hen and chicks have fleas? help! or maybe lice??

[ReiMiraa]

i think they are fleas.

the hen has been brooding for 4 weeks now and the eggs are starting to hatch. (yeah i know super long hatch. on saturday i considered throwing the eggs out but they didn't smell rotten yet and she was still sitting on them)

2 chicks have hatched so far.

this morning i grabbed a day old chick to check on it and there were little bugs on its butt. i poked one and it scurried into the chicks down fast. it is obvious these pests are biting the chicks vents (tender flesh)

the bugs are a little bigger than a pin head and look like mini crickits. and are white/tan with black dots

so i guess my broody is infested with fleas? (from not 'bathing' for a month). she hasn't had a dust bath in a long time and wont leave the nest yet.

her nest and brooding area are in a chicken tractor on the lawn so dirt is not an option yet, and its been raining everything is mudd.

so what should i do? chicks do not dust bath for a week or more. i do have that dusting powder. but would it be safe for the chicks?

would the flea and tick drops for cats or dogs be a safe alternative and be useful on chickens?

i cant give the chicks a bath.........
the hen maybe in a dog flea bath. but if all 3 are infested and any more chicks are infested what do i do?

 

[Bantimna]

I suggest you go to you TSC or local vet and ask for Flea Powder. Dust your broody and clean out the bedding once all the chicks have hatched. I'm not sure about dusting the chicks. I guess they will get 'dust' from their mom as they hide under her. Can you move her into your garage or a dry area? That would help a million, keeping wetness away from her and the chicks. Many people say that the drops you get for dogs and cats are K. for chickens but I'm not sure. Since chickens groom themselves and you don't know what they get in.

 

[ReiMiraa]

i just don't know if it would be alright for the chicks.

i could try putting the hen in a brooder with the chicks. (horse trough with lamp) the nest box is a igloo dog house with straw.

i had moved the nest over on the ground because an ant colony had taken up residence under neath and i saw ants crawling over the hen. maybe u shoult of let them?? they would of attacked the pests right?

i can see that these pests are biting/sucking blood around the chick's vents.

i could try to wash the hen in the solution. and try powder dusting. just afraid to try it on the chicks. i could put powder in my hand and rub it all over the chick. it would no longer be yellow but a power white.

just want to know while i am still in town what i should buy before i head home.