Anything like an okay amount of mites?

[PowellAnimals]

Every once in awhile I'll notice a few red mites on the board covering part of the door in the coop (I use the deep litter method). None of my chickens or chicks seem to be showing any signs of a mite infestation and I don't see any in the pine shavings. My roosting boards don't lie flat against the wall so there isn't any place for them to hide there. However, seeing a few here and there is making me uneasy. Should I do a full clean out and dust my chickens? Or is it normal to have a few mites in the coop?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Do you know what kind of mites?
Northern Fowl Mite
Roost mite.
Feather mite
fowl tick
red mite,
chigger
quill mite
cyst mite

If other than red or chigger, I'd say zero is acceptable.

 

[PowellAnimals]

Do you know what kind of mites?
Northern Fowl Mite
Roost mite.
Feather mite
fowl tick
red mite,
chigger
quill mite
cyst mite

If other than red or chigger, I'd say zero is acceptable.

That would be important information, wouldn't it? I am assuming red mites as they look like the photos I have seen of red mites. I edited the original post to include that information.

 

[ChickenCanoe]

If you don't find red mites on the birds, I wouldn't worry.

You can still dust them a couple times about 10 or so days apart to be sure.

 

[Sutremaine]

How quickly do they move? Are they here and there, or piled up like snowfall on a windowpane? Have you been in there with a torch at night, or wiped unseen areas with tissue?

I've read that cardboard is a good way of finding red mites. Wrap some around the ends of the roosts, and see if anything takes advantage of the accomodation. If you've been noticing these mites for a while and their population is stable and your birds unaffected, then you don't need to do anything drastic immediately.

 

[PowellAnimals]

Great suggestions, I will have to try the cardboard idea. There just seems to be a few here and there, no swarm. Thank you for the help