Lice and the DLM

[Skittleinaustin]

I got a good look at one of my girl's vent today and I believe I see lice (light brown, very small crawlers around her vent and bottom.). I'm going to use sevin in hose to treat but I've been thinking about how it started. They have access to a yard where they take lots of dust baths and spend most of their time. They roost at night in 2x4 planks. I'm using the DLM with shavings and DE in their coop. Is that my issue? Do I need to dig out the shavings more frequently than I am now (every 3 months is my current). How much DE do u recommend to use to prevent the issue?

this is my first time with this in my 17 months w a flock...what else do I need to think about?

 

[mandelyn]

Wild birds can drop off mites easily to the environment. If you bought adult birds or started birds off the farm, they could have come with it. Either way, now you're in for it to get it cleared up.

The Sevin on the hose won't eradicate them all, you'll notice them again in a couple of weeks. The hose application is ok around where they dust bath, but you need to dust for the birds with 5% powder or treat them a different way.

Removing the bedding will help, but it needs treated too. The coop, roosts, nooks crannies and cracks, nest boxes... everything needs treated. I dusted everything, so that if one crawled out of a crack, it walked right into the dust.

For birds, instead of dusting I applied drops of Ivermect pour on for cattle, for parasites and bugs. I think it was about 5 drops per each bird. Directly to the skin, one drop under each wing, 1 at the back of the neck, 2 below the vent.

It wouldn't be a bad idea to treat the whole coop again in 2 weeks just to be sure. Lot's of threads on the subject.

Wear a face mask and gloves!

Now it's become a yearly thing here. I think it's the wild birds digging around in the compost in close proximity to the chickens, since I've blocked them out from the coop and run.

Our run is DLM, with sand inside the coop, so that it's easier to treat inside. I just keep a steady supply of DE and Seven powder down in the sand and out in the run.

Now if I look under a vent, I won't see any for awhile, then I'll notice 1 or 2 and treat everyone again. But never an outright infestation like the first time I noticed it. I had forgotten how easily they can pick it up in the environment, then share it on the roost at night.

The cattle pour on version also does internal parasites, so it gets worming out of the way too. The double dose towards internal and external parasites makes the cost worth it, since you can then skip worming. It treats for more than just round worms as well, where as Wazine and other poultry types just do round worms. They're susceptible to more than just round worms.

Good luck!

 

[Skittleinaustin]

Great answer! Thank you. One q, when using the powder and drops, are eggs still usable? How about just powder alone?

 

[mandelyn]

There isn't an egg withdrawal from topical treatments, only internal treatments affect the eggs. Just because we're paranoid, I gave the 1st week worth of eggs to the dogs and chickens. Not really sure why though. LOL Maybe because I knew I put chemicals on them and I know how absorbent the skin is.

The main thing is ensuring you stop the cycle, in 2 weeks time there will be another generation of them, so you may need to retreat at that time if you don't use a longer lasting drop. I've heard of people using canine flea and tick treatments, such as the Adams brand or drops of Frontline, but I haven't used those methods. They're mentioned a lot on this site though if you do a search for them. Figured if I was going to do a chemical drop, I'd use one that tackled internal parasites as well.