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

[blucoondawg]

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 don't believe it works because there are simply too many reports in this very website that it is 100% ineffective against active infestations. Those who do use it say it works best as a preventative not a cure. I personally believe it doesn't work simply due to the nature of the chicken coop vs how the de works. It works by either drying out the bugs or by damaging the exoskeletons of the bugs by scratching them up with its jagged edges, however if de becomes wet at all it will soften and lose these properties. I have never seen a chicken coop that stays perfectly bone dry. I have a lot of ventilation and my bedding has a certain degree of dampness to it which I believe renders de useless. I think that is the case with many coops

 

[4 the Birds]

Hello Everyone,

I didn't see an existing post on this...

Two problems - (1) MITES (2) LICE

I have found that there are the tiny mites in my chicken coop. I would like to know if I can use a bug bomb in my chicken coop to kill the mites. For some time now, I have been using DE dust in their nest boxes and on the hay in the coop where they like to lay around and dust. To no avail it appears, the mites are still there and I'm finding now that when I reach in the coop and adjust their ramp, I get mites on me so it is getting BAD.

I also saw lice on one of my chickens today (I have 15 of them); dipping all 15 of them will not be an easy task. Does anyone have an easier remedy to get rid of the lice?

Thank you all for any suggestions and knowledge!
Robin

I use DE to keep the poop boards dried out. I also dust with Garden Dust (also known as Python Dust) to control mites, lice, ticks, flies, etc... Perfectly safe on poultry.

http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/sto...ory_rn=&top_category=&urlLangId=&cm_vc=-10005

 

[RobinFarmGirl]

Thank you 4 The Birds. DE worked a bit for me but the mites got out of control so it doesn't work anymore. I've put Seven in the coop and I use a small blow torch every morning on the corners of the nest boxes and coop as I clean it all out. It has done wonders. I'm going to either use the Seven or get some of the poultry dust you mentioned and put on the chickens.

 

[K9Dave]

Thank you 4 The Birds.  DE worked a bit for me but the mites got out of control so it doesn't work anymore.  I've put Seven in the coop and I use a small blow torch every morning on the corners of the nest boxes and coop as I clean it all out.  It has done wonders.  I'm going to either use the Seven or get some of the poultry dust you mentioned and put on the chickens. 

So DE doesn't work on them? I'm surprised because it works on so many bugs here in Arizona.

 

[RobinFarmGirl]

So DE doesn't work on them? I'm surprised because it works on so many bugs here in Arizona.

No, it stopped working when the mites got out of control - an infestation. There were mounds of them in the next boxes. At night I'd look at the coop and could see them walking nearby the nest boxes. They hid in the wood during the day and then came out at night. In the mornings, I'd torch the corners of the coop/next boxes and the mounds of them that were in the nest boxes.

Torching and the Seven has done wonders for the infestation. Maybe they became used to the DE so they multiplied and it didn't work anymore. Torching and the Seven dust worked for me.... If DE works for you, then that is wonderful!

 

[K9Dave]

No, it stopped working when the mites got out of control - an infestation.  There were mounds of them in the next boxes.  At night I'd look at the coop and could see them walking nearby the nest boxes.  They hid in the wood during the day and then came out at night.  In the mornings, I'd torch the corners of the coop/next boxes and the mounds of them that were in the nest boxes.  

Torching and the Seven has done wonders for the infestation.  Maybe they became used to the DE so they multiplied and it didn't work anymore.  Torching and the Seven dust worked for me....  If DE works for you, then that is wonderful! 

I'm new to the chicken world and don't have any problems yet. Just consuming knowledge for the future. I saw that Sevin stuff at the feed store the other day. It should be good as a precautionary coop treatment then I would assume. Thanks

 

[RobinFarmGirl]

K9Dave,

I'm fairly new too (over a year). Still learning. It's always good to do preventative cleaning (daily) to keep down any possibilities for pests. When they multiply, it is bad.... especially if you have lots of chickens or a large coop. Seven is a pesticide so it did kill the mites I believe. I've heard/read it's not "ok'd" for poultry use (as in putting it on the chickens) so I haven't dusted them with it yet.

