Mites on Chickens! Please HELP!

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Krazy4Chicks

Krazy4Chicks

Songster
9 Years
Feb 11, 2014
171
86
181
Castaic, California
I have 6 Silkies, 1 Ameraucana, and 1 Blue Laced Red Wyandotte (all under a year old). They've been shaking their heads and I checked and they have mites crawling on them, mostly in the neck area and on the tops of their heads. I put on some Ivermectin 5 days ago (1/4 cc for Silkies, and 1/2 cc for Ameraucana and Wyandotte), but they have still been shaking their heads. I've also used DE on their bodies and (with a makeup brush) dabbed it on the tops of their heads and their neck areas (I had mites running everywhere, which gave me the heeby-jeebies). I also cleaned and sprayed the coop with Permethrin (diluted to the 1%) and added in fresh pine bedding. After all of that, they still were shaking their heads. So I went and purchased ProZap Garden & Poultry Dust at our feed store and, so far, have put that into their coop & nesting boxes (under the bedding),and also sprinkled some in their sandy run area where they like to dust bathe. Unfortunately, it's been pretty windy here, so I haven't been able to actually dust the chickens with the Poultry Dust yet (and I don't have a helper available). I just don't understand why the Ivermectin didn't take care of all of the mites? Does it normally take this long to work? Maybe I didn't use enough? Can I reapply more; and if so, when? Or any ideas of what else I should do?
 
I guess I assumed that the mites always bite -- is that not correct? I know that they were jumping off and biting me on my arms when we were dusting the tops of the heads with the DE. Is the Ivermectin dosage of 1/4 cc for Silkies and 1/2 cc for standards correct? Or should I have used more? And when could I or should I repeat the Ivermectin?
 
An old time remedy to "bugs" on chickens is to put wood ashes in their dust bath area.

What ivermectin are you using? Pour on or injectable or oral?
 
Krazy4Chicks said:
I have 6 Silkies, 1 Ameraucana, and 1 Blue Laced Red Wyandotte (all under a year old). They've been shaking their heads and I checked and they have mites crawling on them, mostly in the neck area and on the tops of their heads. I put on some Ivermectin 5 days ago (1/4 cc for Silkies, and 1/2 cc for Ameraucana and Wyandotte), but they have still been shaking their heads. I've also used DE on their bodies and (with a makeup brush) dabbed it on the tops of their heads and their neck areas (I had mites running everywhere, which gave me the heeby-jeebies). I also cleaned and sprayed the coop with Permethrin (diluted to the 1%) and added in fresh pine bedding. After all of that, they still were shaking their heads. So I went and purchased ProZap Garden & Poultry Dust at our feed store and, so far, have put that into their coop & nesting boxes (under the bedding),and also sprinkled some in their sandy run area where they like to dust bathe. Unfortunately, it's been pretty windy here, so I haven't been able to actually dust the chickens with the Poultry Dust yet (and I don't have a helper available). I just don't understand why the Ivermectin didn't take care of all of the mites? Does it normally take this long to work? Maybe I didn't use enough? Can I reapply more; and if so, when? Or any ideas of what else I should do?
Click to expand...
You've done it all. If all this has not worked, I suggest Frontline Spray, the one for Dogs, Puppies, Cats and Kittens. I buy it in an 8.5 fl oz size (both my vet and my feed store carry it). When I go to a show, I spray my birds a spray under the wing and just below the vent, both on the skin. It will do it.

Mites in some places have developed resistance to Permethrin and even ivermectin. Your Ivermectin dosages look in line. By my experience, the DE is useless. Good Luck & let us know if this does the trick.
 
I have the Durvet Ivermectin Pour-On for Cattle (5 mg Ivermectin per mL) - came in yellow box and is light blue liquid. I used a syringe (without needle) to measure out 1/4 cc for the Silkies, and 1/2 cc for the Standards. Maybe that's not quite enough? Their crests still had the creepy crawlers in them days later, and their bodies looked clear. Should I re-dose with the Ivermectin? If so, when?

And thanks - I will keep the wood ashes in mind as something to throw into their run area. I have now dusted them (mainly their crests, under wings, and vent area) with the Garden & Poultry Dust - hoping that will take care of the rest.
 
Thanks for your reply, "cgmccary". I will keep the Frontline Spray in mind if I can't get it under control. So is it a spray under each wing and the vent? Or just one wing and the vent? And does it matter the breed?

I agree with you about the DE. To be honest, I thought that I had everything covered by using the DE in their coop and run area. WRONG! I feel like such a bad chicken momma after seeing how much the DE didnt' work. I had just dusted them with the Garden & Poultry Dust yesterday (along with cleaning out their coop again and dusting under their pine bedding), so I will give it a week to see if that takes care of the buggers.
 
Krazy4Chicks said:
Thanks for your reply, "cgmccary". I will keep the Frontline Spray in mind if I can't get it under control. So is it a spray under each wing and the vent? Or just one wing and the vent? And does it matter the breed?

I agree with you about the DE. To be honest, I thought that I had everything covered by using the DE in their coop and run area. WRONG! I feel like such a bad chicken momma after seeing how much the DE didnt' work. I had just dusted them with the Garden & Poultry Dust yesterday (along with cleaning out their coop again and dusting under their pine bedding), so I will give it a week to see if that takes care of the buggers.
Click to expand...
Don't beat your self up. If you have chickens long enough, you are going to get mites. Here in the SE, I consider myself lucky if it is only once each year. I swear a lot when I find them but then just take care of business. The Ivermectin should be the INJECTABLE kind, not the pour -on you use with cattle, come in a little bottle. Since you have already used it, I would just get the Frontline Spray. Once under a wing and once below the vent will be enough (it is a squirt per 10 lb of body weight on dogs, puppies and cats)-- just make sure to spray on the skin by parting the feathers.
 
I had chicken lice(brought in by ravens I reckon) DE did absolutely nothing, other then give the birds some dust. I then tried sevin5 dust. one moderate application to the birds, and a full cleaning of the coop and nests, the problem is gone. it took 2 weeks to go from lots of gross bugs, to no bugs. I used one lb shaker can of the dust for 10 birds and my 4x8 shed coop, the majority of that dust went around the coop and roosts, i focused the dust to the underwings and near the vent on the birds, while being sure to get the whole bird dusty. I then tossed the bird into the air so they could shake off the excess dust.
 
montain_dweller said:
I had chicken lice(brought in by ravens I reckon) DE did absolutely nothing, other then give the birds some dust. I then tried sevin5 dust. one moderate application to the birds, and a full cleaning of the coop and nests, the problem is gone. it took 2 weeks to go from lots of gross bugs, to no bugs. I used one lb shaker can of the dust for 10 birds and my 4x8 shed coop, the majority of that dust went around the coop and roosts, i focused the dust to the underwings and near the vent on the birds, while being sure to get the whole bird dusty. I then tossed the bird into the air so they could shake off the excess dust.
Click to expand...
Yes, I agree, sevin5 dust will work too; some mites are becoming resistant to it also. However, I have honey bees and the stuff is absolutely lethal to them so it is generally banned from my premises. You can use a "dusting pistol" to get the sevin down under the feathers.
 

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