Mites - PLEASE help!!!!! Can I use a bug bomb in the coop to get rid of them??

[blucoondawg]

Would DE work. I use that stuff for everything and it seems to help everything. I received a goat that was infested with Lice. I spread powder all over him. Then the chicks started cleaning him of the DE and the lice I guess because they always pecked on him. The lice was gone pretty quick.

the op indicated use of DE has been ineffective which seems to be a common trend in DE comments, nobody ever has any proof that DE benefits anything and most DE users claim that it is more preventive and is ineffective as a treatment for infestations, I personally don't believe it is a preventive either or all the users wouldn't get infestations to start with.

One thing that did catch my interest lately is the use of predatory mites which kill the other mites however I haven't found research as to whether its effective on chicken mites and I doubt they kill the lice

 

[K9Dave]

Well DE is used here heavily in Phoenix to kill Scorpions and other bugs. Seems to work fine for me. For rid of the lice and I have no other big problems. I have fed it to my dogs for years and it seems to control ticks and fleas.

 

[blucoondawg]

How does feeding it to dogs prevent ticks or fleas? I have heard of feeding it to combat intestinal worms, again with no real proof that it works but don't see how feeding it effects external parasites.

Supposedly it works by damaging the exoskeleton of insects, for some maybe it does like scorpions, I also read people have luck with it killing ant colonies quickly, but I never have read anyone having luck killing off chicken parasites though for some reason a lot of people believe it works. When I do see where DE supposedly worked it has been mixed with seven dust or pro zap which are pesticides and most likely the component of the mix that is actually working.

 

[K9Dave]

"Food grade diatomaceous earth is OMRI (Organic Material Review Institute) listed, does not poison our pets, and simply dehydrates fleas and ticks that come in contact with it within 72 hours. Food grade diatomaceous earth can be sprinkled in your home carpeting, on dogs, cats, and other animals, applied in their bedding, and in all dry outdoor areas that fleas congregate. If your pet currently has fleas, it is essential to feed food grade diatomaceous earth daily at double the recommended daily dose to address the tapeworms your dog, cat, ferret, or other pet will have from ingesting fleas."

 

[blucoondawg]

Where does that quote come from?

 

[canesisters]

Get a dust mask, a pair of dishwashing gloves, and a bag of 5% seven dust. Use 3/4 of the bag to DUST the inside of your coop while the birds are outside. Dust every single corner and crack. Toss a handfull onto the corners and use an old broom to work it into the cracks. A wisk broom works great for getting it in around the edges of roosts and nest boxes. Before you head to the house to take a LONG shower, sprinkle the bedding and just let it sit (the girls will mix it in when they come in to roost.) Then that evening, when they are all settled on the roost, put the rest of the seven in an old sock and shake it over each chicken getting a nice layer of dust on each one (still got that dust mask???). Lastly, get those gloves out again and rub a handfull on each one's chest and butt. By morning, no more mites. I've used it on tiny chicks with not a single problem.

 

[RobinFarmGirl]

Thanks for all the suggestions and wonderful information!

 

[tarbios2]

Going back to a previous question, do you have to withhold eggs after using the 5% Sevin Dust? And if so, for how long?

 

[chickladies]

I would try Diatomacious. I don't see why it wouldn't work, it works for so many other things and seems to be the safest choice.

 

[K9Dave]

I would try Diatomacious. I don't see why it wouldn't work, it works for so many other things and seems to be the safest choice.

I use DE too. Mix it in the feed, put a layer down before my bedding in the coop, sprinkle it in the run etc. recently I received a free goat and it had lice. I treated it once with DE and a few days later it they we're gone. I don't know about other parts of the country but here in Arizona they use it to kill scorpions because it's the only thing that works. They make a perimeter of DE around the house and the scorpions die trying to cross it. It kills anything with exoskeleton very proficiently. The chicks dust bath in it and eat all at the same time. They love it.