I have mites! (I think my chicken does too!)

[Dagmarvelous]

I'm freaking out here! I've been getting bites... I thought at first mosquitoes, then maybe fleas. But I now believe they are some sort of mite!! Yikes!!

I have 5 hens, a dog and a cat. The cat likes to hang out in the yard with the chickens, and then sometimes she'll sleep on the foot of our bed. I don't see any signs on my girls, and can't see anything on the cat either, HOWEVER I've found one or two on my arm or crawling across my phone.... and one mite on my bed!!

They are super tiny! Like a pin head. Definitely not bedbugs, or fleas. Very difficult to see unless you study every spec of dust and realize that it is MOVING.

So what do I do? I cleaned out the coop and sprinkled DE over everything. (And boy to I mean everything! Coop, yard, hens, in their feed, on the dog bed, on our carpets, on our bed, on the sofas....

What next? I'm so grossed out!!

 

[Chickassan]

Oil yourself with coconut oil or any such safe oil even your hair.

 

[Lazy Farmer]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...-and-mites-prevention-and-treatments.1140730/

 

[JaeG]

Run your hand (use a paper towel if you are squeamish) under the roost bars and if you see red streaks and squished bugs there are red mites in the coop. And having been bitten myself I know how itchy it is! I found DE made the mites move away but it certainly didn't kill them. You'll need permethrin spray.

 

[Dagmarvelous]

Oil yourself with coconut oil or any such safe oil even your hair.

Does that kill them? Or just keep them off me?

I've changed my sheets everyday so far, and am very careful about touching anything in the coop/yard, or bringing any more mites inside.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Kiki]

Permethrin spray your coop...every nook and cranny of it.

 

[Dagmarvelous]

Run your hand (use a paper towel if you are squeamish) under the roost bars and if you see red streaks and squished bugs there are red mites in the coop. And having been bitten myself I know how itchy it is! I found DE made the mites move away but it certainly didn't kill them. You'll need permethrin spray.

I've been following a couple of other threads on mites....

I just did a Permethrin bug bomb thing in the coop. The chickens were moved to another part of the yard (with a big lawn, so they're happy!). The coop is airing out now.

I also put together a dusting tray full of playsand, DE and some wood ash from our firepit.

But what about my room, my bed, my whole house?? I'm using a diffuser with Melalueca oil in my room. And I've put lavendar drops on my bed...

What else can I do?

 

[Chickassan]

Does that kill them? Or just keep them off me?

I've changed my sheets everyday so far, and am very careful about touching anything in the coop/yard, or bringing any more mites inside.

Thanks for your help!

The oil will suffocate those already on you and make you much less appealing to future dinner guests.

 

[Dagmarvelous]

The oil will suffocate those already on you and make you much less appealing to future dinner guests.

Chickassan! Thanks for making me laugh. I need humor through this, it's terrible!!

 

[Chickassan]

Chickassan! Thanks for making me laugh. I need humor through this, it's terrible!!

Well I'm glad I'm a little bit of help, the honest ugly truth is I've had mites so I feel you. Alot of people have chickens that had mites, but like yourself I was lucky enough to snag some just for me.