Bird Mites

[kjbarr]

I everyone, I'm looking for opinions/advice. About 3 weeks ago I finely shredded a large quantity of fall leaves. I have about 5 barrels full of this material. I would love to use it in the coop and run and later harvest the pooped upon leaves for the garden. I'm hesitating because I don't want to introduce any mites, fleas, parasites etc into my coop. But as far as I can tell, any parasite (except for ticks) that would have been on the leaves would be dead after spending 3 weeks in a bin outside. Any input re: the safety of using the leaves is appreciated....

Kathy

 

[TwoCrows]

I have introduced natural things to my coops and runs, (branches, leaves, pine needles, etc....) As long as you collect these things away from where any wild birds hang out in, you should be pretty safe. I once collected some branches for my quail aviaries in an area where the wild birds do hang out in and I brought in leg scale mites. After I got the birds treated and healed, I never again harvested branches from this area and I never had the issue again.

Most mites and bugs need hosts to remain alive for long periods of time. So if these leaves have been isolated from too much bird, deer, rabbit or rodent activity, they are probably safe. Just keep an eye out for issues. The faster you treat an issue, the easier it is to get the birds healed quicker.

Oh and welcome to BYC!

 

[Akrnaf2]

Welcom to BYC!
I would not do this, because the problem dos not stop only in wild birds, but you should consider also the droppings of rodents, and reptiles, that can be infected by Salmonella, E,coli and outer bacteria, as well as protozoa like, ameba ,Coccidia, or some Flagellum species, that can cause some nasty diseases!