Its a mite question for you guys

[new 2 pfowl]

I hate to even be asking this, but do any of you have experience with mites in your house?
I've been getting some bites and I just realized that it might be bird mites - Argh!

Please let me know if you have suggestions - vacuuming and laundry don't seem to have done the job so far, but I have only started on this.
I've seen some horror stories online and hope this isn't that big a deal (no, I am not going to call the exterminator and have my house tented, thank you!).

 

[MinxFox]

I didn't realize they could be a problem in the house!? I treated everyone for mites a few months ago, but I see them on Peep again. *sigh* I hate mites. That wouldn't be good for me though because I like to pet Peep and kiss him on the head a lot, and I see mites on his face. I figured they wouldn't want to jump onto me.

Do you have a lot of peacock feathers in your house? I could see peafowl feathers bringing mites into your house.

I think Dylansmom puts her peacock feathers in the freezer for a bit to kill any bugs on them.

 

[zazouse]

I hate to even be asking this, but do any of you have experience with mites in your house?
I've been getting some bites and I just realized that it might be bird mites - Argh!

Please let me know if you have suggestions - vacuuming and laundry don't seem to have done the job so far, but I have only started on this.
I've seen some horror stories online and hope this isn't that big a deal (no, I am not going to call the exterminator and have my house tented, thank you!).

Do you realize what it cost to have a house tinted, it is very expensive we had one done back in 1988 and it cost 3500.00 then i can not imagine what it would be now but you will have to remove all your animals, bag up you perishables, medicines anything open and will have to be gone for a few day but it does work, you will not see a bug of any kind for years LOL

I never herd of people getting bird mites, are you sure it ain't chiggers or sand fleas?

 

[MinxFox]

I was kind of thinking of bed bugs perhaps... Not sure...

 

[new 2 pfowl]

No, I've researched every kind of creepy biter and I do believe it is bird mites.
I may have brought them in with feathers, you're right, MinxFox.

If you want to get scared, look at this: http://www.birdmites.org/index.html
Luckily there are only a few biters here!

 

[DylansMom]

I was kind of thinking of bed bugs perhaps... Not sure...


@new 2 pfowl , can you tell when you are getting bitten? I have tons of feathers in my bedroom, but I do not bring in anything until it has spent a week or 2 in my freezer in the garage. I've done some experiments and an hour in the freezer seems to kill them pretty dead!

I can tell you we get lots of wild birds.... swallows, starlings and sparrows in our barn, and with them they bring mites and lice, it is just unavoidable. We dust our birds and pens quite often and the Peas seem to not be too bothered so we don't get too worked up. I have picked up baby swallows and returned them to their nests only to find my hands and forearms covered with bird lice, can say I've never been bitten, that I could feel anyway. Bird lice cannot survive on humans but when they are desperate they can bite us in an attempt to feed, however they will not successfully live on a person. At least that is what I've read, usually lice in a house is the result of a bird nest in a vent or fan and when the baby birds leave the lice invade the home looking for a food source. Bed bugs I think feed only at night, so if you are being bitten overnight they could be the guilty party. I've seen some horror stories about those suckers too.

 

[Garden Peas]

Bed bugs, horrors, apparently now can be caught on upholstered places in public

PeaLover130 occasionally turns up with an odd bite or two in the morning -- I'm convinced in her case that it is either a flea, a spider or a stray mosquito that managed to get into the house. We are not overrun with fleas... I almost never see one, but the cat sleeps on her bed, so if there is going to be a flea in the house, that's where it's going to be

Oh boy, do I hate fleas! Almost as much as I hate rats, black widows, scorpions and rattlesnakes in the yard

We once moved into a house, only to discover it was totally infested with fleas... what a battle that was to get rid of them

 

[new 2 pfowl]

It is really hard to get rid of the tiny biters!
I really don't think its bed bugs, fleas etc. from reading about what they do and seeing what they look like.
But from what you guys say, it really sounds like bird mites may be unlikely, too.
I'll have to keep investigating!
Thanks for all of the input.

 

[Birdrain92]

If it is one of those bitters try Citric acid (Lemon or Orange juice 100% not Lemonade). Maybe put some Lemon juice in your shampoo and see if that gets rid of them and spray some lemon juice on your birds. I keep my feathers on my bed and I have only misted them while they were attached to Colbolt and I don't have any of those bitters and they have been in my room since August.

 

[MinxFox]

It is really hard to get rid of the tiny biters!
I really don't think its bed bugs, fleas etc. from reading about what they do and seeing what they look like.
But from what you guys say, it really sounds like bird mites may be unlikely, too.
I'll have to keep investigating!
Thanks for all of the input.

Have your windows been open recently? I went camping a month ago and these darn little gnats were so small they went through the mesh on the tent and made sleeping every night impossible for me because they wouldn't stop biting me. It made me so paranoid that I started to feel itchy all over so I would hide under my sleeping bag at night.