Help!! Black Flies... what do I do?????

[Miss Lydia]

I am super sensitive to scents, no perfume etc... and i bet it was! we had a heck of a time getting that poor swallow off of it, a big farm strip type. So still trying to sort alternatives there don't like spraying the horses with chemicals.

I hate chemicals, won't let them near my home. I have used Poultry protector to spray out the coops and roosts maybe there is something like that for horses. Also the ff is suppose to keep flies down so we'll see on that one. and I bought those fly traps [recycled bottles] that have the attractant you mix with water, they are kinda stinky but work real good. can't hang them inside though.

 

[Going Quackers]

I hate chemicals, won't let them near my home. I have used Poultry protector to spray out the coops and roosts maybe there is something like that for horses. Also the ff is suppose to keep flies down so we'll see on that one. and I bought those fly traps [recycled bottles] that have the attractant you mix with water, they are kinda stinky but work real good. can't hang them inside though.

Oh i know of those! we tried a natural based spray one year but it was just costly and sorta useless... the ducks work the best, honestly the issue is they get in places in the barn the ducks cannot reach, the windows are buzzing with flies and mosquitoes. We're supposed to go chilly again though,so they'll die lol

 

[DucksnDaffodils]

So I gave, them garlic in their dinner, and they didn't seem to notice, and scarfed it right down. ( I did!! sure does smell strong) Also, the layers, who I was most worried about, seemed to perk up a bit and act more like normal. I can not wait till the warm weather comes and chases off the black flies (black flies leave if it gets over 80) so I can put the poor dears back by the pond. They were trying to swim in their water dish today.... pathetic!

 

[Miss Lydia]

So I gave, them garlic in their dinner, and they didn't seem to notice, and scarfed it right down. ( I did!! sure does smell strong) Also, the layers, who I was most worried about, seemed to perk up a bit and act more like normal. I can not wait till the warm weather comes and chases off the black flies (black flies leave if it gets over 80) so I can put the poor dears back by the pond. They were trying to swim in their water dish today.... pathetic!

Poor babies, but a friend who lives in Maine said when the blk flies come out there they [the humans] take garlic to keep them from biting so hopefully it will work with your flock too.

I do fermented feed for my flock and have been doing it in the bathroom so my first floor always smells like an Italian restaurant. I'm use to it but company may not like it.

 

[pigeonman]

I had black flies or buffalo gnats in my young bird pigeon loft and 4 or 5 of them died before knowing what killed them
a pigeon friend of mine told me to open their beaks in which i did and their mouths were full of them.He also had the problem
a couple of years back. he said to soak cotton balls with abstract of vanilla and tie the cotton balls on strings and
hang in several places in the loft.I did that and no more gnats after about a day. keep the cotton balls wet with the vanilla
hope have luck with this.

 

[duckins]

A ziplock sandwich bag half filled with water hang it up wherever you have flies and they'll disappear. Seen this few years back at an outside concession stand ask them they swore by it I tried it and it works.

 

[MommaHen Gary]

I just found an article on here (by searching for "fly help") that says to hang Vanillaroma car air fresheners inside the coop and in the run. Many people have mentioned that it has kept the flies away for them too. Good luck!

 

[OldGuy43]

Try here:

Flies and How to get Rid of Them

 

[Haunted55]

I don't know about black flies, but Little Trees Vanillaroma (Yep, the car air fresheners.) gets rid of most of the flying insects around here.

You know, when I first saw this I was very, very skeptical. I mean in Maine, the Black Fly is interchangable with our state bird! But, I took your word for it Old Guy43 and off to Wally I go to buy packs of the vanilla trees. Stink? Oh Lord do I hate that smell! That's okay though...much to my surprize and glee, they work!!! There are no Black Flies in any of my houses, even with the windows and doors open all day. I've had them hanging in there for a month now and the stink...I mean smell from the trees is still there and working.

Poor babies, but a friend who lives in Maine said when the blk flies come out there they [the humans] take garlic to keep them from biting so hopefully it will work with your flock too.

I do fermented feed for my flock and have been doing it in the bathroom so my first floor always smells like an Italian restaurant. I'm use to it but company may not like it.

I went through Storey's Guide to Ducks today and the disease they get from these little Langoliers is called Leucocytozoon Disease. Normally it only affects the young, not fully feathered ducks and geese. Unfortunately the first signs of a problem with this is usually death of your birds. Right now I have Mallards that run around their yard with their mouths open just sucking these little buggers in as fast as they can. I have also mixed up a spray of white vinegar, 5 garlic capsules and the rest water, applied with a spray bottle. So far this is keeping them off the adult ducks and geese.

For ourselves, we do take garlic caspsules everyday starting in January. Doubling them if I've taken them the rest of the year as I should, lol. This really does help with keeping them away. Something I would do if my ducks were close to a water source...pour a bottle of vegetable oil onto the water. It stops them from being able to breed and they will have to go further afield to find water for breeding and egg laying. The vegetable oil will last about a month before it is broken down by sunlight and will not hurt the larger critters that may live there. If I can find the link that sites a study on this I will post it as soon as I can.

 

[OldGuy43]

Quote: Yep! I too was skeptical, but they definitely work in even a semi-enclosed space such as our screened in porch. I even called the Little Tree folk and told them. For the open areas I use Rescue Fly Traps.