Mites and molting question....

[MCArt20]

I have had an awe full time trying to get rid of mites- for like a year and a half. I have tried everything, and nothing has worked. I separate their feathers down their back, and can always see some tiny black dots. I hadn't checked them for a month or so, work got crazy, etc., and so today, i checked them over, I knew they were molting, two of them anyway, but I couldn't see any mites. I know some mites can't be seen with the naked eye, so it's possible they are still there.....their legs looked great- white and slick, (a month ago there were a few raise scales near their "ankles," so I treated them with Dr. BRonners eucalyptus all natural cleaner, (washed them) and mixed in some touch of mink shampoo which has an insect repellent, I believe cedar oil, which I did again today just in case it is working.

Is it common for mites to leave during a molt? Or could they really be going away? Their vents were a little pink- ish, I just don't know what to think.
Everything else looks good, bright red combs, etc. I could stuff a pillow with the feathers in the yard though, from the molt, ha ha.
Thanks!!

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

How are you treating for the mites?

 

[MCArt20]

As I mentioned, I have tried everything, and nothing has worked. The last thing I did @a month ago was the shampoo w/ cedar oil and eucalyptus, and 7 spray. Before that, regular applications of ivermectin- (pour on) applied 3 days after initial application and then monthly, stopped @September- still mites. (Even after a couple double doses) I dusted them with sulfur powder every few days for a while in the summer, then weekly, and laced their food with it. I tried many things last year, de, eprinex, Adams flea and tick spray, tea tree oil, (many oils including been oil) frontline pour on, which seemed to work at first, but not again, sulfur sprays, 7 dust. I cleaned and sprayed the coop with onslaught, 7 spray, sulfur spray, and when I read that sometimes you can’t get rid of them, I pretty much gave up and was thinking of not keeping chickens any more. Last month I used the touch of mink shampoo, with cedar oil and eucalyptus oil, and 7 spray. Yesterday I repeated that.

 

[rebrascora]

First you need to understand the different types of mites and lice and how to identify them. It sounds like you have had a bit of scaly leg mite, but they usually limit themselves to the scaly areas and are not really visible to the naked eye.
If you are seeing parasites on the chickens' bodies during the day, then those are usually lice and they are pale brown and move quite quickly.... kind of scuttle around. They live on the chickens' skin and lay their eggs at the bottom of the feather shafts in grey clumps. They grey clumps of eggs on feather shafts around the vent and under the wings are usually the tell tale sign you have a problem.
Red mites live and breed in the cracks and crevices of the coop and crawl onto the chickens at night when they are roosting to suck their blood..... hence becoming red. They are tiny but can be seen with the naked eye and move relatively slowly compared to lice.
I'm really not sure what the black dots are that you are describing, maybe pin feathers coming through.
If you are treating for lice and mites the coop needs clearing out and treating too and you need to retreat at least once more a week to 10 days after the first treatment to kill eggs that have subsequently hatched out. If you are not treating with an effective product, then you will not kill them. Some products are useful more as a preventative and others are better at hitting a major infestation. It also really helps to have a suitable dust bathing area where the chickens can keep some of these parasites down to an acceptable level themselves. A mixture of soil and compost and wood ash works well but has to be dry, so if you have a wet climate it needs to be in a covered well drained area.

I do think that there may a good reason why chickens moult at this time of year and I think it could well be to shed themselves of those louse egg infested feather shafts and make it hard for lice to thrive on them in the cooler weather when they have less feather covering. It seems crazy that they lose their feathers as the weather gets colder, but this would make sense of it.
Try not to handle your girls too much when they are moulting. It makes them very uncomfortable and you can damage the emerging pin feathers.

I hope that sheds a little more light on the matter, but it really would help if you are able to document the products you have used, when and at what interval of retreatment, so that we have an idea of why you have struggled to get the problem under control.

Best wishes

Barbara

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

@MCArt20 could the black dots be dirt? I thought my chickens had mites because I saw one little tiny thing crawling on an egg. So, I got permethrin dust and dusted them in the evening - I pulled them out of the coop and dusted them. When I checked, I didn’t see anything on their bare areas (which you would think you would since it was night). Then 7 days later, I did it again- dusted them with permethrin. This time during the day so that I could get a real good look. I saw no indications of mites or lice. What I did see was little specks of dirt from the dirt bath I provided them.
I also sprayed the coop with poultry protector and an oil soap mixture. I didn’t want to spray the chickens as I was afraid of them being cold and wet. However, from other threads and what I’ve read, it is a tiny bit so it wouldn’t have harmed them. In the spring, I will get the spray to have on hand. I also dusted areas of the coop (corners, the roost, etc) and then sprayed the areas that I couldn’t get with dust. I wiped the roosts and such before spraying or dusting and saw no indications of mites. Do you see mites when you wipe the coop down?
Maybe (not sure how you applied) - just maybe you tried too many things and didn’t give one product a good run?
Barbara posted a very good response about being very proactive regarding these pests.
I’m new to all of this and have no real experience, but the permethrin comes highly recommended. If you haven’t used it yet and have tried all other options, maybe give it a try?

 

[MCArt20]

Thank- you for the info- I don't have a written record of exact products I have tried, but my chickens definitely have/had northern foul mites- which my understanding is typically live on the bird, not the coop.Vet friend id'd them.......and I know they come from crows and sparrows, which we have a lot of, they get into their feed. They have dust bath areas. Early on, (couple years ago) I found a couple red mites on the wall of the coop - teated with poultry dust, and 7. I haven't seen red mites in a long time, (I check) but one never knows.....One chicken last fall did have lice, but they are fairly obvious to see, and easier to get rid of. The flea and tick spray helped with that quickly. The ones I saw were white. Permethrin- yes tried that many times, I read that it is not that effective, and I have read articles that mites become immune to things quickly, and currently in the NW, (Oregon) where I live, the ivermectin is apparently no longer very effective against northern foul mites, but I think it is effective on leg mites, as it has worked on my chickens. All the treatments I have used I did weekly for a few weeks, and sometimes every three day intervals for egg hatches, etc. including as mentioned, thoroughly cleaning the coop and washing down roost bars, etc. which is a huge pain because I use sand and sand is heavy. From what I have read, location is a large factor in parasite issues, as is treatment. One vet I called did say that once mites get a strong hold in an area, (especially the NF mites) you cannot get rid of them, and it becomes a matter of managing the mites, not getting rid of. I don't want to manage them though. And I know that handling the molting birds- they do not like it, but can't be any more uncomfortable than mites, so in treating for and checking for mites, I sometimes need to handle them. I am in process of building a new coop, relocating it, and maybe if they are mostly mite free now, and I treat the environment with onslaught and maybe 7 spray, and get them moved In, maybe I can keep other wild birds out, and thus, mites out. Fingers crossed.

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

Ugh. Sounds like a tough battle. I have heard that pests can get resistant to certain treatments. I’m hoping the best for ya!

 

[MCArt20]

Thank-you! Any other thoughts on whether mites vacate during molting or any ideas or combination of things that have worked for people - welcome!!!

 

[casportpony]

Thank-you! Any other thoughts on whether mites vacate during molting or any ideas or combination of things that have worked for people - welcome!!!

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