Horsehair Worms

tiny, skinny brown worm in carpet
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One of our readers wrote in and told us that she was having issues with horsehair worms. She keeps finding them in her hair and wants to know how she can get rid of them. You can get rid of these worms if you do find them in your by washing your hair regularly and simply by picking them out.

Horsehair worms are hair-like worms that are in the Gordian family of worms. These worms are black in color and have long and thread-like bodies. This is where their name came from. They can be up to a foot in length and generally can be found in bodies of water like lakes, pools, puddles, and streams. Horsehair worms are not harmful to humans whatsoever, but can be quite a nuisance if you get them in your hair like our reader did.

tiny, skinny brown worm in carpet

Horsehair worms are considered scary by some people because they travel in packs. They will sometimes squirm and twist in groups of 100 or more. They will sometimes even make a knot with their bodies that looks like a small ball. They can be seen very frequently after an area has gotten a lot of rain. They are seen quite often in states like Oklahoma after tornados and flash floods.

Although many people consider these worms to be parasitic, they do not harm humans. However, they do kill many other insects that could be harmful to humans or human crops such as beetles, millipedes, centipedes, crickets, and cockroaches. Grasshoppers are also known to be infected by these worms which cause them to die once they have entered their bodies. These worms can be a nuisance in your home because they do like to congregate in the shower, bath tub, or around the toilets. Horsehair worms are also known to collect inside your carpets after a storm where water has entered the home.

In summary, the reader asked us what to do if she has horsehair worms in her hair. We just suggest regularly washing and drying it and combing through with a brush or comb. The reader can also pick out the worms by hand and they should be gone in no time.

 

 

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Horsehair Worms
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Horsehair Worms
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One of our readers wrote in and told us that she was having issues with horsehair worms. She keeps finding them in her hair and wants to know how she can get rid of them. You can get rid of these worms if you do find them in your by washing your hair regularly and simply by picking them out.
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