Don't know scientifically but know what we do and have done since day one.
7 solid days we throw away every egg. That's 168 hours for all the math geeks out there. Hehe.

Never said we are right or wrong. It's just our program.
Our livestock is a supplemental income.
So if we use faithful traditional practices with man made cure's... No dice rolling here.

If you were born in 1900, you had a pretty good chance of dying by your 50th birthday. Now thanks to some chemicals, it's age 85 or so in America now. Only 65 in undeveloped countries. Not saying all chemicals are good.. No way Jose.. But to each their own.

Touchy subject I suppose.
We have to use what works for us and others have to use what works for them. I won't preach that they are wrong. And hopefully visa versa.

Anyway no more debating from me on this thread. Just sharing personal preferences.

Diversity is beautiful.. Take care all You Chickeirs!
HAPPY FATHER'S DAY!!!!
I felt the need to edit my original post...it did not convey what I had meant to say.
In fact, I think it sounded rather harsh, which was not my intention at all.:oops:

I respect each person's practices regarding their livestock. I think it's always best to do what you're comfortable with and what's working.

I've already fed the first two dozen eggs back to the hens. (I don't want the broodies taking up old habits) I'm sure there's more again...lol. We don't eat the eggs right away either.
 
Here is something to turn this thread in a positive direction...
Just scanned local Craig's list looking at poultry and saw this..

http://ocala.craigslist.org/zip/6181686657.html

Too funny! I laughed so hard when I read the description of the free chicken suit.
Family friendly humor.

HURRY before it GETS FLAGGED AND REMOVED!

I did not post it BTW but hurt my self laughing.
Felt it could change the tone of this thread..
:lau. :yuckyuck :yuckyuck
Ok...that's just darn funny!
Geographically speaking.. We live in Florida.. The insect capital of USA (seems lately). Mild past winter. Mother Nature forgot to freeze our bug problem last season. Insects and parasites are extreme right now. PRIME CONDITIONS.
We just had 11" of rain in 5 days. Mosquito season will be unbelievable now. Bugs bugs bugs!
:barnie
I am glad we have the cold temps to help with parasites.
 
If you are a diehard organic fanatic. Ignore this video. Please don't be offended. This video can help open minded people in need of help without being confused on which direction to go. There is nothing wrong with being total organic, but to preach it to people without the chance to make that decision for themselves is what I am saying.
We have been involved with 4-H and FFA to start, bringing it to the income level were we are at today. Sevin has been around since before a lot of people on this site were born. We have used it for years without any witnessed side effects. A lot of people are against using it but again, let people make their own decisions to use it without being criticized or scrutinized.
God Bless America.. Land of the free (choice)

 
Last edited:
Good video, but she doesn't mention that the entire body should be checked and treated, not just the vent and the head. Some lice live on the vent, some live on the head, others you will find on the back, legs, and under the wing, so always check and treat the entire bird.
 
Hi, all. Sorry this is long: I have had a horrendous mite problem going on for over a month. The henhouse is crawling with millions of them, so bad that they are crawling on ME when I collect eggs. I check the hens, and there aren't very many on them, although some of the 29 are acting sluggish and not looking very well.
Then our one Silkie rooster, Archie, started getting crusted shut eyes in the morning and the last 2 days, has what turns out to be a respiratory infection. I've been cleaning Archie's eyes each morning and put Terramycin ointment around them.
Contacted a vet from UC Davis. Told him I've tried poultry dusts (diatomaceous earth, permethrin, Sevin, etc) not just on the hens, but throughout the henhouse and shavings, which are changed weekly. And have used poultry sprays on the chickens. I've even been feeding them minced garlic this week, which they love, because I've heard it helps keep the mites off of them.
It's been so bad that I even cleaned out all the shavings and put a Bug Bomb in there only to find them still crawling everywhere!
So yesterday, I cleaned it out again, sprayed to soaking the entire inside of the henhouse and laying boxes with an enzyme spray (mixed Kleen Green and PoultryZyme, both from Natural Ginesis). I let it dry and put in new fresh shavings. And at roost time, I was able to use my little "squeeze puffer" and put DT under the birds' wings and on their behinds. This morning there were still a lot of mites and I thought it wasn't working.
So panic set in again, thinking I may have to just give up and sell off my beloved flock, since the mites were even following me into the house and I've been getting bites.
Then I remembered having to fight off an infestation of spider mites on plants years ago, and recalled I'd experimented for months before coming up with a mixture that worked wonders. So I called around and found the two products that I had used back then: Monterey Garden Insect Spray concentrate (.5% spinosad) and SaferGro PestOut (with cottonseed, clove, and garlic oils). I mixed up gallon batches with the recommended amount of each and it worked wonders back then.
So this time, I'm thinking "mites are mites, right?" I brought home my products, mixed up a small batch and headed to the henhouse. Lo and behold, the enzyme spray had started to do its job by then. I had to remember that the enzymes are not an insecticide; they attack the bugs' exoskeleton and system and cause a slower death. Most of the bugs were dead now.
But because the infestation had been so bad, still went ahead and sprayed around the door and onto the top of all the shavings and the roosts.
Other than the bug bomb, none of the products I have used will harm the chickens.
I wanted to share this with you because I know how frustrating it can be when nothing seems to work.
Oh, yes, and back the vet that I contacted: He told me to add sulfur powder to my chickens' dusting areas, along with the DT and permethrin dust I'm already using. And he also told me to get the Elector PSP (44% spinosad). But for right now, I'm going to use the spinosad product that I tried before since it did do the job and is much cheaper. I'll wait on getting the Elector PSP until I see if my own mixture works.
And for the poor little rooster, because we can no longer get over-the-counter antibiotics to mix in their water, the only thing left to use is a product called Tylan, which he told me to get and to inject it into the rooster's breast every day for 5 days (although I've seen that some people administer it orally). Since our feed store said they don't have anything over-the-counter anymore, I'll be calling my local vet tomorrow to see if I can get the Tylan from her.
Let's hope little Archie gets better. I saw that some people suggest using VetRx for Poultry for respiratory infections, so I'll be getting some of that, too.
I will update this in the next couple of days to let you know what's happening with Archie and with the mite infestation.
Good luck to all of you and your flocks.
 
