradicate. There are a number of factors that a licensed pest control technician needs to determine upon inspection of an area with chiggers.
Q: Are chigger bugs contagious?
A: Chiggers do not spread like a virus, and they typically don’t live for more than a couple of days away from their normal environment outdoors.
Q: Are chiggers dangerous to pets?
A: Chiggers can pose quite a nuisance to pets and humans when it comes to their bites and the itch rash their bites can cause. Other than a nuisance, they aren’t super harmful. As mentioned in the article, there is a type of chigger that can spread a variety of scarab typhus, but other than that, they are mainly a nuisance.
Q: Will chiggers live in your house?
A: Not for very long. Chiggers will only live for about 3 days in your house if you have brought them inside.
Q: Will chiggers bite dogs? / Will chiggers get on dogs?
A: Chiggers will bite dogs and chiggers will get on dogs, just like they will bite and get on humans.
Q: When do chiggers come out?
A: Chiggers come out in the warm months of the summer in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Q: What is the best chigger control? / What is the best chigger pesticide?
A: Call Done Right Pest Solutions for chigger control done right! 651-342-9489.
Conclusion & Next Steps
In this detailed article you learned a lot about chigger control. You learned about chiggers and chigger bites. Next, you learned about how to treat chiggers naturally and how to treat chiggers in your house. Then you learned how to treat chiggers in your yard, including 5 ways to prevent chiggers in your yard.
Finally, you learned where to turn if the chiggers get over-populated and you need some help: Done Right Pest Solutions. We strive to give helpful information on how to treat for insect control and rodent control on your own. We also let you know when it’s time to call in the pros.
We look forward to hearing from you, should you ever need us.
Here when you need us,
Done Right Team
Have you ever had chiggers in your yard or home? What did you do? We’d love to hear from you in the comments!
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