Insecticiide safety and "yard ranging" chickens. Need Input.

[Hodawg]

Howdy gang,

We live in the Panhandle area of NW Florida. We continuously have a Mole Cricket problem in our area which is destroying our yard. Last year, pre-chickens in the yard, we used Ortho Bug B Gon Max insecticide and it worked pretty good for a while. Unfortunately in our area, Mole Crickets are a recurring problem and have to be treated for every year. The active ingredient in Ortho Bug B Gon is 0.115% Bifenthrin. It is put down in granular form and then throw the sprinkler to it to wet it into the soil. The bag (last year) said that it was safe for back yard pets to walk on once it had dried.

Would something like this be OK once dried for the hens to walk around on and potentially peck the grass, or am I better off just kicking the whole Mole Cricket control idea out of my head since we now have backyard chickens. I don't want to do anything that is going to endanger our little mini-flock. Any and all advice would really be appreciated, especially from some of y'all "chemistry" types out there.

Beers y'all,
Ken

 

[Pinky]

I'm not sure if that's safe but I've used sevin dust with my chickens free ranging and it has not caused them any problems yet.

 

[artieproof]

I'm having a huge problem with fleas. I have 4 hens and 2 dogs that all use our backyard. The dogs are covered in fleas, I imagine the birds are suffering too. I bought a bottle of bifenthrin for the yard at the pest control store (on the guy's recommendation) but I'm afraid to spray it - they said the birds would be OK once it's dry, but does anyone know if the eggs will be safe to eat???

 

[chfite]

I would be interested to hear if the chickens eat the mole crickets. Mine eat everything.

I don't use pesticides and such inside the fenced area where the chickens spend the day. The chickens eat all the bugs, and vinegar will kill any weeds.

Chris

 

[Wrooster]

One thing to keep in mind with anything you put on the ground is that, depending on weather, etc. some of it will get tracked into the house. It will not biodegrade in a carpet like it will on soil. So if you have kids, especially the kind that are down on the floor a lot, consider them as well as the chickens.

 

[howsekatz8]

Yep...I would think the chickens would eat the ole crickets!

 

[tonim109]

Howdy gang,

We live in the Panhandle area of NW Florida. We continuously have a Mole Cricket problem in our area which is destroying our yard. Last year, pre-chickens in the yard, we used Ortho Bug B Gon Max insecticide and it worked pretty good for a while. Unfortunately in our area, Mole Crickets are a recurring problem and have to be treated for every year. The active ingredient in Ortho Bug B Gon is 0.115% Bifenthrin. It is put down in granular form and then throw the sprinkler to it to wet it into the soil. The bag (last year) said that it was safe for back yard pets to walk on once it had dried.

Would something like this be OK once dried for the hens to walk around on and potentially peck the grass, or am I better off just kicking the whole Mole Cricket control idea out of my head since we now have backyard chickens. I don't want to do anything that is going to endanger our little mini-flock. Any and all advice would really be appreciated, especially from some of y'all "chemistry" types out there.

Beers y'all,
Ken

Dear Ken,

I wrote to Ortho and this was there reply to me :Ortho Bug B Gon Insect Killer for Lawns is not labeled for use in grazing areas and should not be used in areas where animals used for human consumption will graze. Do not use the product in areas where edible feed crops are grown. Don't use treated clippings as feed for grazers or allow the animals into the treated areas for one full year.

5 minutes before I sprayed...wow

 

[Folly's place]

All that information should be on the label, but it will be in very fine print. I'm glad you found it before using it!
Mary

 

[tonim109]

I'm having a huge problem with fleas. I have 4 hens and 2 dogs that all use our backyard. The dogs are covered in fleas, I imagine the birds are suffering too. I bought a bottle of bifenthrin for the yard at the pest control store (on the guy's recommendation) but I'm afraid to spray it - they said the birds would be OK once it's dry, but does anyone know if the eggs will be safe to eat???

Ortho Bug B Gon Insect Killer for Lawns is not labeled for use in grazing areas and should not be used in areas where animals used for human consumption will graze. Do not use the product in areas where edible feed crops are grown. Don't use treated clippings as feed for grazers or allow the animals into the treated areas for one full year. Copied from my email from ortho. Hope this helps

 

[chickengeorgeto]

Backyard Chickens should solve both your mole cricket problem and the problem of cutting your grass one or two times every week.