Please help! Found mites on hen that is not feeling well...?! UPDATE- any other ideas, please?

[Central Florida]

Should I treat her immediately- she is roosting now or separate her and bring in? I noticed that for the last couple of days that she was seeming a little lethargic, but still free ranged and ate, drank, etc. Today she was more reclusive and after I caught her tonight (she is a fast one) I found mites or some kind of bug. They are light tan/orangey color and crawl move around the base of the feathers- no jumping. Found a few of these on her vent area, neck and back. I duster her with DE and she ate some rice with egg and ACV and garlic...Just before roosting time, I let them out again to free range and she was more lethargic, just standing there with a dazed look and her wings out a bit. She also seemed a little weak getting onto the roost...I have Ivomec cattle pour on- should I put a few drops on her ASAP- now! Should I put her in a crate with straw after I treat her or leave her on the roost w/ the others. She is on the end of the roost- closest to the wall. I don't want to stress her out, but I don't want her to fall either. How long does Ivomec take to kill mites? Thank you in advance for any advice!

 

[BooBear]

DE is good only as a preventative. Once you have an out break you need the big guns so to speak.

Is she a bantam or large fowl? Yes, if you have poor on put some on her by recommended dosage on back of neck directly onto the skin.
Bantams -> 0.25 ml
Large Fowl -> 0.5 ml

The bugs could be sucking the life out of her if she has a heavy infestation. You will need to clean the coop, nest area, and roost bars. Dust with Sevens Dust or the chicken garden product that Tractor Supply carries has the 5% of Sevens in it. In another 10 days dust again to get any that could have hatched out.

Also, dust all of the flocks favorite dust bathe spots (mix in with the dirt/soil). When they go to dust bathe they will be self dusting themselves with the Sevins which will get any bugs on any of the other flock members.

Once the bugs have been irradicated then you can switch back to DE as a preventative of future out breaks.

Hope this helps and hope your chickie makes a full recovery.

 

[Central Florida]

Thanks for replying! I just got my little one's to bed- had a hard time getting them to bed, their Daddy is out of town and I am about to run out by myself to the coop to check on her! I ran out about an hour ago and she was standing on the roost with her wings out a bit- not her normal stance. Does Ivomec work quickly- Do you know how long approx. until the mites will be killed? Thanks again! You might be the only one up! ;0

 

[Central Florida]

Forgot to say that she is a Buff Orpington- smaller one though, not a big girl.

 

[BooBear]

Chickens don't have that much in blood as they are small critters to begin with so a heavy infestation can cause them to get anemic. However, if she shows any other symptoms there could be more than just bugs dragging her down. Hopefully this is not the case for her.

The bugs should die within 24 hrs of treatment (could be faster not sure really); it will take a bit for her to get her strength back up though if she is anemic from being feasted upon by so many of them. Hopefully it is just mites weakening her and nothing else.

If you are not sure if it is just the bugs, do you notice any other symptoms that she is displaying that is different from her normal behavior?

 

[TeamChaos]

I hate the buggers! Ugh! It will take several rounds and some vigilance to get rid of them. I use the pour on Ivomectin and then Adams flea and tick spray to start the killing immediately. If she were my girl and I saw the mites and knew she had lost her pluck, so to speak, I'd bring her in and bathe her, dry her really well and give her some scrambled eggs and vitamins. I wouldn't dose her w/ chemicals until I had observed her for 24 hrs mite-free to see what else might be at work. Best of luck to you and your chickens!

 

[Central Florida]

Well, I am not sure. Maybe there is something else causing her to be weak. Can't say. She has always been a smaller girl, runs like lightning, eats well, loves treats...Just the past few days she has been acting strange. She seems almost dazed and distracted- almost like a broody hen...just stands there and almost gets pushed over by the others running around like crazy for the breads I gave them today. She did eat some raisins for me like usual today. The holding her wings out a bit is new since I put the DE and also sprinkled some garlic powder on her neck and under her wings- just a little bit of garlic. I just found the Ivomec info on BYC tonight after dark and ran to the garage and found that we had some. Her comb is bright...I don't know. She bent her neck sideways a few times tonight before she roosted and she seemed like she didn't want to hop over the run entry to free range or was too weak to. Yet she still ran to get away from my son and I. Maybe the DE or garlic was causing the bugs to run around and irritate her? Or something else in addition to the bugs...I have never dealt with this before- I checked a handful of the others and none had the bugs...I just checked and she was standing on the roost still- seemed that her wings were not as puffed out. Sorry, if I am rambling...Thanks again.

 

[Central Florida]

Team Chaos- So you would you not use the Ivomec on her yet? You would bathe her first? I thought about bathing, but was not sure what soap would kill them and didn't want to stress her out for nothing. I used baby bath on my other Buff's bottom, but this is different. Would/could the Ivomec harm her if there is something else going on? Thank you for your help!

 

[TeamChaos]

Hey there, I can't say that it *would* harm her to use the ivomec, I just worry about adding a chemical load to an already taxed system right out of the gates. If you've got a dog flea shampoo, that would be good, but honestly I think the mechanical process of bathing, lathering and rinsing would remove enough of the bugs to give her some relief. Then putting her in a clean spot while you observe her and deal with the rest of the coop (and the ladies, if they aren't compromised I would go right to the ivomec w. them). I'm a big fan of conservative care and managing the problems you know exist (mites) without compromising conditions you are still waiting to identify.

 

[Central Florida]

OK- Thanks so much for the advice! I really appreciate it. Will update tomorrow...