Treating for lice/mites

[Katiedid]

This is our first lice/mite infestation. Our RR has thinning feathers on her chest (about the size of a dime) and a large bald spot on her bottom. I treated with Sevin dust last Monday and am preparing to retreat on Wednesday. She seems active and her comb is dark. She's been laying well. I noticed that her butt appears to be light red in places, but her vent is fine and I haven't seen the other birds pecking at her. I cleaned the coop and sprayed it down as best I could, but there are a lot of nooks and crannies. I cleaned the run but was hesitant to spray or dust it. It's very large so I wasn't sure if that was a feasible option or if I should try that? Is it safe to dust with Sevin around the large run? We have a dog and a three year old. The three year old doesn't play near the run, but I really, really don't want either to be poisoned.

I'm also resisting the urge to retreat with Sevin today. I know I need to wait 10 days (Wednesday) for the life cycle with the eggs. Is it safe to frequently dust them with Sevin, or will too much hurt them?

I'm feeding sunflower seeds to hopefully help with feathers. Should I also treat for internal parasites? I'm new at this and haven't seen any mites/lice, but the feather loss makes it sounds like that is probably the issue. Should I wait to treat for internal parasites to build up the bird's systems? What else can I do? My RR seems to have lost weight with this issue. Is there away to help her fatten up again?

Thanks for your help!

 

[Fox]

I have always been able to see them on the chickens. You might also go out to your coop at night and use a flash light on the roosts and corners. They tend to come out at night more... they are very tiny. I dusted once. I used the Sevin dust and then I used the pour on Ivomec. I did not have anymore problems with any pests. I also dusted the laying nest (after cleaning out all bedding and burning it) and put in fresh bedding, ... dusted the edges of the coops, the roosts and sprayed the Adam's Flea and Tick in all the corners of the coop. I did nothing to the run.

If you have not wormed the chickens, then using the Ivomec is a good option because it helps with the worming (it's all I use) and then also kills the mites and lice. It is also possible that it might be something else... perhaps she is starting a molt? You should be able to see mites or lice... especially near the vent. I just feathered back the feathers until I can see skin and look at the base of the feathers for anything moving. Mine looked like tiny sesame seeds. If you never see any mites, it may be something else, but if you have not wormed, then using Ivomec is a good option because it's good to worm (some may never worm) once in awhile in my opinion and if you have any lice and mites it will kill them off too. Here is a link about using the pour on kind. It's very easy and it worked very well for my flock. Thankfully I've only had one infestation. https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/426433/ivomec-pour-on-question-help