Michigan Thread - all are welcome!

[SillyChicken]

Morning gang and welcome to the new arrivals!

I have a bit of a chicken emergency - I think they were brought in by birds I found nesting in my coop rafter........ LICE! I've never had to deal with them before. So now I have to figure out what to do. Anyone else have to deal with it? I have one hen that was infested really bad... and I assume the others are as well. I actually gave her a bath and use a natural flea & tick spray on her, it killed them thank goodness. She's in a kennel in the garage today. I have a second coop, so I think I will treat all the birds and move them to the other coop, then bomb the main coop. Will 7 work on killing the lice. I'm so grossed out..

 

[aart]

Anyone else have to deal with it?

Yep-Ugh.
I use Gordons 10 permethrin in this sprayer shown below.
Gotta get it onto the their skin, butts, under wings, around necks and on belly, can be a drippy mess.
Or you could use permethrin dust, still got to get it on the skin in all those places.
Retreat after 7 to 10 days...maybe even do 3 rounds.
Did you see egg cases at the feather bases?

 

[Folly's place]

I've had way more issues with mites rather than lice, and it's all thanks to those house wrens invading the coop, and generally hanging around with the chickens. Rotten little birds!!!
I also use Gordons permethrin spray concentrate, very inexpensive at TSC.
Permethrin dust works fine too, but is much more expensive and harder to work with.
Wear at least a N95 face mask, and protective clothing, whatever you use!
Mary

 

[Sue Gremlin]

they're not hard to treat! Don't panic.

 

[Folly's place]

I do think that lice are easier to manage than mites...
Mary

 

[aart]

I do think that lice are easier to manage than mites...
Mary

I've never had mites(knock wood) but I would think so for sure...still a PITA!

 

[RaZ]

A customer came in yesterday, looking for treatment for lice...on his snake!
I had no idea how to help him. So many treatments for so many different animals.

Here, we are focused on poultry. Please share the treatments that have worked in caring for your feathered flock. Thank you.

 

[gladahmae]

I use the “shake n bake” method. Put sevin in an empty feed bag, chicken goes in up to it’s neck, and shake. Repeat in 7-10 days. Clean the whole coop. Replace with minimal shavings, dust the nest boxes. Re-clean after the 2nd treatment.

I usually take this opportunity to also worm all of my birds.

 

[RaZ]

I use the “shake n bake” method.
I usually take this opportunity to also worm all of my birds.

OK, I get the shake-n-bake concept. When something is present.
What I don't fully understand is the worming thing. Do you worm as a preventative? Or when you actually find worms?

Forgive my ignorance here. I've never wormed before. I do check the poo under a microscope and I haven't found any parasites that passed through. Am I missing something that I should be doing "just in case"? Perhaps I've been very lucky, regarding parasites.

 

[Sue Gremlin]

OK, I get the shake-n-bake concept. When something is present.
What I don't fully understand is the worming thing. Do you worm as a preventative? Or when you actually find worms?

Forgive my ignorance here. I've never wormed before. I do check the poo under a microscope and I haven't found any parasites that passed through. Am I missing something that I should be doing "just in case"? Perhaps I've been very lucky, regarding parasites.

I wouldn't treat as a preventative, only if I know they have worms and what kind they have, but I too have the luxury of being able to check them whenever I want. How do you prepare the poo you look at under a scope?
For what it's worth, I am a parasitologist, and I rarely treat my chickens for parasites. They often do have worms and I only treat them when I see roundworm eggs. Everyone has their thing, a lot of people treat regularly, and that's not wrong to do.