Egg withdrawal period for mite treatment

[Cason1479]

About a month ago after one of my hens fell ill I discovered a mite issue we acquired after purchasing some new hens at a local swap meet. I immediately dusted the coop with DE and sprayed the coop and chickens with poultry protector. I repeated the poultry protector once more and have dusted with DE weekly. This morning I found some more mites on the hen with the original issue. After doing some research it seems like DE isn't the most effective treatment. After researching some alternative products I'm interested in Prozap poultry dust and Scalex mite and lice spray for birds. My questions are: A) Does anyone have any opinions on Scalex vs. Poultry Protector? And B) Will there be any egg withdrawal period with any of these products?

 

[Folly's place]

You can look on the label; there should be directions! Also, FARAD.org and/ or your university poultry experts can help. I think that permethrin now has a withdrawal time, which it didn't used to have. Mary

 

[Sonya9]

Or you can buy Frontline spray, like the drops for dogs one treatment lasts a very long time.I give my birds a couple of sprays in the fall and then again in the spring, it keeps all the mites away. The ingredients in frontline are approved for other types of livestock and feed.

Also as far as egg withdrawal periods, it helps to check the chemical names on the label. Many times the chemical IS approved for use in feed animals, food, or used on people but the maker doesn't want to pay big bucks to get FDA approval for their particular name brand product, so instead they just say "discard eggs".

 

[Folly's place]

Fipronil is approved topically for dogs and cats, and is used on cattle in Brazil. It's also used for insect control in buildings by pesticide companies, and on field crops (no idea about that). It's not used on any food animals in the US, and is very toxic to bees, fish, and aquatic critters generally. It attaches to lipids, as in egg yolk, and isn't approved for poultry anywhere I could find. There are safer products out there! Mary

 

[lala4578]

This worked on my flock:




Monterey Garden Insect Spray, 16 oz. bottle
Active ingredient : SPINOSAD .5%
~$30


I believe my flock had the red northern fowl mite on them. There were little red bugs on their underfeathers and sometimes I saw very tiny white versions of these as well, possibly the same mite but in baby form? I did not see any nits on the base of their feathers, so I believe they did not have any lice, but this should work on lice too.

Here is what I did, you will need 2 buckets large enough to dunk the hen in:

In one bucket, dilute the whole 16 oz. bottle in 10 quarts of warm water (enough to fill up a bucket that will completely cover the hen.) This solution ends up being a more concentrated solution than is recommended on the bottle, but less concentrated that the expensive livestock version called Elector PSP.

In a second bucket, fill with warm water and some dish soap.
Set up the buckets in the shade because UV rays will break down the Spinosad.

I washed each hen briefly in the dishsoap/water bucket to get them wet and remove any dirt on them. Get them soaked all the way up to their head. If you have polish you should probably get their crest wet too. Pay special attention to their back feathers. It is tough to get them soaked all the way to their base, you will have to massage them a bit!

After she is totally wet, place her into the Spinosad bucket. Again massage that solution into all her fluff, up to her head. Be sure to get all the way into the base of the feathers.

Then I let her dry off in a shaded area, because UV light destroys the Spinosad. Do this on a HOT DAY for their comfort, unless you are up for blow drying them dry!

What to do with the leftover Spinosad water?
I poured it over all the roosting bars, into the nest boxes (after removing wood shavings) and also into the sand litter I use in the sleeping coop. When the mites are not on the birds, they like to hide in wooden crevices, especially where the birds sleep.

I have a small flock so this bath method was very feasible for me. It has been almost a week, I checked them often to see if the mites are there. The second day I found a lot of dead mites on them, after that, they are mite free.

Best of all, NO EGG WITHDRAWAL PERIOD!!!

 

[Folly's place]

Is it actually labelled for poultry??? I couldn't find anything on it's use in chickens, and if it's not approved for that use, there won't be a withdrawal period, except forever. Mary

 

[casportpony]

Is it actually labelled for poultry??? I couldn't find anything on it's use in chickens, and if it's not approved for that use, there won't be a withdrawal period, except forever. Mary

I think the active ingredient is Spinosad.

http://www.elanco.us/pdfs/USPBELS00010_Elector-PSP_Northern_Fowl_Mite.pdf
http://www.elanco.us/pdfs/uspbuels00012_elector-psp-northern-fowl-mite-guidelines.pdf

http://www.elanco.us/products-services/poultry/controlling-houseflies-darkling-beetles.aspx

-Kathy

 

[Flock In Texas]

Here is the MSDS if you want an unbiased source.

http://www.cvear.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/elector-psp_39086_-MSDS-.pdf

 

[casportpony]

Here is the MSDS if you want an unbiased source.

http://www.cvear.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/elector-psp_39086_-MSDS-.pdf

I kind of figures that Elanco wouldn't have a picture of a chicken with eggs if it were a problem.

-Kathy

 

[Folly's place]

I agree, and haven't found this product locally at all. Interesting! I have no problem finding permethrin, and haven't seen spinosad on the FARAD site. Mary