lice, mites or what? AHHH

[erindubb]

Thanks again you guys. I used the Adams Spray on the birds a few days ago. Maybe I didn't use enough? Or didn't get it right to the skin......I really tried - but they have very FLUFFY butts.

Or maybe I did and there was one lone louse trying to make a run for it and found my daughter and clung to her for dear life? GROSS! I didn't do the coop yet - I was waiting till the second application of Adams to dust the coop.

 

[math ace]

I have used both adams spray and the dip. . . .

The spray is HARD to get to the skin - - and you have to hit the butt area, the leg area, and the chest area . . . So that is a lot of spraying through a lot of fluff.

With the dip ( in WARM weather) you get a much better coverage. They come out of the bucket drenched to the skin.

I use the spray if I have to do the coop walls or perch or nest box - - - Did you do the nest box ? ? ?

You wait 7 - 10 days to catch hatching eggs - - BUT if you are still seeing them, I would go ahead and do it again. Then repeat 7 - 10 days later.

In the winter, I would use seven dust to dust them with. . . The spray is just too hard to get to the skin.

People use a brown bag and put the bird in it with their HEAD OUT OF THE BAG. Then kinda roll the sevin around the bird while it is in the bag. That way you and the bird aren't inhaling !

 

[Dead Rabbit]

ive never had any problem with the stuff working, or problem with getting it to the skin. just bury the nozzle through the feathers. course i dont have 'fuzzy' chickens either, could make a difference. i dont see why its much more difficult.

but if there is an infestation, you should cut all that "flea dirt" or eggs off them, and doing so, you will definitly be down to skin.

yup one could have been missed, but my money is she got it elsewhere.

 

[PatS]

I agree, I don't want to find parasites on my birds either. And the initial reaction may be disgust. But remember that up until a generation or two ago, pretty much all of US had several types of parasites at any one time (and in most parts of the world still do). We did evolve along with them, and many believe now that allergies and auto-immune disorders have become so commonplace because our immune systems need to have something to "fight" (like parasites), and if they don't, we develop auto-immune problems.

That being said, I'm going to look for some of that Adams spray next time I'm in town!

Don't throw your coop off a cliff. A bug here or there won't hurt you!

 

[math ace]

Pay a little extra and get the adams flea and tick with growth inhibitor ( if you can find it) It is preventative for 90 days with the growth inhibitor. I took a little of the dip and mixed with water in a spray bottle and made my own spray for the walls and roosts and nest boxes.

I keep this stuff hanging in the coop and spray it every couple of months - - - just as a preventative.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Quote:
You need to treat at the same time. And you will need to retreat at least a couple of times. I strongly agre with using a formulation that includes an insect growth regulator. I've never had a problem getting spray to cover the areas needed, and the bugs start dying immediately. Use ivermectin and every time they bite the host, they are poisoned.

I still think that your daughter could have gotten lice from normal children's activities with other children. It is very common, and I certainly would not be able to tell the difference between a chicken louse and a human head louse.

In discussing ear mites, my vet once told me that you need to treat for three days in a row, not for three days and repeat that whole program three times. The lifecycle of bugs is so very much faster than we are used to; a blink of the eye.

Breaking the cycle is the only way to get rid of them, and even then you will need to keep up measures as a preventative.

 

[math ace]

Quote:
I think - - not sure - - that if you use ivermectin you will have to toss your eggs for a couple of weeks. Ivermectin is typically applied as a "pour on" and it is absorded into the bloodstream and therefore into the eggs .. . . With sevin and adams, there is no egg withdrawal period.

I think human LICE look more like chicken MITES. Small black or red specks of bugs . . ..

Chicken lice are more like rice - - white and larger than mites.
Chicken lice do not like human hosts. MITEs will chow on any host. . .

Sure sounds like you might be dealing with mites. You will have to get real aggresive with treatment - - coop, nest box, perches, AND BIRDS. REPEAT application in 7 - 10 days and then REPEAT one more time 7 - 10 days. Then get on a prevative schedule of treatment for these little critters. If you don't repeat in the appropriate time window - - - You Will NOT break the cycle ! !

 

[ZooMummzy]

Dealing with mites right now...agh so frustrating! Just finished cleaning the coop, dusting with Sevin, now moving onto the birds. I have about 90 birds so this is going to be a long afternoon

I have heard that chicken lice will not live on people so I wouldn't be too concerned and also I use ivermectin but have never tossed the eggs. It is all a matter of preference of course, but both my doctor, vet and state extension office said there is no need to from a health standpoint. Ivermectrin is found in the medicine people get when they have worms. I just figure we are getting our yearly worming

 

[dawg53]

Quote:
Since you have alot of birds, you can use ivomec injectable 1% cattle ivermectin in their water...4cc per gallon of water. The mixture is the only water the birds get for 2 days. Repeat again in 14 days for lice/mites. The reason there's a withdrawal period for most wormers, except eprinex, is that it takes time for the wormer to go through the chickens system. It takes time to kill the worms, it takes time to expel the worms or be absorbed as protein and it takes time for the wormer to be expelled from the chickens system. Anyone who eats eggs within the 14 day withdrawal period can injest the wormer, however so slight, and possibly have a reaction. Remember, wormers are poisons designed to paralyze or kill worms. Also, there might be an accumulation factor involved til it's expelled. Withdrawal period for ivermectin pour on is 48 days for cattle slaughter. Fourteen days is a reasonable period for me to wait and eat the eggs. Yes, ivermectin is used in other countries to prevent 'river blindness.' Most wormers on the market are used in this country to get rid of internal parasites.(Ivermectin, wazine, fenbendazole and albendazole just to name a few.) When dealing with this stuff, I'll play it safe. What anyone else chooses to do is up to them.

 

[math ace]

Quote:
I am actually surprised that your state extension office would not have a problem with you selling eggs to the public without following some kind of a withdrawal period. I am "assuming" you are selling the eggs because you have 90 birds (and hopefully I did not make a mistake in assuming so

). It is scarry that they would not recognize the importance of avoiding an allergic reaction by a consumer . . . .