help---my chickens are crawling with mites and so am I

[clickncluck]

I went out last night to turn their nest box around so they wouldn't sleep in it. When I went back in the house their were millions of mites running up my arms. I'd been itchy lately and have been waking up with bites (I have a water bed, so I doubt it is bed bugs) but now I have the eebie jeebies. Has anyone ever tried "Poultry Protector" for mites? Does it work?

 

[loanwizard]

After reading here for the last few months I would use sevin dust or Diatemaceous earth (Food grade DE)

 

[KandiandJerry]

We use Sevin Dust it works well....

 

[greenscape]

Sevin Dust heavily everywhere in the Hen house. Then just a light dusting once a month. You can stop after the first hard freeze and start again in early spring. Don't wait till you see them.

 

[rita2paul]

i use diatom earth and jays fluid to clean out the hutch, i clean the hutch every day until i couldn't see any more mites, they are horrible, i put tape around their perches to find out if they are still there as they will be stuck to the tape. good luck.

 

[dawg53]

I recommend sevin dust. Dust your chickens thoroughly and dust the inside of their house, roosts and nests. Redust your chickens and the inside of the house again in 10 days to kill nits hatched from eggs after the initial dusting. $4.97 at Lowe's for a 1 pound canister.

 

[Mandy1296]

ClicknCluck, I am at a constant battle with mites, not sure if i have them worse because of the area I live in or what. In winter I notice a decrease in mites, but they never really stay gone for a whole season. I have used both DE and Sevin Dust. DE did absolutely nothing to kill the existing mites. I tried for over a week with just DE. The Sevin Dust works fast, I usually can tell a difference the next day. This is the program I stick to and it seems to keep things in check for me. About twice a year I pick a day that I refer to as "Mite killin' day" I clean out the coop( I don't use deep litter method) empty shavings from nest boxes, take down the roosts but leave them in the building propped on the wall (I designed mine to be removable for this purpose.) Lock everyone out and set off a fogger. The fogger is good for getting into the cracks and killing all the little buggers hiding in there. The fogger that claims to kill bedbugs works best. A little more pricey but it really kills everything. Follow the directions on the can, allow enough time to adequately air out the coop. While the fogger is working, I pick up each bird and dust with seven dust. I'm not the most graceful, but I pick them up and hold them under my arm with my hand holding their legs ( their heads facing behind me) get a bit of sevind dust in my other hand and get them everywhere I can except their head. I'm kinda spinning circles to keep their faces(and mine) out of the dust while I'm doing this. When the building is aired out well enough, I refill the nest boxes with shavings, put everything back together and we're good for a few months. Occasionally between foggings ( not sure that's even a word

), I'll sprinkle some Sevin Dust on the roost bars and in the brackets that hold the roost bars. After the first time I found myself crawling with mites, (completely freaked me out because I was sitting in the house watching TV after work, hadn't been out to the coop since the morning and all I could think was "Oh NO!! They are in my house!!!") I started ditching the clothes at the back door - put up a privacy panel if you need to - my clothes stay on the back porch till they hit the washer. I also keep a bottle of flea and tick shampoo in the shower and use it about once a week. Maybe a little overkill, but I haven't had mites crawling on me since

Good Luck to you!

 

[dawg53]

Quote:
Mandy, there is an easy way to dispense sevin dust inside their house. I do it and it's extremely effective getting in all the nooks and cranies, tiny holes, every hiding place etc...
Place a couple handfuls of sevin dust in a small pile just inside the entrance to their house. Then get your leaf blower and hit it with full power on the sevin dust and ...POOF...a HUGE cloud of dust covers the interior COMPLETELY. (Make sure there arnt any chickens inside.) The dust settles in time...dusting completed!

 

[Honeysucklefeathers]

Quote:
x2 Use Sevin, DE is worthless. I put the chickens in a bag, head out and cover them with the Sevin. Then dust EVERYTHING IN THE HENHOUSE!!! I put Sevin in the dust bath just as a precaution. I have never had mites or lice but 4 chickens that I bought did. Thank goodness I believe in quarantine!

 

[loanwizard]

Why is there no Thank you button in this forum? There have been some wonderful replies here.