Mites and Lice Question

[Debbie292d]

You have purchased from them? I'm always so warey of purchasing unlabeled chemicals that have been split up from a larger amount... If this treats 30-50, I wouldn't even need that much! This would laste awhile! I have 8 hens thanks for taking the time to help me!

I'd just use the Permethrin/garden powder. I've never heard anyone say that didn't work. Repeat in 10 days. It's a lot cheaper. I've seen a few people say to treat the chickens, they put some in an old sock and pat it on their chicken, especially under the wings and their butt. Be sure not to let it get airborne so they don't breath it in. Same with DE. DE is a prevention though, Permethrin is for when they got 'em.

 

[ecmetz]

I'd just use the Permethrin/garden powder. I've never heard anyone say that didn't work. Repeat in 10 days. It's a lot cheaper. I've seen a few people say to treat the chickens, they put some in an old sock and pat it on their chicken, especially under the wings and their butt. Be sure not to let it get airborne so they don't breath it in. Same with DE. DE is a prevention though, Permethrin is for when they got 'em.

Do you have a brand that you like?

 

[Debbie292d]

Do you have a brand that you like?

It's the ingredient, permethrin, that matters, and it may come under several brand names, but here's one.

 

[ecmetz]

It's the ingredient, permethrin, that matters, and it may come under several brand names, but here's one.

Thank you!!!

 

[AMURPHY227]

@ecmetz
Came across this post while reading up on poultry lice.

How did your flock fair out?
Currently dealing with it myself and its so overwhelming

 

[Eggcessive]

Lice eggs hatch about every 10 days. Permethrin garden dust (prozap or gardstar brands) works well year round when used at least twice at 10 day intervals to treat live lice. It doesn’t kill lice eggs, so those need to hatch and the dust is applied again to get those. Also, the coop and nest box bedding should be cleaned out and removed away or burned. Treat the coop, nest boxes, and roosts with permethrin 10 spray. Then add new bedding. Martins or Gordons permethrin 10 concentrate is diluted (with 1 tsp water per quart or 4 tsp per gallon,) and used in a spray bottle or garden sprayer. It can be used (diluted) in hot weather around 15 ml per chicken to spray for lice. But the garden dust is preferred so chicken is not chilled by getting wet.

 

[AMURPHY227]

Lice eggs hatch about every 10 days. Permethrin garden dust (prozap or gardstar brands) works well year round when used at least twice at 10 day intervals to treat live lice. It doesn’t kill lice eggs, so those need to hatch and the dust is applied again to get those. Also, the coop and nest box bedding should be cleaned out and removed away or burned. Treat the coop, nest boxes, and roosts with permethrin 10 spray. Then add new bedding. Martins or Gordons permethrin 10 concentrate is diluted (with 1 tsp water per quart or 4 tsp per gallon,) and used in a spray bottle or garden sprayer. It can be used (diluted) in hot weather around 15 ml per chicken to spray for lice. But the garden dust is preferred so chicken is not chilled by getting wet.

Thank you. I've been using the dust since Friday. I put it in a sock and try to dust their vent, neck and under their wings. I stripped their coop, nesting boxes and roost bars this past weekend and torched nest boxes and roosts with a blow torch, then put the powder on everything and opened a whole new bag of bedding to use, and sprinkled FSL and permethrin powder on that too.
I was much overdue to clean and replace their dust bath, so I also did that and completely changed up what I use in it. I shoveled up some natural dirt, then added organic soil, FSL, permethrin powder, then wood ash - (I made a wood pile of fallen branches and tree limbs only, specifically to have untreated chemical free wood ash for them lol)... I sprinkled permethrin powder and FSL all around my run, raked it over and sprinkled some more (floor of my run is organic topsoil).

I don't feel like I'm making any progress. I wear black leggings outside for the sole purpose to see if bugs are on me, bc my girls will come hop on my lap when I sit in my chair outside with them. So far they have had them on me every day still. I already have permethrin 10% liquid on hand so I'm gonna mix some up tomorrow and spray everyone and re strip/clean the coop.

I lost one of my favorites last Friday after a super fast decline. Thats when I noticed all the tiny microscopic white bugs crawling all over her head and face- when I had her inside thinking I was treating vent gleet.
I didn't see them with my naked eye, and even on the clearest video I was able to get, they only look like white specks of salt moving around. Assuming those were freshly hatched nits.

I check my girls weekly, especially the ones who have had dirty vents. A couple of them are missing some vent feathers, which is another reason I checked them often- but since I never saw bugs or white bubbly eggs around the feathers, I assumed it was from feather picking because I have seen them do that too. Even changed their feed to an 18% to up their protein. And every picture of lice eggs I've ever seen has been very very misleading IMO, bc they were all zoomed in at high quality or under a microscope. So all this time I've been looking for something I can't even see with the naked eye. I've seen what looks like dirt and dust debris on some of their vent feathers and always just wipe it off with a wet warm rag or cut it. I've soaked a couple of them a couple times and cleaned it, but never saw bugs- on them or in the water.

This is the most defeated I've ever felt in the 6 years I've had chickens. I feel like I'm failing my babies

After last week and not knowing what the heck was on my girl, I found a cheap little microscope on Amazon that plugs into my phone. It came in last night so I went out and clipped some dusty vent feathers. This is what I found under the scope. The louse came out of some feathers so I got it on a piece of tape and it kind of smushed it upside down lol






Anyway, sorry for the long post, and for hijacking someone else's!
If you're the praying kind, just throw one up for me and my girls!