Loosing feathers help!

[Chicken lady5]

What is the proper dust bath for them also should it be inside or outside?
Thank you!

 

[chickengeorgeto]

.... Birds without access to good dry dust have the feather problems. My birds also exhibit preferences in the dust the use. That which contains some ash from burnt wood seems to be real popular. They also seem to consider moisture content.....

Wood ashes have a lot of lie in them. As a youngster my grandmother saved our wood ashes to make lie for homemade soap and to process corn into hominy. The caustic aspect of wood ashes also means that they kill tiny soft bodied creepy crawlies on contact. "I will 'guarontee' you as Justin Wilson used to say that wood ash will beat DE hands down every day of the week and two ways to Sunday.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

....The mites seem to be gone as well as the lice. What about the eggs attached to their feathers will that eventually come off? ...Just hoping they get their feathers back before winter.

You probably should treat for lice and mites again so that you can kill any newly hatched nits clinging to the feathers before they can create another generation of lice.

Nothing will replace the lost or damaged feathers except for a complete new set of hen duds that they'll be growing once the molt starts. Without a new lice infestation your hens should all have a nice shiny new suit of chicken clothes before winter sets in.