Please Teach me Mites, Louse, Lice Do they infest house?

[LivingFate]

Two questions- I have my chicks in the basement- in a finished computer room. I have brought them outdoors 3 times the last few days that it has been nice in a makeshift run for now since the coop is not ready just for a few hrs to enjoy the weather. I feel itchy everytime I come into the computer room, but this started before I brought them out. Is it just me being sensitive to the chicken air that seems to acquire when the door is closed? Could it be more like mites or something?

How does a chicken aquire mites, lice etc?

Most importantly DO mites infect your house????? I did a google on mites and all sorts of things pop up on huge mite infestations that people have mites all over them, the house, etc and can't get rid of them- I am freaked out!

The coop that I am cleaning out and getting ready- is all wood- should I paint it with something to help prevent kill anything that may be there? Put laminate? Leave as is? The house is 17 yrs old I'm assuming the coop is probaly about 10 yrs old maybe? They had rabbits and chickens in it. I'm going to pressure wash it, bleach it then what?

I have bugs, parasites, such Help!

 

[s6bee]

I can't help you out much sorry, but the only thing I think I have heard is that the chicken mite doesn't spread to humans and bother us.

 

[MissPrissy]

You cannot get chicken lice. They are species specific.

Take your chickens and turn up their bottoms at night. Shine a flashlight around their vent. Look in their feathers close to the skin. Do you see anything there? Do you see anything crawling or moving? Do you see tiny little red or black specks? Do you see something that looks almost clear with a dot in the middle?

If you don't see anything your chickens do not have mites or lice.

Bleach kills alot of things but it won't prevent mites or lice in your coop. When you clean out your chicken coops before you put down any bedding you can dust with Sevin dust as a protective layer. This won't prevent your chcikens from ever getting lice but will help kill anything that might be living in your old coop right now.

 

[arlee453]

The itchyness may just be due to the bedding you are using. That stuff gets so dusty and little particles in the air everywhere - one reason most of use can't wait to get that brooder full of chicks OUTSIDE somewhere.

If your chicks came straight from a hatchery and have not been around other chickens, the possibility of them having mites at this point are slim to none.

If they do catch them at some point, it may be itchy for the chicken and you might get the occasional one on you if you are handling the chickens, but they don't like humans and won't stick around you. You aren't the right type of host for them.

Mites, like lice, are pretty species specific, thankfully. They only thrive at the body temp of their preferred host, or they have special hooks on the end of their legs that only cling well to a particular type of body covering - ie feathers vs hair, etc. That's why there are 3 type of lice that infects people, for instance. They all like the body temp of humans, but the type you get on your head won't do well in other 'ahem...' hairy parts of the body, and same for those type of lice - their legs can't grip the hair on your head. Body lice don't like hair at all - they cling into the folds of clothing.

Now that you are completely creeped out....

If there have not been any birds in the coop for years, then I'd just pressure wash the coop well, and let it dry thoroughly. If you are really concerned after that you can make a whitewash (do a search here) or dust the coop well with sevin dust.

Enjoy your babies!

 

[LivingFate]

So mites can not infest your house at all?

I have white pine shavings now that I am using...is that good to use outdoors in the coop once I move them? I read somewhere people use cedar, pine and sand? Is that better to prevent infestations?

Whitewash- Do you need to use a mask while applying/mixing?

So sevin dust and DE are good to use- how about EO's?

 

[MissPrissy]

No cedar and no EO's they cause respitaory illness that can be fatal.

You can get mites in your house just like you can get any other bugs in your house. But just because you have chickens doesn't mean the chickens will bring mites into your house. If you have pine trees or other trees that drop lots of leaves and stuff near your foundtaion or on our roof you can get all sorts of bugs in your house. Chickens as young as yours won't cause an infestation in your house. If there is something in your basement that makes you itchy it could infest your chickens.

Whitewash is watered down paint. I don'twear a mask at all for painting.

If you are cleaning out an old coop you sould wear a mask because bacteria can be trapped in the old dust and mess and cause you a respiratory illness.

DE must be FOOD GRADE not gardening DE.

 

[barredbeans7]

I just attempted to clean my chicken coop of mites and lice and they got on me! I know you guys said that they can't live on me but it is still freaky! Do u think that my house could be full of chicken bugs and will that be a danger to me or my family. I also want your honest answer on something, my chicken coops seem to always get infected with bugs. Could it be that I live in a moist area with a pond? Or that my coops are wooden? Or that my chickens can come in contact with dogs, goats, and ducks? And if I get a different chicken coop what type should I get, wood, metal, plastic or other? I desperately need your help! Please help me

 

[Suzie]

Whoa!

Yes it is true that mites can infest your home...because you bring them in on your clothing... you shower and put your clothing into your linen basket ( or whatever ) and they then exist there.......if you did not wash your hair... they are in your bed too!

It is not pleasant to have experience of mites.. as you will now be aware... I speak from experience, I have mite infestations in the Summer months and despite all of the Permethryn I use to alleviate the problem... they crawl onto my boots, clothing and my body and they enjoy the life of living wherever they can get... I have even brushed my hair to find then crawling in the basin in the bathroom afterwards...

I do not wish to cause you undue alarm BUT they are there.... they do not live for long in your house as their host is the fowl that they prey off... I do not know of the ultimate solution. save from treating the coop on a very regular basis with permethryn or sevin....

Suzie

 

[appps]

Okay first YES humans can get chicken mites and I'm still sporting the bite scars from scratching to prove it. Both my husband and I who go in the chook house were covered in bites especially in areas like under the arms. They were so bad it was keeping me wake at night scratching. My dughter who collected eggs also got bites but not as bad. The kids who didnt go near them had nothing
but...... No long term they won't infect you like a chicken. They get on you and bite for a day or two but then die from lack of the proper host blood. So really the answer to can you get chicken lice should be yes and no

I googled madly and most of the results were from here and i took that advice and I did the following.

I purchased fido brand pet flea etc spray on treatment and used that to spay every bit of timber in our wooden chook pen.
Then from the vet I bought some flea/lice treatment that was applied directly to the chicken at the base of the neck the same as you do for flea treatments on dogs. (Can go find the bottle she made up if you need the name). Had to apply again two weeks later which is this weekend actually so thanks for the reminder

We have gone from getting them on our arms just collecting eggs to nothing in two weeks. So worked for me

As for where did the lice come from, if you bought hatched chicks maybe they had one or two on them when you bought them and they have multiplied.

 

[appps]

Oh and nearly forgot. Also took the opportunity to remove the shavings from the coop. I put down a layer of garden lime then covered that with fresh shavings.