Lice

[RedDrgn]

While picking the remnants of poo-goo off an exceptionally fluffy-butted wellie today who got a back-end bath, I found a louse.

I checked further and found a second one. So I grabbed another hen and checked her vent; several lice and some feathers with nits, too. Checked everyone else, and of course, all the same story.

Headed for TSC and got a pound of 5% Seven dust. Came home and dusted everyone. The roo loved that soooooo much, let me tell you.

I also cleaned the coop out top to bottom. So since this is the first flock pest we've ever had to deal with (only been doing this chicken thing for a year come July), I've got a few questions.

When do I give them their second dusting? I saw some sources say in one week and some in two. Will a third dusting be necessary? How persist are they?

I go through and check everyone beak to vent about once every other month. When I checked them last at the beginning of March, I didn't find anything. Do they get picked up, proliferate, and spread through the flock that fast or did I completely miss them when I last checked (they were pretty obvious now, but I only found them around their vents)?

Our run is 100 square feet of dust bowl, I clean out the coop once per week, and they have plenty of material to dust themselves in (and do so, every day, liberally...every time they shake their feathers out at any given time of day they make visible dust clouds). Yet, they still got lice. Anyway to prevent this from recurring or is it like fleas/ticks on dogs and cats, basically requiring constant vigilance/treatment?


~title edited by Staff~

 

[Mattemma]

I would dust each week.See what the egg hatching time would be and follow around that like we would for human head lice. Time for me to check mine!

 

[RedDrgn]

From what I read, eggs hatch in 7-10 days and lice take a bit longer than that to mature. So it looks like we'll be treating again in 7 days and possibly once thereafter since there could still be viable eggs lingering. How safe is Seven for the birds, though?

 

[aggiemae]

Do chicken lice look like people lice?

I am asking because we got two 3 week old chicks from the hippy feed store 9 days ago and for the past two or three days all the chickes seem to be doing a great deal of scratching and preening

I am not sure if its their age and this is normal grooming or if they are itchy.

All the chicks were born on or around 4/4. THANKS for any help.

 

[RedDrgn]

Do chicken lice look like people lice?

I am asking because we got two 3 week old chicks from the hippy feed store 9 days ago and for the past two or three days all the chickes seem to be doing a great deal of scratching and preening

I am not sure if its their age and this is normal grooming or if they are itchy.

All the chicks were born on or around 4/4. THANKS for any help.

Yes, they look very similar.

If you're concerned, take a look at them, especially their bellies just below their vents, under their wings, and around the back of their heads. To be honest, our chickens exhibited no symptoms. They were scratching, picking, or preening any more than they ever had in the past (when they didn't have lice, because I do routinely check). I only found them by accident because I was washing the back end of one of them to clean her up and found a louse on my glove. Then when I check her, found several more.

Fortunately, treatment has been pretty simple and it's working very well! I'm hoping to find no lice nor nits when I do another check this weekend. Last weekend there were very few remaining and only on two of the chickens.

 

[aggiemae]

I checked all six chickes and found no critters of any kind.

 

[Cryptkeeper]

Is there a Sevin dust made for use on chickens? All I can find is for use on veggies fruits lawns patios, etc, but can not find any that says its safe for use on chickens, or animals of any kind.

 

[dracoe19]

I have had a lice problem before from dishonest people selling me sick birds. The absolute best thing I have found to get rid of it is [FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Permethrin 10%[/FONT]. It is safe for indoor, outdoor, pets and live stock use. I diulte it and put it in a big 2 gallon sprayer then I spay the chickens head to toe (to their great dismay). After they dry off no more lice!! The lice die on contact and even kill the babies because the stuff stays on them a few days or more. I spray their coop and areas they hang out in and I only need to treat once and they are all gone for good. I always have some on hand in case any animal gets bugs.

 

[Cryptkeeper]

I have had a lice problem before from dishonest people selling me sick birds. The absolute best thing I have found to get rid of it is [FONT=arial, helvetica, sans-serif]Permethrin 10%[/FONT]. It is safe for indoor, outdoor, pets and live stock use. I diulte it and put it in a big 2 gallon sprayer then I spay the chickens head to toe (to their great dismay). After they dry off no more lice!! The lice die on contact and even kill the babies because the stuff stays on them a few days or more. I spray their coop and areas they hang out in and I only need to treat once and they are all gone for good. I always have some on hand in case any animal gets bugs.

Will this work for fleas too? I found a few on my dog this afternoon, and if Permethrin work on those buggers too, that would be great!

 

[dracoe19]

I'm assuming yes. Any bug it touches dies. The formula destroys the exoskeleton which essentally melts their "bones".