Mites infestation on 9 year old rooster.

[micstrachan]

So sorry about your rooster. He is GORGEOUS! You have already received some great advice.

 

[donnaboydjones]

I'm sorry your rooster is not well.

In the photo, the hen next to him also has Scaly Leg Mites (SLM).

O.K. You have a couple of things going on here, I think.

You have Scaly Leg Mites and you have Mites on the body. This really is 2 separate issues.

SLM for the most part live under the scales of the legs. They cannot be treated with herbs, sprays, etc. imho. You will need to clean the legs, dry, then apply some type of oil - this smothers them. You can use vaseline, A+D ointment, coconut oil, Nu Stock, castor oil...you see a theme here, something thick and oily. Work your oil into and up under the scales.

For the body mites, since you saw these crawling all over him, are they lice or mites? See the link below to help i.d. them. I agree with @Texas Kiki use a permethrin based poultry dust or spray to treat the mites (lice) on the body. If you have the Elector PSP, that is supposed to be very effective on treating external parasites in poultry. (the ones you can see crawling on the body, not SLM)

All of your chickens need to be treated as well. If one has an infestation (your rooster does, he sleeps with the hens right, if he has them, they have them.

Your housing needs to be cleaned out, bedding bagged and thrown away or burned. Spray your housing with the Elector PSP or Permethrin. Don't forget roosting bars and nesting boxes.

You mention he has some balance issues. If you saw mites in his ears, those can cause infection. I would look in the ears to makes sure there's no pus. Hopefully, once you get him and the hens treated and things under control, this will help his balance.

I would give him extra protein along with the vitamins you posted. He may benefit from a little beef liver a few times a week as well.

Hope he gets better soon.
https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/

Thank you and I appreciate your reply.
Yes, I have mites and scaly leg mites going on.
We been treating the chickens and also taking Vaseline to the legs/feet and toes, and cleaning the coop out every 3 weeks. I think my problem lays in the fact that do to our cold, wet area, I have yet had the chicken coop pressure washed and treated .

It seems I have been doing a half ass job, but expecting stellar results. In the past I was able to treat the chickens and just cleaning the coop out was substantial enough, but I guess the infestation because it was winter (we are still in the 60's) got way out of hand and then my last two jaw surgeries January and last month haven't helped my flock.

I feel extremely responsible for the hell they have all endured . I have my rooster in the house in a dog kennel with fresh tuna fish, salmon and yogurt to eat and braggs apple cider vinegar with some probiotics, and vitamins in his water.

Tomorrow was the next day to re-treat all the flock, but after treating them , I am going to spray down the whole inside/outside of the chicken coop. I am not sure it will dry in time for them to go in, but at this point it's the last of my worries.

Since I have used the ivermectin of 1% on them, do you perfect or recommend over it the Permethrin? Do you just apply it to the hens neck/under wing/flute and spray in the coop?

 

[donnaboydjones]

For the coop spray
Get a spray bottle that is clean and put in 2 cups of water, 1 cup of cooking oil (I used olive oil), and a tablespoon of safe dish soap and then spray the coop after you completely clean it.

For the bird spray
Get a clean 16 oz spray bottle and put in 20 cloves of peeled and smashed garlic, 45 drops of eucalyptus essential oil, 30 drops of lavender essential oil, 30 drops of peppermint, 2 tablespoons of white vinegar, a handful of lemon balm leaves and then fill 3/4 the way full with water then spray the birds under the wings, on the preening gland, around the vent, and near the keel is the most important places to focus is spraying. And repeat once the next week

Thank you! I made an olive oil, water, garlic, lavender oil and fresh rosemary treatment for the coop 2 weeks ago, but I will be trying your blend tomorrow. And I didn't spray the chickens with it, but will do that too tomorrow.

 

[Morrigan]

I've had good luck with using permethrin to control lice, but I've read that some people have experienced mite outbreaks that appear resistant to it. I've also used Elector to deal with a severe flea infestation in my back yard and it worked great, but have not tried it with chickens parasites yet.

What were your helpers using on your rooster when they said they were treating him? If it was a permethrin-based product and you trust that they were actually using it correctly, I would try the Elector.

Whatever you use, I second the notion of giving the coop a thorough clean out. Make sure you get the spray in every nook and cranny.

Good luck with everything.

 

[donnaboydjones]

I'm sorry your rooster is not well.

In the photo, the hen next to him also has Scaly Leg Mites (SLM).

O.K. You have a couple of things going on here, I think.

You have Scaly Leg Mites and you have Mites on the body. This really is 2 separate issues.

