Interesting Dusting Technique

[fasschicks]

I had to dust my chickens last and I think I came up with an interesting dusting technique and wanted to share. It made dusting simple and less stressful on the girls.

I bought a "pest pistol" and filled it with my dusting material (I had to use Sevin because I discovered lice). So, when the girls were in for the night and on the roost. I took my "pest pistol" in hand and turned each girl around on the roost so that their business ends (butts) were facing me. Since the pistol has a long applicator tip, I was able to stick it right up through their feathers and to their skin and gave it a squeeze. I did this 6-8 times to get it all over everything. I even put it under their wings and gave a squeeze. It seemed to work pretty well and the girls didn't seem to get their feathers in a ruffle as much as before. The girls just gave a light shake and it seemed to spread it around their bodies.

The only thing I need to do now is to teach them "about-face"!

Wendy

 

[SIMZ]

Oh, that seems so much easier than what we go through for dusting. Where did you buy that?

 

[aart]

Slick!
Any idea how much dust is dispensed with each 'shot'?
Pest Pistol....hehehe...I like that!

ETA: Oh, Pest Pistol is the product name! Found it on Amazon.

 

[sunflour]

I had to dust my chickens last and I think I came up with an interesting dusting technique and wanted to share. It made dusting simple and less stressful on the girls.

I bought a "pest pistol" and filled it with my dusting material (I had to use Sevin because I discovered lice). So, when the girls were in for the night and on the roost. I took my "pest pistol" in hand and turned each girl around on the roost so that their business ends (butts) were facing me. Since the pistol has a long applicator tip, I was able to stick it right up through their feathers and to their skin and gave it a squeeze. I did this 6-8 times to get it all over everything. I even put it under their wings and gave a squeeze. It seemed to work pretty well and the girls didn't seem to get their feathers in a ruffle as much as before. The girls just gave a light shake and it seemed to spread it around their bodies.

The only thing I need to do now is to teach them "about-face"!

Wendy

Genuis! This would be great also for dusting the hard to reach areas of a coop. I have a couple of corner areas that are impossible to clean out and doubt my girls would tolerate a shop vacuum in there!

Once we sprayed blue kote on one of my pecked chickens while she was roosting. So much easier than trying to hold her down during daytime to spray. But after that episode, she moved to a new nightly roosting position. They are aware of surroundings even on roost at nite, awake and intermittently sleep. Bet you they will turn around to prevent the nite alien powder attack and then the next nite you could approach from the other side?

 

[fasschicks]

Yeah, I got mine from Amazon. At first, I wasn't squeezing the bottle enough. But then gave a little more force with 2 hands and it worked slick. Not sure how much comes out, but I didn't use more than half of a container of it for 10 girls. More stayed on the girls instead of going on the floor and in the air.

It should be interesting how it works with DE (which is what it was intended for, I think). It kind of made me laugh as I was doing it. It was like I kept "goosing" them with every poke.

Wendy

 

[sunflour]

My issue turned out to be feather picking, but when it started thought it was lice or mites so treated them with a garden dust recommended by poultry experts via my extension agents inquiry. Measured the dosage carefully, sat in the coop and tried to dust them. Most I could dust but I got more on me than on the girls. It was impossible! Personally have not had external parasite episode YET, but I know it is quite common and will likely need a better method.

Again, thank you for your thread…gonna get me a flock duster and place in my rubber chicken doctor bag!