Little brown bugs on eggs - mites?

[mfhood]

Hello: We have little (tip of pencil size) brown insects crawling on one of the eggs we got today. Are they mites? What is the best way to get rid of them? And also, I don't know if it is psychological or not but I am all itchy since finding them.... do they bite humans? Thank you for any help you may have. Our books on raising chickens have not turned up anything.

Melissa

 

[hinkjc]

Chickens bugs don't typically stay on humans very long. I think it is more psychological.

Get some poultry dust from the feed store or TSC and dust them directly while they're roosted. Get under the wings, around the vent area and then everywhere in between.

Repeat in 2 weeks to break the egg cycle. You should also spread this around the coop (after a good cleaning) to get the numbers down.

 

[mfhood]

Thank you for your reply! I have also read about a spray for the coop and DE. What would you recommend for treating the coop after cleaning out the old straw, droppings and shavings from floor and nesting boxes? With winter coming quickly up here in VT, I want to make sure the coop is a safe, comfortable place for the ladies

This will be our 1st winter with chickens.

Thanks again,
Melissa