Funny how no one mentions that the inert ingredient in Sevin is DE. While DE may be a good preventative, or good for a mild outbreak, far too many people will tell you it does not work for a bad infestation, especially when your flock needs relief NOW.

Cornell University did a very comprehensive study on Carbaryl. The first part of the report is on a more pure form of it, and given in extremely high doses. The remainder of the report is about it's use under normal conditions.

The panic over Sevin was a result of the Bhopal disaster in India. They not only produced Carbaryl, but 2 other chemicals as well, and in highly concentrated forms. Anyone that's ever bought a concentrated form of something, and had to dilute it themselves will understand. As a result of the Bhopal disaster, mostly due to liability issues, more warnings were added to the labels. In addition, due to it's toxicity to bees, most states banned the higher concentrate formulations.

Some wild birds eat nightshade, which is highly toxic to humans. Lidocaine is highly toxic to chickens, but used for pain relief in humans. The word "toxic" is sometimes used as a buzz word, usually to promote some other product touted as safe, but is often taken out of perspective.
 
Hi, all. Sorry this is long: I have had a horrendous mite problem going on for over a month. The henhouse is crawling with millions of them, so bad that they are crawling on ME when I collect eggs. I check the hens, and there aren't very many on them, although some of the 29 are acting sluggish and not looking very well.
Then our one Silkie rooster, Archie, started getting crusted shut eyes in the morning and the last 2 days, has what turns out to be a respiratory infection. I've been cleaning Archie's eyes each morning and put Terramycin ointment around them.
Contacted a vet from UC Davis. Told him I've tried poultry dusts (diatomaceous earth, permethrin, Sevin, etc) not just on the hens, but throughout the henhouse and shavings, which are changed weekly. And have used poultry sprays on the chickens. I've even been feeding them minced garlic this week, which they love, because I've heard it helps keep the mites off of them.
It's been so bad that I even cleaned out all the shavings and put a Bug Bomb in there only to find them still crawling everywhere!
So yesterday, I cleaned it out again, sprayed to soaking the entire inside of the henhouse and laying boxes with an enzyme spray (mixed Kleen Green and PoultryZyme, both from Natural Ginesis). I let it dry and put in new fresh shavings. And at roost time, I was able to use my little "squeeze puffer" and put DT under the birds' wings and on their behinds. This morning there were still a lot of mites and I thought it wasn't working.
So panic set in again, thinking I may have to just give up and sell off my beloved flock, since the mites were even following me into the house and I've been getting bites.
Then I remembered having to fight off an infestation of spider mites on plants years ago, and recalled I'd experimented for months before coming up with a mixture that worked wonders. So I called around and found the two products that I had used back then: Monterey Garden Insect Spray concentrate (.5% spinosad) and SaferGro PestOut (with cottonseed, clove, and garlic oils). I mixed up gallon batches with the recommended amount of each and it worked wonders back then.
So this time, I'm thinking "mites are mites, right?" I brought home my products, mixed up a small batch and headed to the henhouse. Lo and behold, the enzyme spray had started to do its job by then. I had to remember that the enzymes are not an insecticide; they attack the bugs' exoskeleton and system and cause a slower death. Most of the bugs were dead now.
But because the infestation had been so bad, still went ahead and sprayed around the door and onto the top of all the shavings and the roosts.
Other than the bug bomb, none of the products I have used will harm the chickens.
I wanted to share this with you because I know how frustrating it can be when nothing seems to work.
Oh, yes, and back the vet that I contacted: He told me to add sulfur powder to my chickens' dusting areas, along with the DT and permethrin dust I'm already using. And he also told me to get the Elector PSP (44% spinosad). But for right now, I'm going to use the spinosad product that I tried before since it did do the job and is much cheaper. I'll wait on getting the Elector PSP until I see if my own mixture works.
And for the poor little rooster, because we can no longer get over-the-counter antibiotics to mix in their water, the only thing left to use is a product called Tylan, which he told me to get and to inject it into the rooster's breast every day for 5 days (although I've seen that some people administer it orally). Since our feed store said they don't have anything over-the-counter anymore, I'll be calling my local vet tomorrow to see if I can get the Tylan from her.
Let's hope little Archie gets better. I saw that some people suggest using VetRx for Poultry for respiratory infections, so I'll be getting some of that, too.
I will update this in the next couple of days to let you know what's happening with Archie and with the mite infestation.
Good luck to all of you and your flocks.
Yesterday we spent hours cleaning and treating our big house again. 4th time in little as 6 weeks. Thus the reason I started this thread. Our extreme constant rain lately has concentrated the little s.o.b.'s to create a mite civilization within the only dry place for acres around, our egg house.
All boxes, bedding stripped again. Bon fired it to destroy the pests and send them back to hell where they came from. Shoveled out 3 inches of floor and casted DE and replaced the sand with fresh fill. Casted more DE then straw and hay bedding. Then a layer of thin DE. Dusted the boxes with DE and birds with 5% sevin again.
Added a small molded swimming pool half full with clean wood ash and tiny amount of DE. The birds love the dust bath.
Our war on mites is never ending.. At least this season.
Ironically, our dogs do not need flea control. The rain has controlled those parasites so far... Knock on wood.
Good grief.
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom