Hi from Australia

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linnieg

linnieg

Hatching
5 Years
Jan 31, 2014
6
0
7
I am fairly new to the world of chickens, have had the usual backyard few layers but just today I picked up a rooster that needed a new home and also 2 hens, Now I have 6 hens and a rooster.

The rooster has terrible legs and after looking at pictures I am sure he has scaly mite, poor fellow, so I am going to put vasoline on his legs but will also post a pic of his legs :( tomorrow.

will I have to treat all the girls as well??
I also have 4 guinea fowl and 3 geese. Am really looking forward to being part of the group here and hope I can learn heaps to help my feathered family.
 
If the new birds aren't in quarantine - you probably should treat everyone - as it will spread. It might be best to post on the Australian thread - I don't know that you would have the same products in your country as we do in the US.

"Australia - six states and one funny little island."- we have many, members from down under.
 
Hello I'm an Aussie Bird myself here in Melbourne. Drumstick Diva is right to suggest that we have different products here in Australia to that of the USA.
I have had enormous trouble with mites in my flock and have come up with a treatment plan that seems to work well.
You will need to treat both the birds and the house.

Birds: Do this first thing in the morning - capture each chicken one at a time before letting them out. Wash everyones legs in a bucket of warm soapy water - for soap I use Johnson's Baby Bath as this won't strip the oils from their feathers which they need for weather protection. Apart from some initial flapping they generally seem to enjoy having their feet in warm water. I sit on a child's chair - low to ground close to mop bucket (which is wide/rectangular, a laundry hand basin would also do) and after the feet washing ceremony I lay the chicken on their back on my lap with the towel draped over their tummy. This give me a chance to dry and inspect their legs and feet without too much struggling and to check for signs of mite infestation near their vent. I then coat the legs in vaseline making sure to get it under any raised scales to smother the beasties. I turn the chook over and apply 3 drops of Revolution - flea and worm treatment for dogs - to the back of the chickens neck. The revolution pack that has 3 pipettes in it and costs about $60 is the most cost effective - you will use about 1 1/2 pipettes for 6 chickens. Release the chicken and get the next victim.

House: if your house is like mine and is constructed of old timbers the mites very readily set up home in the crevices of the timber and come out at night to feed upon sleeping chickens.If yours is made of tin and metal you won't have to do this at all. I have replaced my timber roosts with plastic plumbing pipes hooked over nails to stop them turning when the birds are on them. These can easily be removed and any dirt or dust inside sluiced out with a hose. Give the whole house a wash with a hose turned on hard or a pressure system such as a Karcher. This hot weather is ideal as the house will dry out in record time. Then spray the house insides with Malathon Insecticide - for the treatment of aphids. This comes in a little orange box purchased from the garden section of Bunnings / Mitre 10 / hardware & gardening shop. 5 mls makes up to 5 litres so I use a dropper and put 1 ml into a litre of water in a hand pump spray bottle. The mix is cloudy white and evil smelling. I spray this on every bit of timber inside the house - wearing rubber gloves, a shower cap and a face mask. While it is drying I go shower and put my clothes in the wash. Repeat the house treatment in 7 - 10 days so as to kill any eggs that have hatched since the last treatment. Once the house is dry you can put back floor litter (sawdust sand whatever you use) and straw in the nest boxes and allow the chickens to return home. I have in the past painted the timbers with Kerosene which also works but smells a lot stronger for longer and - in my opinion - doesn't do as an effective job of getting rid of mites in the house. Painted timbers are far less likely to house mites so I have this summer painted painted painted!

I do a maintenance repeat of the house treatment once a month during the hot weather and a dose of the Revolution also once a month - so maybe 3 times after the initial treatment. The vaseline & feet washing only needs to happen if you notice raised scales on your chickens legs.

The US people talk a lot about "DE" I haven't been able to find out if there is an equivalent here and I haven't been able to purchase it by that name here either.

Good luck with it all and I hope this is helpful!

Cheers LizS ChooksDownUnder
 
welcome-byc.gif
,
The people on this site will give you the best advice
yesss.gif
. I'm from sydney and new to the world of chickens too
and learned so much on this site.
 
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ChooksDownUnder has given you excellent advice. Follow these instructions and you will have them all fixed up in no time!

Great to have you aboard and enjoy BYC!
 

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