Bald Butts? - MITES/LICE?

[swedishfish]

Some of my hens have lost feathers on their bums. Why? What can I do? Are they okay? They aren't acting weird or anything...The feathers that ARE there are a bit poopy too...

 

[crazy hen quartet]

I have also noticed that one of my hens seems to be a bit bald on the hind end. But everything seems normal - eating, drinking, activity, egg production. So I will be watching to see if anyone replies.

 

[swedishfish]

Are they molting? why do chickens molt anyways? They pick at it a bit...maybe I just need to clean their bums off.

 

[Indiana hens]

lice

 

[swedishfish]

how do you get rid of lice? aaah! could I catch lice from them?

 

[swedishfish]

can I just spread DE around, or do I need to do something else too? I don't want my chickies to have lice!

 

[Lov'emSouthernEggs]

I just got some DE. I'd like to know if it works as well as it claims. Does anyone use it? I also have hens with bare butts...

Though it ended up turning into something nasty.

Watching to see if new ones do the same thing.

 

[swedishfish]

just read something suggesting sevin? so should I treat with that and then use DE for prevention? could I just use DE and not worry about the sevin? Where do you get this stuff - IFA? How much should I get for 12 birds?

 

[swedishfish]

anybody? I want to know so I can do what I need to tomorrow morning!

 

[Lollipop]

First off, you have to determine if lice/mites are present. To do this, pick a couple birds off the roost tonight and check under their tail and around their vent with a good flashlight. If you see any minute little bugs scurrying for cover, you`ve got them.

To treat them as radically as you can without affecting egg eddibility, get some Adams flea and tick dip. Mix it up as directed in a 5 gallon bucket, and proceed to dip EVERY bird on the place. Do it on a warm morning so they have a warm day to dry.

Clean out the litter from the coop and dust heavily with sevin dust. Don`t forget the nests. Replce with clean litter. If showering with hot water and soap, includiing a good shampoo doesn`t make you feel like they are all off of you, do it again.

Like I said, you can eat the eggs and this treatment will get the new ones as they hatch. In fact, you can still smell it for at least a month, but it`s not offensive. Good luck.......Pop