Advice needed on treatment for mites

[emorling]

Hey Folks; long time listener, first time caller. What has finally got me writing in is yet another mite infestation. I hate these bugs AND the treatment so much, I'm actually debating giving up on having chickens altogether.

I have a flock of 8 birds in idyllic Wenatchee WA; 4 are newly adopted Australorp pullets; 4 are 2 year old Rhode Island Reds. The Australorps were brought home a couple of weeks ago, so the New Girls are currently separated from the Old Ladies in a side-by-side run and coops 5 feet apart from each other. I first noticed the mites 2 weeks ago in the Old Ladies coop (New Girls appear clean). We've had mites before (and tried all of the organic treatments which didn't work), so went straight for the hard stuff. We dusted each of the 8 birds under the wings and booty with 0.25% permethryn Poultry Dust; and treated both coops by removing all bedding, then spraying all 4 sides, top and bottom of the coop with liquid permethryn (as directed on the label).

Then we waited the 2 weeks and went back to do the follow up yesterday... only to find mites in the coop still (it was super gross, actually, there were two crevices that were just teeming with mites. They then, of course, they got in my hair and were crawling all over me and it smells like cancer chemicals and... IIIIICK). Went ahead and did the follow up dust and spray as previously described.

I had thought that 2 weeks after the first treatment we wouldn't see any more mites, but we would do the second treatment anyway just to be sure (rule #2, double tap). But with all those mites crawling around 2 weeks later... am I going to have to wait two weeks and do a THIRD round of dust/spray?? I'll be throwing away eggs all dang summer, if that's the case. Or is the problem the 2 weeks? Am I supposed to be doing this more frequently than 14 days?

HEEEEEELP. I'm sick and tired of this disgusting nonsense, and my poor birds are too.
Thanks in advance for any advice you pros might have!
Emily

 

[Shezadandy]

ELECTOR PSP all the way. It is spendy - but you're buying a concentrate, and a little goes a LONG way. i.e. 9ml (a little under 2 teaspoons) per gallon of water. Also- No egg withdrawal period!

https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/

It will take 2-3 days for it to kill all of the mites as they travel back and forth to their hiding places, but it will indeed kill them, and needs only to be done once. The results are not immediate - again, expect 2-3 days before they disappear. Everything will need to be sprayed, every corner etc. (again)

 

[cmom]

I have previously posted to get rid of the mites in my opinion I use permethrin which is very cost effective. Elector PSP is good too but if you read their fact sheet for controlling mites, it states that repeat treatments may be needed and it's quite expensive. I had some birds that were severely infested. I thought they were just molting but weren't getting their feathers back in when I discovered they were loaded with mites. The first thing I tried was DE. The birds weren't improving and still had mites. I first discovered them in only one coop but also found them on birds in another coop. I dusted the birds and the coops with the DE and no improvement after treating them for a couple of weeks. Next I did use some sevin dust that I had but it was almost gone but it did help. I did some research and came up with permethrin. I'm pretty sure the wild birds brought them into their coop. I used the dust on the birds and in their nest boxes and sprayed inside of the coops, every crack and crevice, on and under the roosts, ceiling, walls, floors, anywhere the mites can hide. It's best to clean out the coop before you spray. I use pine shavings in my coops. Wear special clothing including a mask and gloves. I did a weekly spraying for awhile and put permethrin dust in the nest boxes, originally sprayed the birds getting under the wings and worked it through their feathers with gloves which you can also do with the dust. Slowly the birds began to recover and get their feathers back in. I think if I hadn't treated with the permethrin when I did I probably would have lost some birds to the mites. The birds were in bad condition. Permethrin only kill live pests, not the pests eggs so repeat treatments are necessary. TSC carries the permethrin powder, premixed spray bottles and the concentrate. I use the concentrate. For my initial application, I mixed it a little heavy. It did not affect the birds but I did keep them out of the coops while it dried. I spray my coops as needed and when I spray I do weekly spraying for 3 or 4 weeks then stop as I don't want the pests to develop a resistance to the permethrin. Repeated weekly spraying is necessary because again, it does not kill the mite eggs and as an added benefit is there is no egg withdrawal period. The birds are beautiful again. In my opinion the permethrin works great. Originally when I sprayed the coops, I did mix it a little heavy for the initial spray. The mites don't disappear over night but will eventually. Good luck...

 

[aart]

If they are in the crevices, spray all cracks crevices heavily every 7 days for 3-4 weeks.
...and the birds too.

 

[rosemarythyme]

IMO two weeks is a bit too long for re-treating for mites... depending on the type of mite, the second treatment should be done somewhere between 5 to 10 days.

Also no egg withdrawl period for permethrin so no need to throw away eggs. We ate all the eggs we got while treating for mites.

 

[cmom]

I agree... I pick a day of the week and spray weekly on that day for 3/4 weeks. It has worked for me.

 

[emorling]

Hey Folks, thanks for your comments, they are much appreciated! It sounds like I'm waiting too long between permethryn treatments. This must be why I've had a devil of a time getting rid of mites last time. Grrr! I'll up the frequency to 7-10 days, and repeat 3-4 times. Elector PSP sounds great and all, but boy... that is a serious expense. Maybe when I'm out of permethryn in a few years, I'll invest in this other stuff. As it is I JUST purchased more permethryn concentrate and dust, and I'm not willing to waste it.

So next question: REALLY? folks don't throw the eggs away?!? That stuff just smells so foul (fowl?) and chemically, I find it hard to believe it's safe to eat the eggs. Interested to hear what folks think about that.
Thanks again for your thoughtful advice!
Emily

 

[rosemarythyme]

So next question: REALLY? folks don't throw the eggs away?!? That stuff just smells so foul (fowl?) and chemically, I find it hard to believe it's safe to eat the eggs.

I used powder permethrin on the birds and liquid in the coop (including nests). Obviously nest boxes got completely cleaned out, sprayed down along with rest of coop, and new bedding was put in once it was fully dry. I didn't notice any foul odor or see any extra residue on the eggs so I didn't have issue eating them.

If you do find it off-putting, then don't force yourself to eat them. Sucks to toss them out but better than making yourself nauseous or sick.

 

[cmom]

I eat the eggs every day. I have had no issues. Both Elector PSP and Permethrin say there is no egg withdrawal period. Everyone is different I have no issues eating the eggs after I treat the coops but if others do, that's ok. Whatever make you comfortable. Good luck with the mites.

 

[cmom]

I also use the dust in the nest boxes.