In our house, as you can tell, using the racket gets a little competitive. When I am using one, I feel like I am a force for good, slaying a relentless enemy. The rackets even have a little lightning bolt on them so they look like a superhero weapon. Though common in other parts of the world, in Brazil the racket is ubiquitous: street sellers hawk them, they are sold in stores and every house has one. My husband immediately busted my self-congratulatory bubble. Apparently I don't even need to try to kill mosquitoes they just naturally come to me. However, just as he said that, another mosquito accidentally hit my racket. 'Pretty poor,' he answered, rather judgmentally in my opinion. 'How would you describe my racket technique?' I asked. After a victorious sizzle I confronted my husband.

On a recent afternoon, while reporting this story, I was waving my hands frantically in the air trying to kill a mosquito with said racket while my husband James and his sister Claire - who is visiting from the U.K. As the name implies, it is an electrified tennis racket that kills mosquitoes. It's the place where the mosquito-born virus dengue fever is most prevalent.Įnter the Zapping Racket. It's summer right now and I'm sure you've noticed them: small, insidious buzzing - mosquitoes. James Hider, the reporter's husband, wields the zapping racket to kill some pesky mosquitoes at their home in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Mosquito racket