Possible Mites?

[flytpm]

My rooster has lost most of the feathers on back of head and neck and now my hens are losing some on head also. I thought this may be mites and put small amount of Permathean poultry dust in coop in shavings thinking they would dust in it, Can't really tell if they've done so. I did this about a week ago, how long will it take to see improvement? Will this even work? Thanks again.

 

[miss_thenorth]

At night when they are roosting, pick one up and see if you can see tiny bugs crawling around their vent. Lice are whitish, mites are reddish. If you see bugs, then treat. the product should hav instructions as to when to retreat--usually three weeks ( the life cycle) If not could they be molting? Increase their protein to help them grow new feathers.

 

[M@M@2four]

I use Sevin dust, but now I use Adams flea and tick spray as well. I use it as extra precaution...just spray lightly near the tail, neck, under wings, and chest.

 

[jhm47]

Sevin dust, Adams, pyrethrin powder, any will work, but you need to treat the nests, roosts, cracks in walls, clean out the bedding, and just generally clean up their environment. Then, treat the whole thing with a pyrethrin spray. Treating the birds will only work for a short time.

 

[jywel417]

I am new to chickens and so I don't know a whole lot about what you can and can't use to treat mites and such but I do work at a small animal vet and wanted to post a precaution. I have not seen the issue with Adams and I think it is a pretty decent product but I will say that we have seen people bring in dogs and cats in comatose conditions, having seizures, and very very ill who have used Hartz, Seargents, and several other over the counter brands of flea and/or tick medicine on their pets, even in the right size dosing. Products like Advantage, Frontline, and other products sold thru vets (tho flea products you can get at places like the coop although their heartworm prevention counterparts like Heartgard, etc are technically illegal for anyone but veterinarians to carry) work on the flea's system and are not a pesticide like the others are. I have not had any animals come in with these issues after using Adams products in the 8 years i have been at the vet but while I know you can put a 150 lb dog dose of frontline on a cat with no adverse side effects I would be very cautious in using Adams and make sure I didn't go over the rec dosage just to be on the safe side. Just a warning, I wish the cheaper over the counters stuff worked and didn't cause the issues I have seen with it, esp since maybe it would force the pharm companies to come down in their prices on the stuff but at the time being I know it can cause sever reactions, even death, in animals at times.


OH and another fun tidbit I have learned while working at the vet, Lice are species specififc, therefore you cannot get lice from your chickens, nor can your cat or dog or any other species on your farm. The chickens can spread it amongst themselves. Just like you can not give lice to your pets and they can not give them to you. I thought this was very useful information

Good luck with your feather problems !! I know to treat mange we use ivermectin orally, topically, or injected under the skin but once again i am new to chickens and don't know about dosage or the use of Ivermectin in chickens

 

[M@M@2four]

Quote:
Have heard the same thing about Hartz--why they keep that brand on the market is beyond me!!!

 

[flytpm]

How do you increase their protein?

 

[emilyweck]

scramble up some eggs, give them yogurt, milk.....Eggs and yogurt are generally best accepted by them.

 

[Beekissed]

I know of at least 2 people whose pets have had seizures from using Frontline and Advantage flea drops!

 

[jywel417]

Yes, it can happen on occasion, we have had one rather violent reaction to frontline in the 8 years I have been there. One of my dobermans is allergic to Frontline but only breaks out in hives for a day or so but I still just use advantix on her even tho the hives don't seem to bother her, she just looks lumpy for a day or two. We just have a LOT more reactions to the over the counter medicines mostly because they are products based on older methods, which was usually a pesticide you put on the animal that could be harmful to people and animals, where as Advantage and Frontline are designed to work on the fleas and ticks and not the dogs yet reactions do happen on occasion. I will say tho that Fort Dodge's new product Promeris (flea and tick) we are not carrying at the vet I work at. We have had LOTS of bad reports on it making animals ill, one of my coworkers used it on her dog as a trial when it first came out for the vet she worked at before coming here. It made her dog's hair fall out where she applied it, her dog was lethargic for a week even after washing the product off when she saw that Molly was getting VERY sick within an hour of application, and on top of this and other issues it caused temporarily they had reports of it not working at all, Megan didn't see any signs of fleas dying in the hour before she washed the Promeris off, in fact she watched them walk right thru the product with no adverse effects. It is my understanding that the main active ingredient in Promeris is one of the older flea and tick drugs that had faded out of use because it caused so many adverse side effects. Anyways, between this and other reports we have gotten we do not carry it, we figure we have enough products at the moment that seem to be working for people, people seem to be happy with them so we dont want to take chances with this new product until Fort Dodge has more time to work out the kinks, if possible.

Sorry if the previous post sounded like you wont ever have any adverse effects with Frontline or Advantage, I just meant they are much less likely. On another note if you ever put anything like this on your dog/cat and they start acting sick one of the best things you can do is wash them right away 2 or 3 times to get the product off, and something like dishwasher detergent, Dawn etc, which is a soap based product is the best to use because it will strip the product. Most pet shampoos are not soap based.