Peacock mites

[Peacocks Fly Free]

Hi, I was petting my peacock when I saw on his face little yellowish bugs on him. I'll try to post pics of him tomorrow close up, my question is, are they dangerous and if so what do I do to help him i'm also going to check the others but I know he has some? Is there any meds that I can put their food for both internal and external.

 

[Kiki]

I am not familiar with which bugs peafowl get but if they are anything like chickens I wonder if it is lice or mites.
If so...you would probably want to get rid of them asap.
@casportpony is permethrin safe for peafowl?

 

[KsKingBee]

Hi, I was petting my peacock when I saw on his face little yellowish bugs on him. I'll try to post pics of him tomorrow close up, my question is, are they dangerous and if so what do I do to help him i'm also going to check the others but I know he has some? Is there any meds that I can put their food for both internal and external.

They are not mites, they are lice. There are two types of lice, the body lice and face lice that are about one-tenth the size of the body lice. Here is a pic of face lice drinking from the bottom of the eye. Use Ivermec Pour-On, 0.40ml on the skin between the shoulders and a tiny drop behind the crest or the ears will rid them but do repeat in ten days for the eggs that hatch out later.

Dosing from my manual for lice.

Here are the dosing directions from my vet manual for leg mites.

 

[casportpony]

Welcome to BYC,

@KsKingBee and @KikisGirls are correct, those are lice, and for some reason that type love peafowl. I treat mine with 1% ivemectin orally and I give it based on how much they weigh.

Large male - 0.6 ml
Small male - 0.4 ml
Large female - 0.4 ml
Small female - 0.3 ml

Permethrin dust or spray could be used too.

Where do you live?

 

[new 2 pfowl]

Good information!
For future reference @casportpony, can you provide the formula for determining 1% ivermectin dosage by bird weight?

(If possible, the formula for if I have the bird's weight in grams/kg...)

 

[casportpony]

Good information!
For future reference @casportpony, can you provide the formula for determining 1% ivermectin dosage by bird weight?

(If possible, the formula for if I have the bird's weight in grams/kg...)

Yes! I give 1 mg/kg which is the max dose I found in a pigeon formulary.

The weight of bird in kilograms, times desired mg/kg, divide by the number of mg per ml.

So, for example, my small hens weigh 3 kg, I use 1 mg/kg, and my ivermectin is 10 mg/ml the math is 3 x 10 / 10 = 0.3 ml orally

If I were going to use the pour on it is 5 mg/ml so the math is this: 3 x 1 / 5 = 0.6 ml topically

Another one people can use is ivermectin horse paste. It's 18.7 mg/ml so 3 x 1 / 18.7 = 0.16 ml orally

Is that what you meant?

 

[casportpony]

Oh if people want to do it by pounds instead of kg it's:
The weight of bird in pounds, divide by 2.2, times desired mg/kg, divide by the number of mg per ml.

 

[new 2 pfowl]

Yes, perfect, thank you so much @casportpony! I've copied this and put it somewhere where I can actually find it for a change.

Somehow it seems so hard to find this kind of specific information when you really need it, so I'm trying to track it down now and make myself a reference book. Any suggestions about the location of other dosage details welcomed!

 

[casportpony]

Yes, perfect, thank you so much @casportpony! I've copied this and put it somewhere where I can actually find it for a change.

Somehow it seems so hard to find this kind of specific information when you really need it, so I'm trying to track it down now and make myself a reference book. Any suggestions about the location of other dosage details welcomed!

I'll try to find the pigeon one I use, but here are other resources:

• http://avianmedicine.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/18.pdf
• http://avianmedicine.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/09_therapeutic_agents.pdf

This is Plumb's Veterinary Drug Handbook:

 

[KsKingBee]

It would be a good idea to mention that there is a difference between the type of Ivermec that is given orally and the one used topically. You do not want to give the Pour-On orally and the Injectible is not effective topically.