I don't want to be the predator!!

[lynnolekas]

Hey ya'll! I always hope that I am posting in the right topic...we'll see.
We are new chicken keepers - building our coop, raising the babies indoors
(they are still babies - 3 weeks old) but I am thinking ahead. We WANT to
be all organic but last year I drew the line on the mosquitoes - we simply
can not go outdoors without being eaten alive! I have two young children
and we are all affected so I chose to have my husband spray a chemical
(I think it is called Bifen) around the perimeter of our property. It made life
outside in the summer more tolerable for sure. Looking ahead towards the
warmer weather I wonder what others may do to control the mosquitoes
on their land. The product we used says to let it dry and it's then safe for
children and pets but I assume they weren't considering foraging chickens!

I don't want to be the predator to anything BUT the mosquitoes! What suggestions
are out there?

Thanks friends!
Lynn

 

[CluckyJay]

Bat houses, swallow houses and making sure water isn't standing in buckets, tires and other areas. I'm from Florida and the skeeters are awful there!

Also try using mosquito dunks?

 

[Three Cedars Silkies]

Bifen is a pyrethrin and should be safe for the chickens. The home page for it says "safe for non-target animals such as birds, reptile and mammals".

 

[Mattemma]

I have used the bifen product as well. I have neighbors who have standing water the size of a pond. I toss some BT donuts in their water. The citronella stuff gave me a headache. I have resorted to DEET spray on cloths.

Encourage the creates the eat the skeeters.

 

[lynnolekas]

Thanks CluckyJay - When we finally resorted to chemical warfare was when we had
intently worked on searching out the standing water in the area. We are cavers and
love bats (and Crossville TN btw) but the bats abandoned our box a few years ago
for better digs in the wooded easement we live next to - we should relocate it and
try that again. Good suggestion!


*edit*
I am embarrassed that I didn't even know Bifen was a pyrethrin! Maybe that is why
we chose it last year during the killing season! Hats off to you all! I wish ALL of my
problems and concerns could be resolved so throughly and quickly!! Yay for chicken lovers!



thanks!
Lynn