little bugs too- which replent is best?

[aim30]

We don't have chickens yet, but we do have an experience with the northern fowl mite. Last year we had a small bird nest near our front door on our porch. They hatched out babies then a month later began to sit on another batch of eggs. Well my kids came inside one day saying they were itchy all over, especially on their heads. I got so scared because I really didn't want to deal with lice. I combed their hair and found little bugs, smaller than lice. I put them in alcohol and took them to the local cooperative ext. office where they were identified as the northern fowl mite. The best way to get rid of them was to get rid of the nest, he said. Since the nest had eggs in them the guy said it was illegal to take it down until the babies could fly. So we waited and waited and finally were able to take the nest down. There were thousands upon thousands of mites everywhere around the nest. It was so gross. We sprayed it down with highly concentrated bleach water which seemed to kill them. But we would still be getting mites crawling up our legs anytime we went outside. So we searched the yard and figured out that anywhere the birds landed there were mites. On my kids swingset, our pool filter, toys in the yard, fence posting. The guy at the office said that mites are attracted to carbon dioxide. So we literally went around breathing on things in our yard and the mites would all come out of their hiding places and we sprayed them with bleach water. After about 3-4 weeks we did not have a problem. This year the same birds have tried making nests around our yard and we have taken them all down. I will not go through that again. I really want to get chickens but I don't know if I could handle the mites again. Its easy to get them off of you, but how do you get them off your chickens? Wouldn't it be much harder?

Oh, btw mites can't live forever on you (they need a bird to survive), but they can crawl on you and make you itch. Taking a shower gets them off your body. We also used tea tree shampoo to help kill them.

 

[hummingberd]

what's food grade de?

I have a chicken that needs desperate help. She's being overrun by lice. She has a bit of paralysis in her legs, and the other chickens are attacking her on her back. They pecked most of the skin and meat off of her. She's in a large dog crate healing now, but I need to get rid of the lice. Anyone have an all natural or homeopathic remedy for chicken lice? Thanks so much for your help.

-K-

 

[tiffanyh]

I use Ivomec on my chickens and goats. I am a certified vet tech and we use it in the hospital for quite a few things also. I have never seen any side affects or problems from it in my usage. The DR's actually recommended it for me and it is one of the few worming meds you can use on pregnant goats. It takes care of internal and external parasites.