If your chickens have any outside time, they will get lice eventually, not your fault- but you do need to treat them consistently- to keep the lice in check. Think of them as fleas- they are always ready to take advantage of an unprotected animal. It is not uncommon for birds to get lice so bad they DIE from the anemia. Birds that are not allowed to dust bathe will be more affected and certain breeds. Roosters who spend less time taking care of themselves are often more affected. Also a bird who is sick from something else and is not taking care of herself will be overrun.
You need to dust the birds- you can do the shake and bake method- put powder in a bag and put the chicken in with the head sticking out- and shake. Or grab their feet and let them hang upside down- they will flap a few times then hang there limp- you can then, with the other hand- shake powder on their vent area and under the wings- this is where most of the lice are. Do this at night when they are roosting so you can catch all of them, or grab them one by one as you let them out in the morning. If you don't want to do this every month, at least inspect them all each month- and treat if you see lice again (and repeat in 2 weeks). If you didn't have much luck treating the birds- it doesn't count. If the powder doesn't touch the bug, it won't be killed. Putting powder in the nest boxes and dust baths will help control them, but if you have a bad problem- you need to powder the chickens themselves. Get a family member to help you.
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You need to dust the birds- you can do the shake and bake method- put powder in a bag and put the chicken in with the head sticking out- and shake. Or grab their feet and let them hang upside down- they will flap a few times then hang there limp- you can then, with the other hand- shake powder on their vent area and under the wings- this is where most of the lice are. Do this at night when they are roosting so you can catch all of them, or grab them one by one as you let them out in the morning. If you don't want to do this every month, at least inspect them all each month- and treat if you see lice again (and repeat in 2 weeks). If you didn't have much luck treating the birds- it doesn't count. If the powder doesn't touch the bug, it won't be killed. Putting powder in the nest boxes and dust baths will help control them, but if you have a bad problem- you need to powder the chickens themselves. Get a family member to help you.
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