Help! Found Lice on bantam pullets

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FoxySonia

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Aug 17, 2020
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Queens, NY
I just discovered lice on the 2 sick bantam polish pullets that have been indoor in quarantined for the past 3 days. Now I know what was crawling on my scalp last night and today. Just saw a few live (long, thin and brownish looking) on the pullets when I examined the vent. Their symptoms are lethargy, loss of appetite and green diarrhea. I have made a post about them but gotten very few replies. This post is to ask for advise on how to treat the lice.

Would the lice be causing their illness, or their being sick and weak cause the lice to infest them? What do I use to kill the lice? The 2 bantam Polish pullets are about a pound each. Will I need to treat the entire flock of 38 juveniles and 3 adults? I have 36 other chicks (12 standard size and the rest are bantam), mostly pullets between 5 and 6 months old, plus 3 adult standard size - 2 hens and 1 rooster. The juvenile bantams are approx. between 1 and 2.5 lbs. and the adults are approx. between 3 and 6 lbs. What's the best way to treat all of them for lice? Do I also have to treat their roosting bars and coops?
 
Oh, lice.... Yucky...

To treat lice you have to jump through some serious hoops.
  1. Clean out all bedding from coop and nest boxes
  2. Spray everything with permethrin (available at feed stores; follow directions on the packaging)
  3. Spray the birds or use poultry dust (also available at feed stores)
  4. Treat the birds again after a week
It's a pain, but I still think lice are easier to deal with than mites. Lice can cause health problems, so it can explain some what you're seeing. Maybe. The lice live on the birds, not on the roost, so you're good there. Treating the coop *should* do it.
 
Elector PSP works also, purportedly with only one treatment, it can be used on the birds and the coop, but it's a LOT more expensive (usually have to get it online). Most people use permethrin products as they are much cheaper. If temperature is an issue you can use powder on the birds rather than getting them wet, and use spray in the coop (spray gets in the nooks and crannies better). If you use powder you can put the bird in a bag with the head sticking out and the powder in the bag, shake it up good and all over the bird, particular attention around the vent and under wings. Removing the nits/eggs will help reduce how many times you have to treat, the live lice will be killed by the treatment, but the eggs will continue to hatch til they are all gone, so usually weekly treatments til you've gotten them all.
 
coach723 said:
Elector PSP works also, purportedly with only one treatment, it can be used on the birds and the coop, but it's a LOT more expensive (usually have to get it online). Most people use permethrin products as they are much cheaper. If temperature is an issue you can use powder on the birds rather than getting them wet, and use spray in the coop (spray gets in the nooks and crannies better). If you use powder you can put the bird in a bag with the head sticking out and the powder in the bag, shake it up good and all over the bird, particular attention around the vent and under wings. Removing the nits/eggs will help reduce how many times you have to treat, the live lice will be killed by the treatment, but the eggs will continue to hatch til they are all gone, so usually weekly treatments til you've gotten them all.
Click to expand...
I like the bag idea!

For that many birds, the PSP might be worth the expense. One and done (supposedly).

ETA: I use poultry dust in their dust bath, too. I just finished dealing with a mite infestation. I am not in a hurry for a repeat!
 
Oh boy :( Thank you to the lovely members that replied. I don't live near a TS or feed store and don't drivevor have a car, so have to buy supplie, feed and medicines online. I have a little of the poultry dust left but probably not enough to treat them all, definitely enough to treat the 2 sick bantam pullets. I had treated the adult when I spotted lice on the rooster about 6 months ago, before I got the chicks, I used a natural spray twice and later the poultry dust, and that seemed to get rid of the lice but now they are back. :(

I have 2 cats that spend time in the yard with my chickens, my boy likes to go into the coop, usually to use the sand to potty :( sigh, and I've seen him lay down in the nest boxes, so I'm scared to use the poultry powder or permethrin since it's toxic to cats.

Is Elector PSP toxic to cats? If not, I'll get that even if expensive. Where can I buy it? How is it used? Is it a concentrate that is mixed with water and that's used to spray the chicks/chickens and the coop? Thank you again for the help.
 
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Also would like to know what's the best way to treat for intestinal worms, in case they have any. When I treated the adults for lice I also treated them for worms using Safeguard pellets, and later with a natural dewormer that comes in capsules (mixed powder from 1 capsule with 1/2 teaspoon of canned cat food for each chicken.

Should I deworm the flock at the same time I treat them for lice, even if I've not seen worms in their poop?
 
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FoxySonia said:
Also would like to know what's the best way to treat for intestinal worms, in case they have any. When I treated the adults for lice I also treated them for worms using Safeguard pellets, and later with a natural dewormer that comes in capsules (mixed powder from 1 capsule with 1/2 teaspoon of canned cat food for each chicken.

Should I deworm the flock at the same time I treat them for lice, even if I'venot seen worms in their poop?
Click to expand...
I wouldn't worm them unless they have worms. As a goat mama, I know the risk of resistance is REAL.

The main ingredient in Elector is spinosad, which is ok for cats.
 

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