There are many products out there (as you know with DE) that can be used on the chickens. I've used ash from the fireplace and DE and plain old dirt for their dust baths. Never really had a pest problem in the coop before until now. It was BAD! And can be overwhelming if it is not taken care of promptly. Sounds like you have things under control tho... Good luck!

 

[K9Dave]

[COLOR=0000FF]K9Dave,[/COLOR]

[COLOR=0000FF]I'm fairly new too (over a year).  Still learning.  It's always good to do preventative cleaning (daily) to keep down any possibilities for pests.  When they multiply, it is bad....  especially if you have lots of chickens or a large coop.  Seven is a pesticide so it did kill the mites I believe.  I've heard/read it's not "ok'd" for poultry use (as in putting it on the chickens) so I haven't dusted them with it yet.  [/COLOR]

[COLOR=0000FF]There are many products out there (as you know with DE) that can be used on the chickens.  I've used ash from the fireplace and DE and plain old dirt for their dust baths.  Never really had a pest problem in the coop before until now.  It was BAD!  And can be overwhelming if it is not taken care of promptly.  Sounds like you have things under control tho...  Good luck![/COLOR]

thanks for the kind words. Glad your situation is under control now. Just saw that your're in NC. My wife and I were there for a wedding in June 2013 and we loved it. I'm from La. originally and in Phx now. I miss the green. My brother just moved to some remote part of NC, he works for the DOJ. He loves it but his wife is from Phx so it's quite a culture shock.

 

[rockranchchickens]

Sevin, or Carbaryl, is a PAN Bad Actor. It is acutely toxic, causes abornormalities in fetal development, is carcinogenic, and probably is an endocrine disruptor. It can cause a lung disease very similar to black lung that kills coal miners.

Being an organophosphate, it is also persistent in the environment. So it passes through many animals and fish before it finally breaks down enough to no longer be dangerous. It causes problems for every one of them.

I dust my chickens with permethrin once a month. and I have started white washing the hen house. I do not think I will have to white wash more than once a year.

I built my coop entirely out of cedar with treated lumber for the ground contact parts. The cedar kept the mites population low for about 10 years. In the 7 years since, I have had to treat the house.

This spring was a very bad one for mites--we had a much milder than normal winter, so I am thinking more of the little buggers survived the winter. I have purchased some Nylar, insect growth regulator to spray on the grass where the chickens hang out. j

My chickens also go under part of my house and into the loafing shed for the alpacas. So I need to white wash those structures. I used a puffer to apply Deltamethrin in the dirt under the part of my house where the chickens like to hang out. I also used it on the floor of the alpaca barn. Deltamethrin is a waterproof, longer-lasting Permethrin-type chemical.

I plan to white wash the alpaca barn and wood siding under the house where the chickens hang out.

I also have a deep litter coop, which seems to keep mite populations down a bit.

Rather than Sevin for a precautionary coop treatment, I would use Suspend brand insecticide from Bayer. It forms a waterproof layer of deltamethrin on surfaces that is resistant to rain and kills bugs for months. It is approved for use in food preparation areas. Deltamethrin is considered to be one of the pesticides of leas concern by the Pesticide Action Network. You can look pesiticides up on their site by name.

The pesticde revolution post WWII led to the breast cancer epidemic. I would not take use of organophosphates, like Sevin, lightly. US pesticide regulations are much looser than the rest of the world. As a result, we have much higher occupational cancer rate. I say this as encouragement to everyone to at least follow the US regulations.

Unless you are a PhD or MD well versed in toxicology, you really cannot assess the risks of off label use. Think of people who know very little about an area in which you are an expert. Would you really follow those people's advice rather than your own deep knowledge of the science?

 

[rainbowhatchery]

we just had a bout with mites, used sevin dust on every bird then again in a week. Cleaned out all the coops and used the concentrated sevin liquid and sprayed down everything then again in 7 days. Plus sevin kills basically everything so if your not 100% sure what kind of creepy crawler it is you dont have to worry, sevin is like the kill all.