About to be carried off by FLIES!!!!!!!

[lauriruth]

My 4 babies made the move to the big girl catawba coop 3 days ago and OMG i can't even open my back door the flies are so bad! i'm using food grade DE on and in everything and i can't even believe how bad they are! there is no smell, just flies EVERYWHERE! I move the coop every day and sprinkle DE on the ground before and after moving it. what else can i do? anyone?

 

[powerline]

Try putting Apple Cider Vinegar in their water at 2 oz. per gal. of water. I know the blow flies don't like it.

 

[possumqueen]

There's a thread in the list about some stuff call Stall Dry that seems to have everyone cheering. DE made up with clay to make little pellets. Some the the posts said Tractor Supply carries it.

 

[miss_jayne]

the last batch of 'August Black Flies' are hatching right now, as we call them. they are aggressive buggers. go to the store and get a fly trap. they work AWESOME. it is amazing. you can buy refills for them also, so don't throw the jar away!!!

they are jars that you fill with a liquid that comes with. DO NOT GET THE LIQUID ON YOUR SKIN, IT STINKS TO HIGH HEAVEN. it is a humectant to attract flies, and attract it does. once the flies go in, they cannot come out. the more flies that go in, the more that will be attracted to it.

here is a picture of one of mine (without the flies in it) they are a good deal and reusable.

 

[Diva]

I use fly bags that I found at feed stores in Oregon. Lowe's and Home Depot also sells them. You just add water and it has some powder in them that mixes with the water and it draws flies immediately. I can fill one up in about a week. they are really not very expensive and work just great for us. They also have them for yellow jackets..

Linda

 

[france]

The best thing for flies I ever found was fly predators. I have seen discussions on BYC about them before. Keeps the fly population well under control. Here is where I get mine from and their website has a lot of info to explain what they are:
http://spalding-labs.com/

 

[patandchickens]

Are they free ranging or are they in the tractor fulltime? Cuz if they are in there fulltime, you could actually just staple windowscreen all round the run and over the windows, and that would very greatly cut down on the flies. I know it does not strike to the root of the problem or anything, but that plus a stinky trap hung *well away* from inhabited areas (and follow the directions on the package for how high to hang it) should make things much more pleasant.

I have to say, I'm puzzled that just 4 chickens in a tractor for a few days could farm up so many flies, and I have to think that maybe your area is experiencing a booming fly population and they are merely being *attracted* to the chickens rather than so much being *caused* by them...?

Good luck, "have fun" (whatever fun is where flies are concerned

),

Pat

 

[lauriruth]

thanks everyone! i'll hit TS asap and look for fly traps.
Patandchicks - i know! seriously...they're only 4 wks old and over night i had fly troubles! they do come out to play several times a day. the run is 4x8 and gets moved to a different location every day.
will stall-dry kill the grass?

 

[miss_jayne]

stall dry will not kill the grass, but it will burn the chicken on the feet if not worked in properly.

 

[patandchickens]

Stall Dry is just clay and DE, there is nothing to burn chickens' feet.

I gather from what some people have written that there may be something labelled Stall Dri (note spelling) which is lime-based and potentially a little caustic... but I dunno bout that, never encountered it myself.

The thing is to make sure which you are getting i.e read the ingredients, then you know for sure.

Pat