Alright, sevin dust appears to actually work AND not kill the chickies

[chickypoo]

Sevin really is good stuff. We use it on wild birds we get in at the rehab center and no outbreaks have ever happened.

 

[fowltemptress]

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I don't understand . . . unless they stop it for use in gardens, I can't see a need for stocking up. Was it even ever approved for chickens?

 

[luvmychicknkids]

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I don't understand . . . unless they stop it for use in gardens, I can't see a need for stocking up. Was it even ever approved for chickens?

Yeah, that's what I am thinking, too. As far as I know it was never approved for use on ANY animal. It is a garden product.

Anyway, it has definitely been a lifesaver. My poor little Ginger (the hen that had them pretty bad) is a thousand times more comfortable and happy since I used it.

 

[adoptedbyachicken]

There is no doubt Sevin works on bugs however it is being taken out of the market gradually, for both plants and critters. It's proven to be highly carcinogenic and a long residual nerve toxin as well as highly water toxic for a very long time. Many people that thought it safe for years and used it now have tremors and even seizures from the lasting effects building up. If you check it's status on the PAN info site you will see most of the licenses to produce it are now canceled. Enter Sevin here. If you go to an individual product like this one you can read the risks and studies under each warning about it.

Depending on where you are Sevin could already be restricted for use in poultry, we can't use it here. And even when it was approved there is a withdrawal time for all concentrations, and it could never come in contact with eggs as they are too porous. So check to make sure your using the up to date information on this product.

Sadly the alternatives are not being approved fast enough so for a bad outbreak we still may have to resort to Sevin. I agree DE works great if you can keep it up, and if the chickens will help by using the dust box themselves.

Rotenone is being phased out as a dust too, and it was the other very effective choice for mites. However they have linked that to Alzheimer's disease.

For just a few birds I have bathed them in dog shampoo for fleas and ticks, that works totally, and you don't have to worry about any rehatch. However that is totally unapproved in that product form, but the ingredients are approved for use here as a poultry spray, I just don't want to buy a 5 gallon bucket of the concentrate that makes 500 gallons of spray for my few birds.

PAN is just one good site, others are around but for sure check your local regulatory body to get the update for your district/state/country.

 

[al6517]

I too like the seven dust but only in the 5% for the birds works great glad you got em back in shape.

AL

 

[deerman]

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I have used it for years for pigeon, works great. I wonder about eating eggs gather. Yes the eggs would have to get the dust from the hen in the nest.

I use ivomec for peafowl, sure it would work on chicken, but dont know what the withdraw time would be.

 

[stuckinthecity]

Yeah I use it on my grown hens all the time, thank goodness it didnt kill your chicks!

 

[fowltemptress]

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Alrighty . . . and so enters paranoia. I've only discovered sevin in the past year and was thrilled by it, so this makes me, besides paranoid, very sad. I thought I'd found something indescribably fantastic, especially after discovering how worthless DE is (my own opinion after using it, not based on anything else, so please feel free to be happy with DE if you like it).

What kind of dog shampoo do you use? I know some are more iffy than others. I know people who buy Dawn instead of the flea and tick dog shampoo for the same purpose, so would this be an acceptable alternative?

Ugh, I hate this. It seems like every week another product I've loved is proven to be out to kill me. It's enough to make me want to give up and lock myself in a clean room. Thanks for the information, though, and I'll be sure to read up on it more.

 

[adoptedbyachicken]

The risks with Sevin seem to be long term so for now just use it sparingly for the outbreaks that don't respond to other stuff. Nothing is on the way to approved to replace it or Rotenone so really not sure what else to suggest. Please try and get another type or brand of DE, it does work almost always for me, there is one mite that sets up sort of webs in some feathers, bonds them all together and that seems to protect them from DE. For them I use the shampoo or used to use the Rotenone rather than Sevin.

The dog shampoo I used was the basic Hartz product and it's got Pyrethrins in it. Not the new Ultra product which had something else as the main ingredient. Look for Piperonyl butoxide if you don't want to have to do them again, that is what is in the bird spray that stops the eggs from hatching out.

If you want to stay natural Tea Tree oil shampoo works too. I have had to redo some birds but most of the time it gets them all. Both shampoos have to be left on the bird for 10 minutes, so generally I have a crated bird soaped up while I soap another, then exchange for the rinse, and soap another, by then the previous is ready for it's rinse.

Stop all entry of wild birds to your coop for prevention, and consider adding some cedar bedding. Don't do all cedar as it can be too irritating to chickens but some will help with the bugs and not harm them. When I lived in the coastal rain forest I used about 20% as the mites were so bad there. Also I learned that a layer of lime under the bedding really helped, just the plain agricultural type. Kept the coop cleaner much longer and if your area is damp it helps to dry it which is not so good for most mites to live with.

 

[chicksalot]

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Doesn't DE kill bee's as well? along with all kinds of other bugs?

OK...for those interested...check out www.pesticide.org this site gives results from extensive studies done on commonly used chemicals...BE INFORMED IF YOU PLAN TO USE. I am not against usage, but use it correctly, be as safe as possible to your animals...yourself...& the environment.