ew never battled this before..maggots. help

[chickenreyna]

Last summer i got my first three chickens and had one coop..never dealt with maggots. Its embarassing posting this bc i clean their areas and take good care of my chickens, so dont judge me., plz! now, i have quadruple amount of chickens, but i have two coops now.
One for standards one for bantams.

Long story short, about a week ago i noticed the girls avoiding one particular nesting box, in their standard, big coop and i looked closer and saw maggots.

Ew! So i got rid of them Sprinkled salt first and sprayed vinegar to kill them then washed everything. let it dry in sun. I sprinkled de dust Everywhere, as i always have done and let it air air out

It does not stop there though, NOW
IN my little coop on the nesting tray that slides out. I found maggots... I clean coops every other day. Is there anything to do to prevent this? i have fly strips hanging and open coop up during day bc i think flies like dark areas to lay eggs. Besides cleaning my coops daily NOW! is there anything i can do like paper or rubbermaid cabinet grip stuff to place in area ? maybe it will help bc de dust, obviously the flies dont mind it. Dont judge me, i really am a good chicken owner. Lol

 

[Aapomp831]

No judgement!! I’m not sure what to do, but I will be watching this thread because I’m very interested. But please be careful with the fly strips... I have read horror stories of chickens being curious and getting themselves tangled in them.

 

[azygous]

Flies are everywhere. They lay eggs that can hatch into maggot larvae in just a few hours later. The maggots need to feed on something so you need to focus on why the flies are choosing that spot to lay eggs and deprive them of the conditions that drew them there.

Your biggest danger, though, is fly strike. This is when a small wound or accumulated feces on the butt of the chicken attracts flies and they lay their eggs on that chicken. When those eggs hatch into maggots a few hours later, the maggots then begin feeding on the chicken's own body. If you haven't done so, this is a good time to examine your flock for possible maggots around their vents.

The most common thing that attracts flies is the smell of poop. Using a cleaning agent such as Lysol or pine cleaner, helps neutralize this odor on surfaces where poop accumulated. Then keep poop scooped as much as possible to deprive flies of breeding medium. Also, if poop buildup on the butts of your chickens are attracting flies, you need to engage in some chicken butt washing.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Last summer i got my first three chickens and had one coop..never dealt with maggots. Its embarassing posting this bc i clean their areas and take good care of my chickens, so dont judge me., plz! now, i have quadruple amount of chickens, but i have two coops now.
One for standards one for bantams.

Long story short, about a week ago i noticed the girls avoiding one particular nesting box, in their standard, big coop and i looked closer and saw maggots.

Ew! So i got rid of them Sprinkled salt first and sprayed vinegar to kill them then washed everything. let it dry in sun. I sprinkled de dust Everywhere, as i always have done and let it air air out

It does not stop there though, NOW
IN my little coop on the nesting tray that slides out. I found maggots... I clean coops every other day. Is there anything to do to prevent this? i have fly strips hanging and open coop up during day bc i think flies like dark areas to lay eggs. Besides cleaning my coops daily NOW! is there anything i can do like paper or rubbermaid cabinet grip stuff to place in area ? maybe it will help bc de dust, obviously the flies dont mind it. Dont judge me, i really am a good chicken owner. Lol

Anyone here at BYC that does any judging... isn't really what this community is all about. We are here to help each other with the challenges we face. To share and to learn from each other. We all have different set ups and environments. Some peoples' weather will allow for thing to more easily grow out of control.

Are you positive they are maggots and not possibly tape worms?

If I was pretty sure it was maggots I might try this permethrin spray. I bought to use for mosquitoes on my goats and dogs. Turns out ois labeled for all kinds of uses... and VERY effective when used according to directions... It is in the equine section but labeled fro use in chickens AND on the walls and such....

https://www.horse.com/item/fly-rid-plus-spray/E006407/

Under $8 at my local feed store and lasted me 2+ years with 82 + birds, 2 large goats and 3 dogs. It is also effective against lice and mites.

 

[CCUK]

I had a nest box last year that had maggots in. What had happened is one of the hens must have cracked an egg then ate most of it in clouding the shell. I hadn't realised this had happened until the stench of rotten egg. I immediately emptied all the nest boxes and in the bottom of one was alot of maggots. I normally poo pick as and when and refresh the nest boxes once a week. This happened in the space of a few days. It was the middle of summer so there was alot of flies about. They lay there eggs and hatch quick. But agreed that when you clean out use a good disinfectant. It should also kill off any other nasties that could be lurking!

 

[chickenreyna]

Thank you so much you guys. I figured i would get alot of ew take care of your chickens posts