should I provide a dust bath?

[CityChook]

If you give them a dust bath then it might discourage them from digging huge holes in the run or under your favorite flowers in the garden.

I have sand in my run and dump wood ash from the backyard fire pit. They seem to love it and I heard that it keeps the mites away. Don't know if that's true, but I haven't had a mite problem, so...

I asked the owner of our local pet food store (mom/pop) if he could get me some DE. He special ordered it for me from one of his vendors and had it delivered to the shop in 2 days. No shipping charges. I know that the local farm/feed stores around here (and I'm in the city!) also carry it. I ordered a pretty small quantity (size of two large pickle jars) and it has lasted me over the last 2 years with plenty to spare.

 

[KenCoesta]

Ah, right on...
I got a fire pit too - i was wondering what to do with the ashes.

So how much DE do you use in a typical treatment.
Is there such a thing as too much?
Or do you just kinda throw some in there?

How about a dust bath recipes?
That might be a good topic!

 

[elmo]

You don't want to inhale DE (nor do you want your birds inhaling it, either). I just sprinkle it around using an old sugar duster (the kind you use for confectioners sugar...but I've marked this one so my husband won't get confused and accidentally use it on something to eat!). I wait until the chickens are elsewhere, and use a dust mask for myself.

I also put DE in the bottoms of our nestboxes when I change the bedding. However, in the summer mite season, I use poultry dust in the nestboxes in place of DE. A friend of ours had some chicks killed by mites here last summer, and I'm paranoid about them.