Sugar, Spice, and Puppy Dog Tails?

I don't know where I began to be interested in organic and natural things.  I'm not super good at it, but I do try to be more environmentally friendly and pesticide free.

One of my most recent discoveries of things that work are essential oils.  I used to think they were just for smelling, but I am finding other uses for them now.  One of which is citronella oil.  I put 20 drops in a small bottle of olive oil.  Instant bug repellent that actually works, is inexpensive, and smells nice.  Oh, and it's a two-for-one deal.  I read that olive oil is a natural sunscreen!

The other I am currently experimenting with is lavender oil.  I'm sure I first purchased it to combine with Epsom salts in bath water.  I love lavender.

Now to the puppy dog tail part. :)  We are still experiencing our first year of having a dog.  The newest development has been that of ticks.  Bless Daisy's heart!  Within 2 1/2 weeks, I think I found 5 ticks on her.  What to do?  Flea and tick medicines are very expensive, and I question their working capability since I read the reviews online.  I also don't care at all for the fact that flea and tick meds are poison.  My vet, of course, recommends the most expensive ones. . .and cringes when I order my pet meds online.  No good.

One day, I thought that if the citronella oil works for me, would it be safe and work for Daisy?  I started researching online and found a better alternative.  LAVENDER!  Woo hoo! (Citronella smells good, but lavender is better!)

Maybe a week and a half ago, I gave daisy a bath.  Afterwards, I would put a drop or two of lavender oil into my palms, rub them together, then rub it into her fur.  I repeated it until I got her tummy, back, legs, and the top of her head. I also filled a spray bottle with one cup of water and about 15 drops of lavender oil.   Whenever I notice that Daisy doesn't have too much of a lavender smell before we go outside for any reason, I tell her to come to me.  She does very well and sits quietly while I spray her down, then rub in the spray.

I hadn't noticed any more ticks on her since I started the lavender routine.  Yesterday, Josh took Daisy to the groomer.  He asked the groomer if there were any ticks on her when the groomer bathed her.  Good news!  Daisy was tick AND flea free!