FLIES!

[OwlLover]

Since its spring, flies have decided to invade both my coop AND the house.

I'm not talking about just a fly here and there that goes away within a day or so, this is a SWARM. I understand that flies come with having chickens, but this is getting ridiculous. The coop is about as clean as a chicken coop is going to be, I give them fresh food and water, there is no mold, etc there is absolutely NO REASON that there are so many flies around the coop. I'm not exaggerating in the least here, yesterday I counted 34 flies around the coop. I don't know where they are coming from. And now they are getting in the house, flying around my face, and only landing on the ceiling, of all places.

This is making me INSANE. I've tried sticky fly tapes, flyswatters are useless because they are impossible to get around the coop and in the house they only land on the ceiling (I'm not kidding!) or other impossible places. I hate fogging, but I will use it if I have to. This is getting out of control. Please help ASAP!

 

[CorinneP]

I Personally wouldnt spray in my coop ! If My house were bad I would .. Flys like poop . Good luck I know they can be infuriating

 

[chfite]

The bag style fly traps that you add water to and smell so bad work well. It is not overnight success, but enduring. The vanilla air fresheners are widely touted on this board as working well and quickly.

I would not spray for the flies, either.

Chris

 

[carolsparkle]

flies in the house-- could be from your shoes tracking fly larva and eggs into your house. Sprinkling DE on a door mat outside or inside your back door will help with this problem. the coop-- the fly trap bags with water-- yes they catch flies-- but I wonder does it also cause flies to multiply also ? ? ? ? DE sprinkled on the bedding floor helps to dry out the poop & fly eggs. The vanilla car-air fresheners help along with the DE for inside the coop. golden malrin is a poison that you can use with care outside the coop. I take a milk carton and cut four 1 inch triangles -- one triangle near the top on each side of the carton. Take yellow duct tape and make a little frame around the triangle and then make a black frame with black duct tape around the yellow duct tape. Flies are attracted to the bright yellow and the black makes the yellow stand out. Carefully place 2 tablespoons of golden malrin in carton with a funnel over the sink. Hang about 5 feet off the ground outside where the chickens cant get to it. If you put a bait like meat or fish or etc --GOLDEN MALRIN will take away the smell of it. DE is diatomaceous earth. Make sure you get food grade kind--NOT the swimming pool kind. DE is available at SOME feed stores. It is not easy to find. I'm new at this chicken thing. I hope this helps.

 

[pinkaliboo]

I just read a post about this in the "coop" section of the forums. Apparently flies don't like vanilla scented fresheners that you use for your car. The lady that posted it said she gets them at the dollar store and hangs in them in the coop and the flies stay out. Maybe you could try that in the coop and in the house too.

 

[astabley]

I live in S. florida and this year I have a zillion flies and they swarm on the chickens food. I feed them both outside the coop and inside the coop. I tried the sticky traps all I got was a few mosquitos and a poor lizard. I just read the post about the vanilla air freshners I'm gonna try that one. Also I have the DE used it for fleas. I'll scatter it in the coop after I give it a through cleaning today and let ya all know. And I dont think my chickens eat the flies. Otherwise they would be chubby and the flies would be gone. I think it has a lot to do with the chicken food. Same brand but must be a different ingredient. Thanks for all your advice. God bless.

 

[baldessariclan]

Unfortunately, flies are just a more-or-less standard part of the overall "livestock experience" -- they come with the territory. That said, I think that there are still some things you can do to help keep them to a tolerable level.

• "Free-range" your birds if/as possible. Keeping birds cooped up in one area all the time will tend to concentrates the poop / smells, and thus also flies. However, if the birds can roam all over the yard / pasture / field / etc., the poop (and flies) will tend to get spread out and not be so noticeable.
• Keep your chicken coop / run a respectable distance from your house, if possible. You may have to walk a little further, but the smells / flies coming into house / etc. should be much less of an issue.
• Hang some of those "stinky water bag" fly traps near the coop (but not right inside it), to draw them away from the coop a little. Play with different setups and distances to see what works best.

Once again, I think that it's unrealistic to expect to ever be completely rid of flies if you keep chickens. But there is certainly hope of keeping them to tolerable levels w/ some pre-planning and/or modification of your chicken raising set-up and personal expectations.

 

[terryg]

What do you mean by,"the coop is as clean as it's going to be?" Manure management is the key, and that starts in the coop. It's easy to scoop up manure daily with a kitty litter scoop, or a fine-tined pitchfork. Dryness is also key - add pine shavings as needed. You can add dropping boards. Remove the manure and put it in a compost bin, and cover with weeds or dirt each time you add it. It takes only minutes a day and greatly reduces fly issues. You might be interested in this compost system that I have: http://hencam.com/henblog/2012/02/compost-bins-and-chicken-manure/

 

[1stTimeChknMama]

I recently ran into the same problem, bombarded with flies in the coop. Well we've had quite a bit of rain & i only found out reading on this board that hay/straw expecially when wet/damp/moist is a breeding ground for flies! I quickly got rid of ALL hay on the floor. There is only enuff for there nests/bedding which stays high & dry. Also keeping the poop out daily or covered & dry has helped tremendously in only 3 days. They have an all sand/grit floor so the poop dries quickly & is easily scoopable to remove!

 

[OwlLover]

What do you mean by,"the coop is as clean as it's going to be?" Manure management is the key, and that starts in the coop. It's easy to scoop up manure daily with a kitty litter scoop, or a fine-tined pitchfork. Dryness is also key - add pine shavings as needed. You can add dropping boards. Remove the manure and put it in a compost bin, and cover with weeds or dirt each time you add it. It takes only minutes a day and greatly reduces fly issues. You might be interested in this compost system that I have: http://hencam.com/henblog/2012/02/compost-bins-and-chicken-manure/

Exactly that. I clean up the manure daily, give them fresh straw every day, etc I'll check that link out.

And yes, I do understand that flies are inevitable when you have livestock, but I'm trying to at least get them to a tolerable level.