Chicken lice

[Swfl]

I recently discovered lice in my flock
Im new to owning chickens

I done mild research on how to de lice everyone but I couldn’t find an answer on how to sanitize my run?

I live in Florida where we have sugar sand and that’s what majority of my run is just sand. Could I possibly just sprinkle DE dust on where my hens do their dust baths?

 

[nuthatched]

DE won't help.
Can you get poultry dust?

 

[aart]

I done mild research on how to de lice everyone but I couldn’t find an answer on how to sanitize my run?

Generally lice won't live off the bird.
Just treat them with permethrin spray or dust on their skin around vent, and head, under wings and belly.
Every 5-7 days until you don't see any live lice.

 

[Debbie292d]

DE is a preventative, not a cure. We use it in their dust baths and coop, so they don't get mites/lice in the first place. Ours surely would have had them hundreds of times as they free-range where the squirrels and chipmunks are.

Permethrin/garden powder works well to eradicate them once you have them. Repeat in 7-10 days to get the eggs that may have hatched as it doesn't kill eggs.

 

[aart]

DE is a preventative, not a cure. We use it in their dust baths and coop, so they don't get mites/lice in the first place.

This is misleading.

Ours surely would have had them hundreds of times as they free-range where the squirrels and chipmunks are.

Also misleading.
Poultry lice come from wild birds rather than rodents.

 

[Debbie292d]

This is misleading.


Also misleading.
Poultry lice come from wild birds rather than rodents.

Over 20 years of using it, with success, I mislead nobody.

The spot they all congregate is under the bird feeders; rodents, wild birds, and my chickens. All we have is sunflower seeds in them and the cardinals and other birds make a mess so badly that area of the yard is raised. Chipmunks, squirrels, and the other varments carry lice, fleas, and mites, too. I shoot the red squirrels and seen how full of lice a couple of them have been.

I have it in the bottom of the two macaw parrot cages as well, for over 20 years. When we don't use it, the fruit flies are atrocious!