Have you tried dusting them yet? I was going crazy last year right before fair when I had an outbreak of mites and lice. I dusted and sprayed and cleaned and bathed and it worked. Maybe you don't have to give up. You are going to have a hard time finding them homes if they have mites.
I lived in the Keys for several years. I know what your climate is like. Everything grows and prospers, including mites.... This actually isn't much different in south GA, where I live.
You can manage the mites, really! Treatments work on the living mites but not on the eggs. You must treat again after two weeks, to kill the mites that hatch from the eggs. And you must dust or spray both the chickens and the whole coop. And the run, if you keep them in a run.
Sevin dust from Wal Mart or the hardware/garden/feed store works. Pyrethrin/permithrin poultry dust from the feed store works. Adams flea and tick spray from the vet's office works.
Many people feel DE works as a preventative, but that is a whole other discussion, and it must be food grade, which many cannot buy except online. But you can buy the other stuff I mentioned locally, I am sure. Actually, I control mites mostly with DE, but I must treat now and then.
They will get mites again, because the mites come from wild birds. People say, if you have chickens, you have mites. So it is just a matter of staying on top of them. A few mites will not kill the chickens and will not infest you. Just dust or spray regularly, and please continue to enjoy your pets. They will need to be treated for mites wherever they live!
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Really all chickens have mites? How do you check for them? I regularly check the base of the hens feathers, and don't see anything but skin... How do you know if they have them?
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Really all chickens have mites? How do you check for them? I regularly check the base of the hens feathers, and don't see anything but skin... How do you know if they have them?
check under the wings and near the vents. I always read to do it at night but I could see them scattering anytime of day. I don't know if all mites always make the butt look poopy but that is what made me check mine and ever since the mites have been gone my chicken's butts have been clean.
And yes I know I need to treat them again. After seeing them the first time I will be treating them every 6-8 weeks unless someone tells me otherwise. I am NOT a bug person!
Well I'd try to solve the problem, but if you really have to, try posting on Craigslist or creating an ad in the Classified ads in the newspaper under pets. The later costs money. I rehome my pets through Craigslist cuz its free and I can scan people more easily. Its too hard to do it on here, because people are on here are all throughout the US. If the mites are too much for you, you could do it this way and somebody else will just have to take care of the problem. I feel the same way about my chickens right now cuz all 40 of 'em have lice. Yuck...
Seven dust isn't as effective as some treatments specifically for treatment of mites. Sevin doesn't kill the eggs so you'll have to treat multiple times and the dust can be dangerous if inhaled, so you may need to wear a mask. Ivomec is a very effective pour on that kills the mites as well as the eggs and is also a wormer, I'd suggest going with that.
I've never found seven at the hardware stores around here, but our walmarts sell it.
I used Poultry Protector Spray on. 1x and the mites were gone but I did do a follow up spray a week later to be safe. Here is a link to show what it is. I got mine at the feed store. Any new birds I bring in get sprayed down as soon as I get them home even if I don't see mites. It's safe. I even sprayed it on a goat I got at auction that had mites and it took care of them without hurting her.