going nuts over small bugs, help.

[motherhen]

I keep seeing small tiny bugs about the size of a speck of dust, light brown in colour. I cleaned out the coop a few weeks ago and put in louse powder on the coop and walls, I even loused the chickens. Instructions on container said to do it again and that would solve the problem. I did louse the coop and chickens again and its been a week after that and I still see tiny little bugs on the beems on the coop. When I check the chickens I see one or two. Help how many times do I need to keep doing this? Is this a regular bug or a flea, tick, lice? Sorry I don't have any pics. I am using saw dust in the coop now. Any help in this are would be great.

 

[eggzettera]

What kind of "louse powder" are you using?

 

[motherhen]

The louse powder is made by the local coop in nova scotia. I got the poweder from the feed store and they said that this was the stuff that all the poultry farms use.
I just don't know what to do. I love my chickens but it freaks me out. Does anyone know of a bug site that would show pics of different bugs that would bother chickens and dogs? That way maybe I can pin it down. I know not all bugs are bad, but this one is so tiny.
Help, help, help

 

[Zenbirder]

Get a piece of tape and use it to stick on some bugs so you can make them be still. Use magnification to look at them and tell us what you see, shape - legs - etc.

 

[ivan3]

Yes, magnify (check ours with a lighted x20 loupe after they've gone to roost).

This site is good for ID and for inducing delusional parasitosis in susceptible individuals.

http://www.ent.iastate.edu/imagegallery/default.html

We've used DE mixed with sand under the straw wood chips in the coop and, though the Wood Roaches aren't impressed, have yet to find a blood sucking arthropod on the birds.

Good Luck!

Sorry, but here's another link with the uglies:

http://entweb.clemson.edu/cuentres/cesheets/poultry/

 

[SandraChick]

I'm a huge fan of food grade DE for dusting, coops, bedding, and laying boxes. Make sure it's food grade...not the pool or garden version.

I also use orange oil on all the wood work in the coops (Ace hardware is now a carrier of "orange guard")....

Good luck
Sandra

 

[WoodlandWoman]

It does sound like mites. Wild birds carry them. Do your chickens have a dust bathing area? Ours has fine dirt, sand and DE in it. It helps to prevent an outbreak, by taking care of any they pick up, before they drag them back to the coop.

I'd try Sandra's suggestion to spray the beams with orange oil, when the birds are outside. I'm sure they're wandering up there, because you've done such a good job of making the floor of the coop inhospitable to them. After you spray the beams, hopefully they won't want to go there, either.

 

[motherhen]

thanks for all the wonderful responses. The bugs are tiny and have a round body. Kind of like the lice but the bottom of the body is rounder, light brown kind of see through. I don't have a magnifier but I will try my best to describe them later.
My chickens do have a large covered pen and they do have lots of dirt to bath in. I have not seen egg clusters, just a few of the bugs.
I cleaned the coop with orange multipurpose cleaner and that help kill some of the bugs but they are coming back. There are lots of little nocks and crannies to hide.
As for orange oil, we do not have an ace hardware. Do you know of any other place that would sell orange oil? The DE sold in my area does not say food grade, but it is listed as one of the recommended products for safe use by the municipality, the brand is insecticidal or something like that. I want to get DE locally but don't know if this is okay. I don't know enough about it.
Thanks again.

 

[Dawn419]

motherhen,

I Googled "food grade DE in Nova Scotia" and found this Pinnacle Farms. They show a bag of Perma-Gard food grade DE. Hope this helps!

Dawn

 

[motherhen]

thank you Dawn for your info. I never know what to look under.
Do you know where I can get the Orange Guard?