Mite Dusting

[NoSkiveez]

My chickens have mites/lice. It doesnt seem to be all of them that have it but they all nest, roost and live in the same area so Im sure they all have them. My one rooster is just crawling with them and I want the bugs gone. I bought some all natural spray on stuff that I used religiously for two or three weeks with no results. We bought a bag of Diatomaceous Earth and would like to dust the birds and coop down but want to make sure its safe to do first. The bag says harmful to human and domesticated animals. Eye irritant. Do not breathe dust. Do not contaminate food, feed or water. The active ingredients are Silicone Dioxide.

Is this the stuff that is okay for them?

Should I just dust the birds only or should I put it on the ground in the pen area too?

Will it kill my birds if I put it on the ground and they pick thru the dirt?

Is it okay to dust younger birds (9 week old silkies and 12 week old silkie)?

My birds are getting moved to a new pen very soon (by next week) and I am getting a shipment of day old chicks in mid March. Would it be okay for these chicks to be on the floor area of a pen that was dusted with DE?

 

[chicmom]

I know alot of people want to try and go natural with pests, but please consider buying some good old poultry dust at the farm store. You will need to totally clean out your coop, sprinkle that stuff everywhere, and put in new hay or whatever you use for bedding and flooring.

Also, you should hang your chickens upside down by their feet, and really dust them like crazy. Then repeat in around 10 days. D.E. is often used to help prevent the mites or lice, but it doesn't cut it for an infestation like you're describing.

Good luck to you!
Sharon

 

[theFox]

Quote:
That sounds like pool grade stuff and isn't likely the right DE.

You need Food Grade but since you don't seem to know what you have I suggest you get some Poultry Dust remember when using any of this stuff you need to wear protection to prevent inhaling it and in the case of the Poultry Dust from getting your skin covered with it.

DE is good as a preventive measure and will kill mature lice it isn't good at killing mites nor the eggs of either. In any event you have to do at least two treatments and the treatments includes both the birds and their living areas.

 

[NoSkiveez]

The bag says its good for crawling insects like ants and cockroaches. I almost got the dusting stuff at the feed store but they recommended the spray saying it was worth the price so I went ahead and got the spray thinking it would take care of the problem. Should I go ahead and take the DE Back and go back to the feed store?

 

[theFox]

You have to make certain it is food grade otherwise you are putting your birds at risk. The silica levels are too high in the non food grade DE.

I have no idea what you have and it sounds like you don't either.

 

[Bridget399]

My roo had a swollen face that I tried unsuccessfully to treat with antibiotics. The antibiotics worked for about a month and then the swelling returned. He prescribed Frontline spray, showed me where to spray it (under the wings, above the vent and behind the comb) and told me that mites occur in nature and that I will most likely always have them in my coop. He said the best thing to do is to keep them off the birds, and by using the spray on all the chickens every three months that I really shouldn't have any problems. The eggs are safe to eat, too!

He continued to tell me that his coop has concrete floors, cement block walls, and metal nesting boxes and that if he doesn't use the spray every three months, he will start to find mites on his chickens... My chickens are now mite free!

 

[LilRalphieRoosmama]

I thought mine had mites or lice a while ago (they didn't) so I asked Miss Prissy for advice. She suggested Sevin dust. Put the dust in the toe of pantyhose to make like a pom pom thing and then dust them well, especially under the wings. I did dust mine that way a couple of times until I realized there were no bugs. My birds had no ill effects from the dust.