Rooster comb

[chicky68]

I'm sorry to hear he is not doing well.

Do you have any photos of him you would like to share?


External parasites can drain a chicken if the infestation is severe. You will want to treat him and your flock ASAP, with a Permethrin based poultry spray or dust. These can be found at most feed stores like Tractor Supply.
See this link for photos of different products you can use http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1151513/pesticides-approved-for-poultry

Poultry lice is species specific, you may get one or two on you as you treat or maybe even a bite, but they do not like humans, so will not live on you. Just wash your hands after treating your chickens. If you prefer, bath/shower and wash your clothes.

For your rooster, the comb being black - did he get frostbitten? If there is a way to bring him in since he is failing, that would be best. The first step is to treat for the bugs, but it's very important to get him hydrated. Once he is drinking, then see if he will eat.
For your flock, treat them with the dust/spray, clean out your coop bedding, treat the coop and roosts. Repeat the treatment for the chickens and housing in 7-10days to kill off any that have hatched.

Let us know how he is doing.

I'm sorry to hear he is not doing well.

Do you have any photos of him you would like to share?

External parasites can drain a chicken if the infestation is severe. You will want to treat him and your flock ASAP, with a Permethrin based poultry spray or dust. These can be found at most feed stores like Tractor Supply.
See this link for photos of different products you can use http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1151513/pesticides-approved-for-poultry

Poultry lice is species specific, you may get one or two on you as you treat or maybe even a bite, but they do not like humans, so will not live on you. Just wash your hands after treating your chickens. If you prefer, bath/shower and wash your clothes.

For your rooster, the comb being black - did he get frostbitten? If there is a way to bring him in since he is failing, that would be best. The first step is to treat for the bugs, but it's very important to get him hydrated. Once he is drinking, then see if he will eat.
For your flock, treat them with the dust/spray, clean out your coop bedding, treat the coop and roosts. Repeat the treatment for the chickens and housing in 7-10days to kill off any that have hatched.

Let us know how he is doing.

Hello, thanks for the reply. I dust bathed him in Diatmaceous Earth, gave him ivermectin, brought him in the house, put him in a big container with shavings and under a heat lamp. I did get a bit of water in him through a dropper not sure if he is ready for food yet hes still weak. I do believe his comb was hit with frostbite because it is black.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I dust bathed him in Diatmaceous Earth, gave him ivermectin

How much and how did you administer the Ivermectin?
Are the lice dead, or do you see some that are still active?

If you have poultry vitamins like Poultry Nutri-Drench, that would be good. You can add those to his water or direct dose him at 1cc per 3lbs of weight. Hydration is very important, so try to get as much fluids into him that you can. Feed made into a wet mash is sometimes welcomed, as well as, a little chopped egg.

 

[chicky68]

Just little drops of ivermectin on him in different spots. I work on a farm and we had to do that to their hens. They were fine. I was at Tractor Supply yesterday and I did not see nutra drench. Do you know where I could get that from? I bought a spray for the coops and my hens. I have DE to sprinkle around. Do you know where the lice could have come from? It's been so cold here, temps in the low 20s, single digits even in the negative. We don't typically have that weather here in Southern Jersey but this year we did. I think that's how he got his frostbite because ever since we got him the temperature has have never reached so low hes only 6 years old.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Just little drops of ivermectin on him in different spots. I work on a farm and we had to do that to their hens. They were fine. I was at Tractor Supply yesterday and I did not see nutra drench. Do you know where I could get that from? I bought a spray for the coops and my hens. I have DE to sprinkle around. Do you know where the lice could have come from? It's been so cold here, temps in the low 20s, single digits even in the negative. We don't typically have that weather here in Southern Jersey but this year we did. I think that's how he got his frostbite because ever since we got him the temperature has have never reached so low hes only 6 years old.

Are the lice dead?

Ivermectin can be effective for treating external parasites and some worms. If the lice are not dead, then you may want to go a head and re-visit how the medication was administered. For Ivermectin Pour On it should be administered along the spinal cord, so really between the shoulder blades/base of the neck - it needs to make contact with the skin. You don't mention your rooster's size so this is a general guideline of how many drops to administer:
1 drop for chicks or tiny chickens, 3 drops for bantams, 4 drops for lightweight birds, 5 drops for large birds and 6 drops for heavy weight birds. Repeat in 10-14days after initial treatment. Hope that helps.

As for the DE, do some reading. Imho, it is not effective on active infestations, it may be used in dust bathing areas or rubbed into the wood of nesting boxes as a preventative, but if you have the critters, it's best to eradicate them asap. A permethrin based poultry spray or dust would be a better choice.

6 years old can be considered a bit aged for a chicken, so you have done well taking care of him. Try to encourage him to eat/drink. Nutri-Drench is usually found at Tractor Supply, but if yours doesn't carry it, you can use Rooster Booster Poultry Cell or something similar - they should have a vitamin section.