Hen with 2 day old chicks has lice!! Please advise!

JacP

In the Brooder
7 Years
Jun 7, 2012
64
1
46
Im not sure where to post this. I have a lovely Brooodie that just hatched me out a few beautiful babies they are blue britchen marans & silver sussex babies 3 if each they are 2 days old.. I have 1 whom is slow to perk up & has been taking sometime to get going.
Here is my issue.. Before the chicks hatched I cleaned my coop from top to bottom.. DE in every corner.. Ruffled my hen up with it... Never have I had a mite or a louse because I'm so diligent!
I just saw a skin colourd bug on my chicks!! My babies!!
I quickly flipped my hen around looking for signs of bugs on her but nothing.. Looked over my babies.. No bugs!! Now I'm freaking out! What if they have lice??!!
Should I treat my hen with DE & hope it clears things up?? I can't use Sevin around babies do I ?
What do I look for.. What can I possibly do with 2 day old chicks?? I don't want them getting sick because of a parasite!
Advice please..??
**** I took more time looking at my hen.after posting this... She has bugs!!! How do I treat with babies?? I put DE deep into her feathers & as soon as she called the chicks to her they were treated...
I changed all bedding & litter & but a thick coat of DE down... Please help what do I do??
Should I set up a brooder & take the hen & wash her with Dawn & saltwater? Blow dry her? Then bring her back to the babies?? What happens with the babies & the bugs that will be on them? I'm stressing out!!
It makes my skin crawl!! Scratch,scratch..!!
 
If the pen is big enough, you could try making her a dusting box and let her dust herself. Sometimes chickens don't like to dust in just plain de, but if you mix it with dirt they'll use it. She probably has a few mites or lice, because she's been setting hatching her babies and hasn't been able to dust much herself, maybe. It's hardly an emergency at this point, if you're just now noticing them. Let her do it herself, or you could try to dust her again with the DE. Definitely don't use Sevin dust.
 

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