Mites?

[Italianmango]

Hello. I have a question that I'm hoping someone can help with. We have what I think looks like mites but I'm a bit confused. They are about the size of a period in a sentence and they move fast. I first noticed them yesterday when I picked up the eggs, there were about 30-50 of them crawling all over my hands and arms and then realized they must have come from the eggs I picked up. We examined the chickens today but saw nothing on them and then went out again a little after they settled in for the night and still saw nothing on them. They are on the wood of the coop though, I can't see any crawling but if I put my hand on the wood, I will see 1 or 2 crawling on my hand. I'm not sure if we needed to go out later in the evening to check for the red mites or if they are something different. Not sure if I should just go ahead and do a deep clean and just treat for mites or just do a deep clean and see what happens? I'm sure they are a mite of some sort but it's throwing me for a loop that I am not seeing them on the chickens. Any advice or insight?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hello. I have a question that I'm hoping someone can help with. We have what I think looks like mites but I'm a bit confused. They are about the size of a period in a sentence and they move fast. I first noticed them yesterday when I picked up the eggs, there were about 30-50 of them crawling all over my hands and arms and then realized they must have come from the eggs I picked up. We examined the chickens today but saw nothing on them and then went out again a little after they settled in for the night and still saw nothing on them. They are on the wood of the coop though, I can't see any crawling but if I put my hand on the wood, I will see 1 or 2 crawling on my hand. I'm not sure if we needed to go out later in the evening to check for the red mites or if they are something different. Not sure if I should just go ahead and do a deep clean and just treat for mites or just do a deep clean and see what happens? I'm sure they are a mite of some sort but it's throwing me for a loop that I am not seeing them on the chickens. Any advice or insight?

There are all types of bugs that can be found in chicken coops. Mites are usually tiny, they have 8 legs.
Lice can be seen more readily, they have 6 legs and usually you will see them on the birds.

Treating the housing with Permethrin based poultry spray can often eliminate most parasites, but it would be a good idea to i.d. the bugs.


https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/

 

[Italianmango]

There are all types of bugs that can be found in chicken coops. Mites are usually tiny, they have 8 legs.
Lice can be seen more readily, they have 6 legs and usually you will see them on the birds.

Treating the housing with Permethrin based poultry spray can often eliminate most parasites, but it would be a good idea to i.d. the bugs.


https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/

Thank you! We tried taking a picture of it but it is moving way too fast and it is so incredibly tiny that it's hard to see the actual legs. Will try and take pictures again in the morning.

 

[Ddb123]

I feel you. I am battling depluming mites. So far the dipping the chickens and rubbing in Permethrin seems to be working on all but one chicken. I am now trying sulfur. It seems very promising. I added it to the dust bath, dusted the one having the most trouble and ordered so bags to hang as they enter and exit the coop. Fingers crossed.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27432937/

 

[tlcmurphy]

I just noticed today that I have small, very fast insects that look like red ants in the coop. I do not see them on the birds. Are these mites?

 

[Ddb123]

My guess is, yes.

I am no vet but here is my suggestion for mites. I would start with a complete coop and nesting box clean out and a good spray down with Electro PSP. Then, move onto the birds and you can spray them down with the Electro PSP, soak the vent area. It takes repeated effort to gain the upper hand. (Sadly, wooden coops can be very hard to get every tiny crack that red poultry mites live in. In the UK they recommend burning the coop and the bedding.)

After spraying down and cleaning the coop with Electro PSP, I used a Permethrin bath to get the depluming mites.

Second wave of attack and applied Eprinex drops to their skin.

The third wave, Ivermectin drops to their skin.

Fourth wave, I am using sulfur dust in their dust baths and hanging a bag of sulphur that they all have to walk into to get into the coop.

From what I have read most extension services recommend using sulphur. It takes about 4 weeks to see a 99 percent drop in mites and that is why I started with other means.

 

[tlcmurphy]

Thank you! I’m embarrassed to say I realized we had an ant hill at the base of the coop and they were getting in. I did clean out the coop thoroughly and dust with permitherin anyway