Bird lice!!! How do I get rid of it!

[Mrs.Puff]

I've been occasionally finding a little bug crawling on me, especially after handling my birds, so I looked it up in my Audubon guide, and they're bird lice! EEEWW!! My chickens don't really scratch any more than usual, but my boyfriend is freaked out and doesn't want my birds anywhere near the house now. What is a good way to delouse them? I also have tiny week old chicks, so I assume they'll get lice too. My chickens frequent areas where wild birds hang out (under the birdfeeder) so I assume they'll be exposed to lice constantly. We're going to change the fencing arrangement soon so they won't be by the feeder.

 

[Mrs.Puff]

Thanks-- I was thinking of using sevin, but I wasn't sure if it was okay for birds. The pantyhose idea is great. I couldn't figure out how I would manage to dust them without getting it all over the place. Non- food grade DE is okay for external use right? I have my doubts that I could find the other kind in my area.

 

[k0xxx]

While generally Bird Lice cannot live off humans, they can become a problem and can bite. My daughter had Bird Lice entering through her window. Before we knew what they were or where they were coming from, we would treat her for lice every day and then they'd be back to following day.

The doctor identified them as bird lice. We then treated the area outside and around here window with Sevin and also removed the limbs that were near the house. We never had a problem after that.

I believe that everything exists for a reason... However, lice and chiggers are a real mystery to me.:|

 

[Oldfort_mailman]

We were using permethrin garden and pet dust on our chickens until we realized our spray that we use in their pens was the same stuff. Now we mix three gallons of liquid permethrin-10 up in a five gallon bucket and dip them. We leave the head and neck out of course but it kills eggs and bugs, both mites and lice and any other crawler. Its also much faster than powdering them. I talked to another member on here and she has been doing it for years. As for DE the only thing i can say for sure about my food grade fifty lb bag is that a cup full will kill a two ft diameter fire ant mound in two days. I think all it does for mites and lice is allow them to build little DE snowmen cause it sure doesnt kill them, at least not here. But man, those fire ants in my yard are history. I have been lazy this year and had fifty mounds and became fire ant free in a week with de.

 

[nubbard]

My grandma just used the ashes from the fireplace. That seemed to work well. She would wait until the ashes cooled, then dump them. The chickens would wallow in the ashes all summer and would not have any lice.

 

[LynneP]

Some louse powders include Sevin (carbaryl)
and Dri-Kill (sulfur and rotenone).
I think Miss Prissy had a definitive post on this a while ago, she suggests mixing diatomaceous earth (DE) and Sevin in a pantyhose foot and using it to dust under the wings and all over the vent area of each bird.

Both can be used in bedding and nest boxes. Many of us are using DE as a preventive in the coop.

 

[flakey chick]

BTW humans cannot get bird lice. I don't know if that will comfort your boyfriend.

 

[Mrs.Puff]

Hey- that comforts ME too!

 

[rooster0209]

I found this article one day on ridding your coop of roost mites. I found it quite interesting and it was very cost effective

http://www.plamondon.com/faq_healthcare.html

 

[gumpsgirl]

Mrs.Puff :

Thanks-- I was thinking of using sevin, but I wasn't sure if it was okay for birds. The pantyhose idea is great. I couldn't figure out how I would manage to dust them without getting it all over the place. Non- food grade DE is okay for external use right? I have my doubts that I could find the other kind in my area.

NO! DO NOT, I repeat, DO NOT use the non-food grade DE on your birds or anyplace around them. You can order the food grade DE from spatcher here on BYC. His prices are very reasonable and I understand that he can get it to you fairly quickly.

If this is something you want to take care of today, which I don't blame you, then just use the sevin in the panty hose. When you get your food grade DE add it to the coop area and nesting boxes.