Mite infestation in bathroom, how to eradicate and how to treat chickens

[Maine_chic]

Hi there! I'm a new member although my husband joined while we were awaiting our chicks and loves it . We have nine nine-week old chickens. Their brooder area was in our stand up shower of our bathroom up until a week ago when we transitioned them to their outdoor coop. Today I went into the bathroom to finish picking up the dust, etc mess that they made and noticed little beige creatures EVERYWHERE. BILLIONS of them....seriously everywhere in that bathroom!!! I freaked out and called My Pet Chicken who, as always, were extremely helpful and told me that they are avian mites. We live in the forest in Maine and have many wild birds, including a large flock of wild turkeys that frequent our yard...so apparently mites and/or eggs made their way onto us, then onto the chickens in our house. Regardless of how on Earth this happened, what's done is done....and now I need to figure out two things ASAP:

1. How do I make sure we dont get an issue with a mite infestation in our entire home (ie not just the bathroom!). How do I get rid of them?
2. What is the best course of action to treat my birds? Until the mites are controlled, how do I prevent any mites from coming in my house?? Strip at the door and throw clothes in the washer??

Things I already have taken into account are:
- I believe bird mites are species specific to birds and dont pose an major risk of home infestation...without a bird to feed on, they will die. (I would appreciate any confirmation to this that you can provide!!)
-I know diatomaceous earth can be used as a preventative and will begin to do so immediately. However, I believe that it may not be strong enough to treat an infestation.
Please Note: I have NOT seen ANY evidence of mites on my birds that I'm aware of...but I'm a first time Chicken Mom!.....so I'm not sure if whats going on in the coop is an "infestation".

Things I've Already Tried in the Bathroom (dont laugh:0):
-I vacuumed up the visible mites
-I bleached the crap out of any possible surface
-I sprayed Lysol (for good measure)
-I'm currently ignoring the fact that they are on surfaces that CAN NOT be sprayed....such as our toothbrushes. Yeah. Ugh.
-I resorted to spraying a good amount of DEET bug spray on the heavily infested areas.

One last note--we have young children (not present when Mommy attacked the bathroom with Lysol, bleach and DEET) and our girls are far from laying so going organic, as we almost always choose, isn't super-critical here. However, we do handle the chickens frequently so anything non-organic I use on them will need to be safe for humans to handle them afterwards.

THANK YOU for reading this and for ANY advice based on your experience that you may have!!!!

 

[Ginmary]

You can simply soak the toothbrushes in bleach water for about 5 to 10 minutes, then rinse, until you can replace them. The prevailing opinion of many on the threads on this site discount the effectiveness of DE . I will bet that the more expert folks are going to suggest pyrethrin. If you search the forums for mites there will be many instructions on how to use it best. It is a natural insecticide but also comes in a synthetic form. Good luck! (I believe it can also be used on the chickens)

 

[coach723]

I think you have probably solved the problem in the bathroom. They need the birds to survive. A permethrin product is most commonly used. It comes in powder or spray. You need to treat the birds and the coop. Some mites live in the coop and only come out at night to feed on the birds, so check them after dark. This link may be helpful:
https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/
Here are some common products, The liquid works best in the coop to get in the nooks and crannies, you can use either on the chickens as well, directions for mixing the liquid are on the label, some products come ready to spray.

 

[DellaMyDarling]

Unfortunately, I throw organic to the wind in these scenarios. I have one hen suffering terribly. It took me a long time to figure out the problem. All my older flock has them now and I'm scared the babies will get them. I began an attack with Permethrin (spelling?)
Uck...so icky. I feel for you!

They can be very elusive on the birds themselves. I think I'd treat the birds regardless. My older hen is really suffering health wise now, so I imagine chicks will have an even harder time. The mites make them anemic, besides terribly uncomfortable.

 

[Maine_chic]

Ginmary, Coach723 and DellaMyDarling THANK YOU very much for the advice given. I think this is being caught at the outset fortunately and I will use permethrin...we are big fans of it here for tick control!! Im glad to know there are livestock specific ones on the market. I have scrubbed my bathroom...shut the door...and hope for the best. I will post an update in the coming days. I appreciate any and all advice based on what has worked for you so, again, thank you!!!

 

[Maine_chic]

You can simply soak the toothbrushes in bleach water for about 5 to 10 minutes, then rinse, until you can replace them. The prevailing opinion of many on the threads on this site discount the effectiveness of DE . I will bet that the more expert folks are going to suggest pyrethrin. If you search the forums for mites there will be many instructions on how to use it best. It is a natural insecticide but also comes in a synthetic form. Good luck! (I believe it can also be used on the chickens)

Thank you Ginmary, I agree Permethrin will be the way to go!! Thanks so much!

 

[Maine_chic]

I think you have probably solved the problem in the bathroom. They need the birds to survive. A permethrin product is most commonly used. It comes in powder or spray. You need to treat the birds and the coop. Some mites live in the coop and only come out at night to feed on the birds, so check them after dark. This link may be helpful:
https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/
Here are some common products, The liquid works best in the coop to get in the nooks and crannies, you can use either on the chickens as well, directions for mixing the liquid are on the label, some products come ready to spray.
View attachment 1820153
View attachment 1820154

Thank you greatly, this is super helpful!!! I will order some of this, I cant find it near me. I've heard that I can add the powder to a D. Earth and wood ash dust bath and I am going to give it a try! Thanks so much for the advice!

 

[Maine_chic]

Unfortunately, I throw organic to the wind in these scenarios. I have one hen suffering terribly. It took me a long time to figure out the problem. All my older flock has them now and I'm scared the babies will get them. I began an attack with Permethrin (spelling?)
Uck...so icky. I feel for you!

They can be very elusive on the birds themselves. I think I'd treat the birds regardless. My older hen is really suffering health wise now, so I imagine chicks will have an even harder time. The mites make them anemic, besides terribly uncomfortable.

Thank you!!

 

[Kiki]

Make PERMETHRIN
Your new best friend. Treat everything/one weekly for at least 3 weeks.

Martin's PERMETHRIN spray

• Kiki
• Mar 22, 2018
• 6
• flies lice mites permethrin

IMG_20180322_102709

• Kiki
• Mar 22, 2018

Permethrin Concentrate, Martin's on Left - Durvet on right

• Kiki
• Jul 28, 2018
• 2

 

[Maine_chic]

Make PERMETHRIN
Your new best friend. Treat everything/one weekly for at least 3 weeks.

Martin's PERMETHRIN spray

• Kiki
• Mar 22, 2018
• 6
• flies lice mites permethrin

IMG_20180322_102709

• Kiki
• Mar 22, 2018

Permethrin Concentrate, Martin's on Left - Durvet on right

• Kiki
• Jul 28, 2018
• 2

TY so much!!!! I have some permethrin on hand that we dilute and use in a sprayer around our property for ticks...it is Martin's Permethrin SFR 36.8% Can I use this if I dilute it, because I notice the ones for poultry are 10%? If not, Ill order some 10% right away...or try to find it local (which may be tricky around here, so if anyone knows where to find it locally, let me know! Thanks again for your help...I may have follow up questions as I get familiar with how to deal with this...