Good morning
I’ve had an issue with my flock for awhile now. They constantly shake their heads. It’s like a quick shake, say, like you would to shake your hair out of your eyes. They also constantly scratch their heads. They have lost feathers ALL summer, like they are molting. They have a good diet and also free range around my yard daily. I’ve taken one to the vet to check over and they found nothing in their ears, no mites or lice or skin issues. Fecal samples show no worms or other issues. I’ve treated the coop and flock with permethrin, twice, a week apart, thinking maybe I was missing a mite issue. This summer I also treated them all with pour on Ivermectin. My flock is Silkies but I have two Cochins. Both of them have a couple little black spots on their combs. I read that this can be a sign of mites. Also a sign of pox but they don’t have that. The black spots are tiny. One of my birds was scratching more than usual, fluffing up and standing in the corner yesterday. At first I thought of coccidia but I just had a fecal sample done for that. So I dusted her with permethrin and she was better after that. She started scratching and acting like a chicken again. Well, yesterday I purchased permethrin foggers for the coop. The coop needs to be closed for two hours after the fogging, and hen aired out. My flock is outside, roaming all day anyhow. I was planning on fogging the coop today but a storm has blown in. I’ve read that it can be the only way to eradicate them, as they hide in all the cracks and crevices. My thought is that maybe I AM missing mites after all. Red mites? Feather mites? Idk! They can be so elusive. I looked everywhere for them with my flashlight last night in the coop but still. I’m in Canada and permethrin and pyrethrin are pretty much the only products available here. Sorry for the long post. Just wanting to be thorough in what my treatment plan has been for my poor itchy flock. I am just at my WITS END! Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thank you
I’ve had an issue with my flock for awhile now. They constantly shake their heads. It’s like a quick shake, say, like you would to shake your hair out of your eyes. They also constantly scratch their heads. They have lost feathers ALL summer, like they are molting. They have a good diet and also free range around my yard daily. I’ve taken one to the vet to check over and they found nothing in their ears, no mites or lice or skin issues. Fecal samples show no worms or other issues. I’ve treated the coop and flock with permethrin, twice, a week apart, thinking maybe I was missing a mite issue. This summer I also treated them all with pour on Ivermectin. My flock is Silkies but I have two Cochins. Both of them have a couple little black spots on their combs. I read that this can be a sign of mites. Also a sign of pox but they don’t have that. The black spots are tiny. One of my birds was scratching more than usual, fluffing up and standing in the corner yesterday. At first I thought of coccidia but I just had a fecal sample done for that. So I dusted her with permethrin and she was better after that. She started scratching and acting like a chicken again. Well, yesterday I purchased permethrin foggers for the coop. The coop needs to be closed for two hours after the fogging, and hen aired out. My flock is outside, roaming all day anyhow. I was planning on fogging the coop today but a storm has blown in. I’ve read that it can be the only way to eradicate them, as they hide in all the cracks and crevices. My thought is that maybe I AM missing mites after all. Red mites? Feather mites? Idk! They can be so elusive. I looked everywhere for them with my flashlight last night in the coop but still. I’m in Canada and permethrin and pyrethrin are pretty much the only products available here. Sorry for the long post. Just wanting to be thorough in what my treatment plan has been for my poor itchy flock. I am just at my WITS END! Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thank you
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