Mites! Please help!

[debducttape]

Our chicken tractor is infested with tiny gray/white mites! There are thousands! We had an older chicken die yesterday and the rest of them are scratching and fluffing their feathers. Combs are somewhat pale and my egg production is in the toilet. I am reading lots of different ways to get rid of them. What's your best advice? Can we use diatomacous earth or do we have to use pesticides? Also, the coop is insulated with foam and an interior layer of fiberglass. Am I gonna have to dissasemble the whole thing to get them all? It's an old coop and I am not sure how well it will survive being taken apart. TIA.

 

[SIMZ]

Are the mites on the chickens? If they are, and that's what you think killed your hen, then I, personally, would use pesticides. You want to act fast and get rid of them. First thing is to get the mites off the chickens by dusting or whatever you want to do. Hopefully, someone else can jump in on how to get them out of the tractor.

 

[debducttape]

Yes, they are definitely on the chickens. This evening the chickens were all roosting on the roof of the tractor. (Even my broody hen refused to get in the coop) I had to put them back in the coop, and after handling one of the chickens for just a few seconds, I had mites all over my hands and arms.

 

[SIMZ]

Do you have Sevin dust or garden dust? I'd dust them now if you can. Mites can kill pretty quickly and they must be really bad if the chickens don't even want to go in. Then you'll probably have to spray down your coop really well with permethrin spray. It may take a few dustings to get rid of those mites - and you'll definitely want to re-dust in 7 days as well. Sorry - mites are horrible.

 

[aggiemae]

You can take them off the roost at night one at a time and dust them. Even if they are not used to being handled they will be tired and calm especially if you lay them on their backs.

Diatomacous earth is a waste of time. I use Sevin dust, it's made out of chrysanthemums. it's cheap and it's safe. I keep it in an old baby powder canister so its easy to sprinkle, Get under the wings and the butt. Work some Vaseline into their legs and feet in case mites are under the scales. Sprinkle some Sevin into their favorite dusting spots to prevent re-infestations. Mites can take quite a bit of blood from their hosts so give them some food high in iron every few days for a week or so in case they are anemic. I use cooked chicken liver, They love it.

 

[debducttape]

Thanks, this is very helpful! Now what do I do about the coop?

 

[dawg53]

Our chicken tractor is infested with tiny gray/white mites! There are thousands! We had an older chicken die yesterday and the rest of them are scratching and fluffing their feathers. Combs are somewhat pale and my egg production is in the toilet. I am reading lots of different ways to get rid of them. What's your best advice? Can we use diatomacous earth or do we have to use pesticides? Also, the coop is insulated with foam and an interior layer of fiberglass. Am I gonna have to dissasemble the whole thing to get them all? It's an old coop and I am not sure how well it will survive being taken apart. TIA.

You're dealing with lice, not mites. Dust all your birds with sevin dust. Dust inside their coop, roosts and nests. Redust your birds and inside the coop again in 7-10 days.

 

[dawg53]

You can take them off the roost at night one at a time and dust them. Even if they are not used to being handled they will be tired and calm especially if you lay them on their backs.

Diatomacous earth is a waste of time. I use Sevin dust, it's made out of chrysanthemums. it's cheap and it's safe. I keep it in an old baby powder canister so its easy to sprinkle, Get under the wings and the butt. Work some Vaseline into their legs and feet in case mites are under the scales. Sprinkle some Sevin into their favorite dusting spots to prevent re-infestations. Mites can take quite a bit of blood from their hosts so give them some food high in iron every few days for a week or so in case they are anemic. I use cooked chicken liver, They love it.

Sevin dust isn't made out of chrysanthemums. It contains 5% carbaryl and DE.

 

[Eggcessive]

Pyrethrum (not permethrin or sevin) is made from chrysanthemums. Here are some good links to read with pictures of lice and mites for identification:
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/08/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification.html
http://anrcatalog.ucdavis.edu/pdf/8162.pdf
http://ohioline.osu.edu/vme-fact/0018.html

 

[Athensm50]

I just did this Fri.....same thing...a bizillion of them.....after your done you feel like you need to take a bath in Gas!

still feel itchy 3 days later!