Mite dilemma - Ug! What to do? Pics

[Chickstarrs]

Ug! What now?!
So I just finished a treatment of Amprolium on my flock for coccidiosis. Spent a full day cleaning out the coop last week, washed it down with bleached water, fresh bedding and fresh clean sand on the poop boards. I have 15 rambunctious 2 1/2 week old chicks in my office that have seriously outgrown their brooder and need to be moved to the coop - NOW. I also have a momma hen with 4 new chicks in a nest box.

Yesterday while trying to finish off the coop brooder for the school age chicks, I saw these ugly, unwanted tiny specks crawling around the sides of the poop boards. The first picture was yesterday afternoon and the second picture is from this morning. I hope they are not 2 different types.

How do I deal with this now? Permethrin is not available in Canada. DE is not good for chicks and has mixed thoughts. I have read through so many posts here that all recomend things we can't get here. I am waiting for a call back from my vet, but they don't deal with a lot of chickens.

If I have to burn down the coop or tear it apart, that is the end of chicken keeping! We haven't even had it for a year and my husband worked to so hard building the darn thing.

I feel like ranting more, I am so frustrated, but will stop here. Thanks for any help.

 

[azygous]

It always stumps my brain when our law makers ban things that force us to choose alternatives that are twice as harmful. When you can't buy a biological insecticide, the alternative is a petroleum based alternative that is highly toxic - kerosene or motor oil. I am not suggesting you use these substances.

You need to see if you can find some garden product that has spinosad as the active ingredient. Spinodad is harmful to bees, but there are no bees inside chicken coops. It's a biological control agent that is highly effective against coop mites.

 

[Chickstarrs]

Has anyone tried using bleach to wash down the coop? I haven't heard that mentioned at all. Could it be a possibility?

 

[azygous]

Here's an old thread on the subject of using bleach for mites. https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/bleach-as-a-miticide.297684/

My concern would be residual chlorine fumes that could burn delicate respiratory tissues in your chickens.

 

[Chickstarrs]

The vet called me back and we had a good discussion. She said there used to be several different products available but not any more. She recommended Malathion for spraying down the coop. It is available at Canadian Tire. There is also has a permethrine spray I can get from the vet for about the same price. However the vet said from the research she read, the malathion is supposed to be more effective.

She said I could try the sulphur dust as it has shown good results. I haven't found anywhere to buy it at a decent price for a substantial volume. I will try the feed store tomorrow. Diatomaceous earth was also suggested and easily available.

Another possible chemical is tetrachlorvinphos. However, she thinks you can only use that if you are a certified pesticide user, which I am not.

So I will need to clean the coop. Spraying all the crevices is the best way to get it all out but I am worried that it won't dry properly since it is a wooden coop. I need to be able to clean, dry, spray and dry all in one day before the chickens go back in the coop for the night.

I have set up a larger brooder in the garage for the older chicks and use the other brooder for my momma and chicks while I deal with the mites.

I am tired just thinking about it all.

 

[azygous]

Malathion is moderately toxic to chickens. Permethrin is non-toxic to chickens and proven effective on coop mites. The choice seems like a no-brainer to me.

 

[Chickstarrs]

Malathion is moderately toxic to chickens. Permethrin is non-toxic to chickens and proven effective on coop mites. The choice seems like a no-brainer to me.

I wonder if the concentration of the permethrin is different in the one she has available?

 

[azygous]

Permethrin is a natural organic insecticide. You may need to reapply it in a couple weeks to get any mites that hatched from eggs since the first spraying. But it will kill the mites.

Spinosad is natural and organic, also. It works in much the same way as permethrin. My personal experience with spinosad is that it may be a bit more effective on the eggs than permethrin.

If your vet will supply you with permethrin, you are lucky. It will work on the mites.

 

[ColleenL]

The vet called me back and we had a good discussion. She said there used to be several different products available but not any more. She recommended Malathion for spraying down the coop. It is available at Canadian Tire. There is also has a permethrine spray I can get from the vet for about the same price. However the vet said from the research she read, the malathion is supposed to be more effective.

She said I could try the sulphur dust as it has shown good results. I haven't found anywhere to buy it at a decent price for a substantial volume. I will try the feed store tomorrow. Diatomaceous earth was also suggested and easily available.

Another possible chemical is tetrachlorvinphos. However, she thinks you can only use that if you are a certified pesticide user, which I am not.

So I will need to clean the coop. Spraying all the crevices is the best way to get it all out but I am worried that it won't dry properly since it is a wooden coop. I need to be able to clean, dry, spray and dry all in one day before the chickens go back in the coop for the night.

I have set up a larger brooder in the garage for the older chicks and use the other brooder for my momma and chicks while I deal with the mites.

I am tired just thinking about it all.

I recently visited an avian vet in Abbotsford, BC. She specializes in small flocks. I also have found my chickens have mites and she gave me Debantic 50wP.
here’s the dosage and method. You will need a small kitchen scale.
prepare 0.5% solution. Eg. 10 grams with one liter of clean water. Apply the spray to the vent area and under the wings. Be sure to thoroughly wet the feathers right to the vent. Apply 30 ml of the liquid to each bird. It is toxic stuff so wear a mask, gloves and cover your clothes.
for the coop mix it at 1% and spray the coop. 50 grams to 2.5 liters of water.
A different vet gave me a small quantity of BossPour On. I applied three drops to the skin at the back of the neck. I repeated the treatment one week later. This was a much easier solution but it’s not meant for use with chickens so I was uneasy using it.
I hope this helps.

 

[Chickstarrs]

I recently visited an avian vet in Abbotsford, BC. She specializes in small flocks. I also have found my chickens have mites and she gave me Debantic 50wP.
here’s the dosage and method. You will need a small kitchen scale.
prepare 0.5% solution. Eg. 10 grams with one liter of clean water. Apply the spray to the vent area and under the wings. Be sure to thoroughly wet the feathers right to the vent. Apply 30 ml of the liquid to each bird. It is toxic stuff so wear a mask, gloves and cover your clothes.
for the coop mix it at 1% and spray the coop. 50 grams to 2.5 liters of water.
A different vet gave me a small quantity of BossPour On. I applied three drops to the skin at the back of the neck. I repeated the treatment one week later. This was a much easier solution but it’s not meant for use with chickens so I was uneasy using it.
I hope this helps.

Thank you for this information. It is more than I got from my vet. At the moment, the malathion seems to have worked in the coop and the garlic water for the chickens. I am also using ashes, DE and suphur in the dust baths and coop. I will keep your info handy if I have another outbreak (hopefully I won't need it )