Mites or pecking at each other?

[mgoudy96]

Help! Just noticed this today and I keep a pretty good eye on my chickens. Does this look like mites/lice or like someone was pecking at her? She’s acting completely normal, eating and drinking well, and not itching/picking at all. One other chicken as a similar but less severe look. Some have some feather coming in or ones that looked partially pulled? If that makes sense. They’re only 7-8 weeks old so hard to tell.
I did go look in the coop last night and couldn’t find anything on them or on the roosting bars/in the coop.

 

[IvysAnimals]

It's doesn't look like molting so...Are they getting enough nutrients? ( Not to sound mean, it's just that some choose not to eat their food and would rather eat something else ) Do you see signs of them being sick or any predators around that might've hurt them? Mites, Lice, or other parasites could be the cause, you can get poultry dust to help them clean themselves and rid of ( hopefully all, but maybe most of ) the pests! .. Is there anything that could be stressful for them like predators or changing something around their home? It might be pecking as well or if you have any other aggressive poultry. Try giving them extra nutrients and a dust bath, that would be my first guess to help them. If it still continues, I would take them to a vet or try to give them a warm Dawn Dish Soap and Apple Cider Vinegar bath if you notice any bugs..Hope that might help a bit!

 

[Madhouse Pullet]

I am not saying it is but, red roost mites can cause that.
I've been battling it for almost a year - very stubborn and resilient creatures. But if they're roost mites, you'll see them in the cracks, holes, any ittie bittie crevice inside/outside the coop. Some are extremely small and give off a dark color but the adults are red and easily visible.

I hope you are able to find the cause. Stay uplifted!

 

[mgoudy96]

It's not molting so...Are they getting enough nutrients? ( Not to sound mean, it's just that some choose not to eat their food and would rather eat something else ) Do you see signs of them being sick or any predators around that might've hurt them? Mites, Lice, or other parasites could be the cause, you can get poultry dust to help them clean themselves and rid of ( hopefully all, but maybe most of ) the pests! .. Is there anything that could be stressful for them like predators or changing something around their home? It might be pecking as well or if you have any other aggressive poultry. Try giving them extra nutrients and a dust bath, that would be my first guess to help them. If it still continues, I would take them to a vet or try to give them a warm Dawn Dish Soap and Apple Cider Vinegar bath if you notice any bugs..Hope that might help a bit!

thank you for your reply! the one that is most effected is probably my best eater! they are on chick starter with bakers yeast added (mostly for the niacin for my goslings). I give mealworms as treats but only every few days and I just throw them out in their run. They aren't aggressive. They'll peck at each other on occasion but only seems to be to establish pecking order. They've been with each other since <1 week old. I started transitioning them outside about 2-3 weeks ago. They've been exclusively outside for about a week and a half now and seem happy but I could be wrong?
I'll add some vitamins to the water just to supplement additional. I did get the rooster booster pick no more in hopes that may help. I'll keep looking for bugs!

 

[mgoudy96]

I am not saying it is but, red roost mites can cause that.
I've been battling it for almost a year - very stubborn and resilient creatures. But if they're roost mites, you'll see them in the cracks, holes, any ittie bittie crevice inside/outside the coop. Some are extremely small and give off a dark color but the adults are red and easily visible.

I hope you are able to find the cause. Stay uplifted!

I was in the coop last night looking everywhere for them! I read that you can take a white piece of paper and run it only the roost bars and if you see blood then it is probably red mites? Not sure how accurate this is, but I didn't see anything. If you don't mind me asking, what have you been using to treat your mites?

 

[IvysAnimals]

thank you for your reply! the one that is most effected is probably my best eater! they are on chick starter with bakers yeast added (mostly for the niacin for my goslings). I give mealworms as treats but only every few days and I just throw them out in their run. They aren't aggressive. They'll peck at each other on occasion but only seems to be to establish pecking order. They've been with each other since <1 week old. I started transitioning them outside about 2-3 weeks ago. They've been exclusively outside for about a week and a half now and seem happy but I could be wrong?
I'll add some vitamins to the water just to supplement additional. I did get the rooster booster pick no more in hopes that may help. I'll keep looking for bugs!

Okay! If them see happy, then they probably are and enjoy being outside! The goslings will probably need a different feed to prevent them from not having the nutrients that is specialized for them. After 8 weeks, the chicks can start getting the adult feed so they're not getting too much of something their body doesn't need and might make them unhealthy... Hope that helps! They should probably be getting better after you give them a bunch of nutrient to help them grow feathers if it's not bugs...

 

[Madhouse Pullet]

I was in the coop last night looking everywhere for them! I read that you can take a white piece of paper and run it only the roost bars and if you see blood then it is probably red mites? Not sure how accurate this is, but I didn't see anything. If you don't mind me asking, what have you been using to treat your mites?

I havent heard the paper thing so I wouldn't know either. If you dont see any, it may not be the issue. Have you checked under the wing and in between feathers, or notice anything crawling on you after handling them? They can be tiny but visible.

What I've done is use water & dish soap and a good bug spray for a complete deep cleaning of the coop every week for a month to stop the egg cycle. DME in the bedding, everywhere in the coop you can get it, and on the chickens, in their dust bath.
Then regularly keeping up every couple months with the same process is very important which was my biggest lesson. I have not tried the water bath since they recovered after winter but, that's when I had relaxed too much and wasn't staying on top of it so of course they came back - these bugs just exist everywhere in nature so, it's really just maintenance and prevention; when the issue stops, that doesn't mean they're gone for good.
The roost mites like warmer climates so you may/may not notice them during the winter months depending on where you live.
I cannot confirm this but, I do think the red roost mites from warmer climates are more resilient which is important to consider when using some products.
It may not be your issue but I can get a list of products I've used, if you like.

I hope you find answers soon