Mites in the coop and house

[Gungfu45]

Help!!
We have a more infestation in our home!! We’ve been trying to treat it for a month. We’ve used diatomaceous earth on all the bedding and mattresses, furniture and rugs, we used cedar oil and fogged the house and borax. They keep coming back. We’ve treated the coop 5 times and the birds 3 times with DE baths. I don’t know what else to do.

 

[nuthatched]

De is ineffective, as you've found, it simply doesn't work at all.
It's also dangerous for you and your birds to breathe so wear a mask when you clean your coop out.
You need to get some permrethrine poultry dust, completely clean out the coop, add new bedding and dust liberally. Permrethrine spray can also be used.
Once it's dealt with in the coop, it will likely leave the house.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Have you IDed the mites? Depending on the type, you may want to focus more on treating the birds (for NFM) vs the coop (roost mites).

I only have experience with NFM so the numbers/directions below may vary for roost mites.

For the coop - Clear out all the bedding. Burn it or otherwise bag up and dispose of it. Spray all surfaces (though I skipped the ceiling and top parts of wall though, because my coop peak is too tall) and crevices with liquid permethrin, including roost bars and nests. After it all dries, put in new bedding (I made sure to do my spraying early in the day, so it was mostly dry by late afternoon so the chickens could go back in).

For the chickens - Dust with permethrin powder or spray with liquid under belly, under wings, on back, around base of neck, around vent. If they're getting them on their heads (which you may see scabbing around comb or even eyes if it's bad), I'd carefully pat some around the base of the comb or just behind the head, but I wouldn't spray them directly in the face.

You'll need to treat again in around 7 to 10-ish days, as permethrin doesn't kill eggs. Recheck in another 7-10 days and if needed, treat again (but if it's a light or moderate infestation, that shouldn't be necessary).

* * *

If mite bites on you are an issue, or mites are getting into the house:

While treating the chickens I suggest keeping a dedicated set of chicken-only clothes, gloves, boots, etc. either in garage or shed, somewhere out of the house, and only use those around the chickens until treatment is done. Before going back into the house, check arms and legs carefully for any mites.

I also got some permethrin spray for use in the house, and sprayed all our muck boots, as well as hubby's office chair and the sofa.

Launder everything you've worn recently in hot water + hot dry. Launder your sheets as well. Even things like pillows... let them tumble in the dryer on high for at least 30 min. I even threw jackets in the dryer. If you happen to have rubbing alcohol, my pest guy suggested spraying the mattress as well. Rubbing alcohol has been further confirmed to work by other folks on BYC.

Continue vacuuming daily for a couple of days and make sure to empty out the vacuum/remove bags when done.

I know it seems like overkill but if you can get it under control with the chickens, the ones in the house should get eliminated/under control in the same time frame as long as you don't drag more in. Best of luck!

 

[Gungfu45]

Have you IDed the mites? Depending on the type, you may want to focus more on treating the birds (for NFM) vs the coop (roost mites).

I only have experience with NFM so the numbers/directions below may vary for roost mites.

For the coop - Clear out all the bedding. Burn it or otherwise bag up and dispose of it. Spray all surfaces (though I skipped the ceiling and top parts of wall though, because my coop peak is too tall) and crevices with liquid permethrin, including roost bars and nests. After it all dries, put in new bedding (I made sure to do my spraying early in the day, so it was mostly dry by late afternoon so the chickens could go back in).

For the chickens - Dust with permethrin powder or spray with liquid under belly, under wings, on back, around base of neck, around vent. If they're getting them on their heads (which you may see scabbing around comb or even eyes if it's bad), I'd carefully pat some around the base of the comb or just behind the head, but I wouldn't spray them directly in the face.

You'll need to treat again in around 7 to 10-ish days, as permethrin doesn't kill eggs. Recheck in another 7-10 days and if needed, treat again (but if it's a light or moderate infestation, that shouldn't be necessary).

* * *

If mite bites on you are an issue, or mites are getting into the house:

While treating the chickens I suggest keeping a dedicated set of chicken-only clothes, gloves, boots, etc. either in garage or shed, somewhere out of the house, and only use those around the chickens until treatment is done. Before going back into the house, check arms and legs carefully for any mites.

I also got some permethrin spray for use in the house, and sprayed all our muck boots, as well as hubby's office chair and the sofa.

Launder everything you've worn recently in hot water + hot dry. Launder your sheets as well. Even things like pillows... let them tumble in the dryer on high for at least 30 min. I even threw jackets in the dryer. If you happen to have rubbing alcohol, my pest guy suggested spraying the mattress as well. Rubbing alcohol has been further confirmed to work by other folks on BYC.

Continue vacuuming daily for a couple of days and make sure to empty out the vacuum/remove bags when done.

I know it seems like overkill but if you can get it under control with the chickens, the ones in the house should get eliminated/under control in the same time frame as long as you don't drag more in. Best of luck!

This is super helpful!!