Ants in bedding

[Bonnieboo]

My girls refuse to roost at night so sleep on hemp bedding which I clean out and replenish as necessary.
Now the Australian summer has arrived, I noticed ants in their droppings in the bedding. I'm trying to think of a way to get rid of them without hurting the chooks. I have put some DE in he hemp hoping that this would work but they're back again in the next days poo.
Any ideas?

 

[Debbie292d]

That must be a lot of ants if you're seeing them in your chicken's poo!

We have ant hills around our yard and some try get in the house so I've always just sprinkled DE around the entire house and in those hills, then redo in a couple of weeks. We've done that for literally decades.

I'd do the area around the outside of your coop to stop them from getting in there. That stuff does work, but won't be effective if it gets wet. You might have to make it a bi-weekly ritual to sprinkle it.

 

[Bonnieboo]

Hey Debbie,
Thanks so much for your post
I have put DE in their bedding but when I go to clean up in the morning, they're back!
I will however put some DE around the coop and see if that's successful.
Thanks again!

 

[MROO]

DE does work, but it's a slow, long-term solution. Unlike an insecticide, DE is not a contact-killer. It's very abrasive and it clings to the legs and body of whatever touches it. Any movement - including attempts to clean it off - works like rubbing in ground glass, leaving scratches and weak spots in the insect's exoskeleton. The dehydration it causes is what eventually (within days) kills the ant. They are mutual groomers, so the DE will spread within the nest. That's what eventually wipes out the colony, but you have to be persistent and consistent for it to work.

DE does not hurt mammals or your chickens unless it gets breathed in directly, so be sure to mask up and spread it when your birds are out of the coop. Once it's settled, everyone but the bugs should be fine. I mix a generous handful into my chickens' favorite dust-bathing spots and in the nesting box as well. I'm convinced that's what finally did away with my scaly leg mite issue, as well as thwarting the ants.

Be patient. It can take a while to eradicate a serious ant nest, but you should see a difference after just the first week. Good Luck!

 

[Bonnieboo]

Thanks so much for the clarification. I thought it would only take a couple of applications.
I will continue and see how I go

 

[David61]

DE is not that good at anything and cause health issues. 13.3 permethrin will take care of this and mites, lice ... spray it everywhere. On the birds, nest box, roost...

* but won't be effective if it gets wet.

We are wet most of the time on the coast so...

 

[Howdydoodylady]

From what I understand deep bedding from hemp ends up having its own microorganisms that break down the bad things like coccidiosis. That's why you're not supposed to use the deciduous earth inside deep bedding. It actually does not allow the good microorganisms to live and take care of the bad ones. This is my own little synopsis but you can read a lot about it on Google.

 

[Bonnieboo]

Thanks Howdydoodylady,
I'll check it on Google