SLM for the most part live under the scales of the legs. They cannot be treated with herbs, sprays, etc. imho. You will need to clean the legs, dry, then apply some type of oil - this smothers them. You can use vaseline, A+D ointment, coconut oil, Nu Stock, castor oil...you see a theme here, something thick and oily. Work your oil into and up under the scales.

For the body mites, since you saw these crawling all over him, are they lice or mites? See the link below to help i.d. them. I agree with @Texas Kiki use a permethrin based poultry dust or spray to treat the mites (lice) on the body. If you have the Elector PSP, that is supposed to be very effective on treating external parasites in poultry. (the ones you can see crawling on the body, not SLM)

All of your chickens need to be treated as well. If one has an infestation (your rooster does, he sleeps with the hens right, if he has them, they have them.

Your housing needs to be cleaned out, bedding bagged and thrown away or burned. Spray your housing with the Elector PSP or Permethrin. Don't forget roosting bars and nesting boxes.

You mention he has some balance issues. If you saw mites in his ears, those can cause infection. I would look in the ears to makes sure there's no pus. Hopefully, once you get him and the hens treated and things under control, this will help his balance.

I would give him extra protein along with the vitamins you posted. He may benefit from a little beef liver a few times a week as well.

Hope he gets better soon.
https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/

No pus in the ears. That was one of the first things I looked at 2 weeks ago was the insides of his ears to see what was causing his equilibrium to be off, only to see those damned mites.

When you say beef liver, do I do anything to it? prepare it in any way or just give it to him as is?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you and I appreciate your reply.
Yes, I have mites and scaly leg mites going on.
We been treating the chickens and also taking Vaseline to the legs/feet and toes, and cleaning the coop out every 3 weeks. I think my problem lays in the fact that do to our cold, wet area, I have yet had the chicken coop pressure washed and treated .

It seems I have been doing a half ass job, but expecting stellar results. In the past I was able to treat the chickens and just cleaning the coop out was substantial enough, but I guess the infestation because it was winter (we are still in the 60's) got way out of hand and then my last two jaw surgeries January and last month haven't helped my flock.

I feel extremely responsible for the hell they have all endured . I have my rooster in the house in a dog kennel with fresh tuna fish, salmon and yogurt to eat and braggs apple cider vinegar with some probiotics, and vitamins in his water.

Tomorrow was the next day to re-treat all the flock, but after treating them , I am going to spray down the whole inside/outside of the chicken coop. I am not sure it will dry in time for them to go in, but at this point it's the last of my worries.

Since I have used the ivermectin of 1% on them, do you perfect or recommend over it the Permethrin? Do you just apply it to the hens neck/under wing/flute and spray in the coop?

I'm so sorry you are having to deal with all this.
Your weather does play a role for sure. Quite a few people have been having problems!

How long have you been using the Ivermectin? What dosage? How is it applied?

You can use the Permethrin as well, yes - under the wing, behind the neck and above the vent.

After you spray the inside of your coop, try to let it dry, but after several hours and it's not drying out like you think it should, can you set up a fan to help circulate air? I know it absolutely stinks when it's wet weather and things don't dry out.

Can I come eat with your rooster!? Fresh tuna and Salmon, yum! He is a beautiful boy! 9 years is getting on up there and he looks good.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

You can give him the beef liver raw or cooked, your choice.

 

[donnaboydjones]

I've had good luck with using permethrin to control lice, but I've read that some people have experienced mite outbreaks that appear resistant to it. I've also used Elector to deal with a severe flea infestation in my back yard and it worked great, but have not tried it with chickens parasites yet.

What were your helpers using on your rooster when they said they were treating him? If it was a permethrin-based product and you trust that they were actually using it correctly, I would try the Elector.

Whatever you use, I second the notion of giving the coop a thorough clean out. Make sure you get the spray in every nook and cranny.

Good luck with everything.

They were applying a drop on the back of the neck feathers of the 1% ivermectin and coating the legs/feet with Vaseline. That's why I am wondering if the flock was receiving enough of the dosage. I am going to say no, only because Henry was still bad this afternoon.

You're right, I am going to need to clean that coop like nobodies business and spray the mess out of it. The spraying of the coop is what's been lacking. The coop gets cleaning out every three weeks, but I haven't had the inside sprayed since its still been chilly and I was afraid of it not drying, but I seriously don't have an option at this point. The flock is seriously suffering.

 

[Morrigan]

Can I come eat with your rooster!? Fresh tuna and Salmon, yum! He is a beautiful boy! 9 years is getting on up there and he looks good.

He sure is beautiful! I hope the good eats help him regain his mojo.

 

[donnaboydjones]

You can give him the beef liver raw or cooked, your choice.

Thank you! I haven't ever done it before , so I apologize for the stupid question.