DE Help Please~~~!!!!! Bugs are horrible in the south right now!!!

[KayC2016]

We had such a mild winter and a wet spring/summer, the bugs are horrible!! Mosquitoes, etc. I am new to chickens and don't want to hurt them!! I have Food Grade DE and was going to sprinkle throughout the run which as of now, is dirt and grass. Will this be okay and if so how much? I have a 25 x 25 run. My girls are itching and I know when I go out I itch and get by every mosquito within a mile. Any advice is much appreciated!!!!

 

[junebuggena]

DE does not prevent mosquitos. It's effective for ground/soil dwelling bugs, but it's indiscriminate. It kills both good and bad bugs. The most effective mosquito control is to remove any standing water, so that larva do not develop.

 

[Suzie]

You should inspect each chicken, especially under their wings and vents...look for tiny insects crawling on them...if they are itching and you are too...they may have mites...DE will not treat mites...you would need permethrin/sevin dust to treat the areas and the chickens would need dusting with sevin powder...

Nesting boxes and the coop will need treating...remove and destroy any bedding...far away from the coop and run area.

To look for signs it is better at dusk...the mites can clearly be seen on chickens when they are bedding down for the night...mites tend to hide in cracks and crevices during the day...

Good luck!

 

[KayC2016]

Thank you! I'm learning and all advice is so very much appreciated! I will look tonight!!

 

[KayC2016]

I have a question please....so exactly what is DE used for then?? I just keep seeing it mentioned on different sites. Thank you!

 

[Suzie]

Some people choose not to use chemicals to treat...unfortunately DE is not effective in treating infestations but it is helpful as a preventative...

 

[Vickie 51]

We use DE as a preventative measure. The bottom of our coop is a little PDZ mixed with DE tossed with pine shavings. Under the coop where the girls love to dust bathe, we mixed DE in with straw (which also goes in the nesting boxes. Please note if you use DE, it must be food-grade. Also, do not overuse it - we mix perhaps a half a cup to a tray of hay. It goes a long way and you do not want your birds raising it as dust because it can irritate the lungs. Even people should not inhale clouds of the stuff due to possible irritation.

 

[aart]

I have a question please....so exactly what is DE used for then?? I just keep seeing it mentioned on different sites. Thank you!

To empty the gullible's pockets of money...<smirk>.

It can sometimes help in some situations as a preventative.....the thing it's best at is keeping feed and grains free of pests while in storage.
Have found it to be very effective against grain mites in feed.

Also pack it into the cracks and crevices of wooden nest boxes under the straw bedding and under the vinyl on floor and roost boards.


Have you checked them over real well for mites and/or lice?
Best done well after dark with a strong flashlight/headlight, easier to 'catch' bird and also to check for the mites that live in structure and only come out at night to feed off roosting birds.
Wipe a white paper towel along the underside of roost to look for red smears(smashed well fed mites).
Part the feathers right down to the skin around vent, head/neck and under wings.
Google images of lice/mites and their eggs before the inspection so you'll know what you're looking for.

I've had some bare butted girls that had no bugs, some had very red skin that lasted for either just a few days or a few weeks but eventually went away, the feathers grew back after the molt. I don't worry about it too much unless I see bugs that need killing then use a poultry dust with permethrin, feathers still won't grow back until a molt tho.

 

[KayC2016]

I've only had them about a month and a half and I'm very new to chicks but i just know something is biting them! They just seem to be scratching a lot. And I've noticed that one is almost like cleaning them like monkeys do and they don't mind it seems.

 

[junebuggena]

I've only had them about a month and a half and I'm very new to chicks but i just know something is biting them! They just seem to be scratching a lot. And I've noticed that one is almost like cleaning them like monkeys do and they don't mind it seems.

How old are they? If they are under 6 months old, they could be going through a juvenile molt. Feathers growing in can be very itchy and can make them very uncomfortable.