Do I need to treat an enclosed run for red poultry mite?

[curiouseclectic]

I made the horrible discovery of mites crawling throughout my chicken coop bedding.

I only noticed them when I picked up a fallen feather and saw very tiny bugs crawling all over it. I went out at night and there was no evidence on the roosts but I could see them throughout the bedding (tiny off white mites) I don’t see any on the birds themselves. From the research I can only assume they are Red Poultry mites.

I’m about to go on a week long vacation so my plan is this:
1. Clean out coop (bag up and throw away bedding) wash the coop thoroughly, and treat the interior with Elector PSP
2. Treat chickens with Elector psp
3. Observe the coop when I get back and switch to treating with permethrin if the infestation remains.

My questions are: I have an enclosed run that is filled with dirt and shavings. I won’t have time to clean it out before I go and even if I did I won’t be able to truly clean it as it is connected to the ground.

Do I need to worry about cleaning/treating the run? The chickens sleep solely in the coop.

Will my plan keep my chickens relatively safe until I get back?

Any advice would be appreciated. I can attach pictures of the set up if that will help.

Thanks!

 

[thecatumbrella]

I was just talking to @Debbie292d about this. My flock is dealing with scaly leg mites. It's no problem to treat the coop, but I have 4 yards of mulch in their covered run. It would be a huge undertaking and expense to change that out prematurely (we'd normally do it in October). I normally treat the top layer with First Saturday Lime, which they'll dust bathe in, but that didn't seem to prevent the mites in the first place.

Will follow this thread since I have the same question myself!