Spanish moss for nests?

[AmyRey]

We headed south for the weekend.. Far enough south that we got into spanish moss area.

I plucked myself a bagful, thinking it would make excellent nesting material but thought it wise to run it by you guys before I added it to the boxes.

Yes? No?

 

[Cabe]

Be careful you don't get eat up by redbugs.

 

[lleighmay]

I have been told (but cannot verify it first hand since I subsequently did not use it) that spanish moss is prone to harboring mites- I once asked my vet about using some to make a nest for some baby birds I was rehabbing and he suggested it wasn't a good idea.

 

[SallyF]

I lived in South Carolina for 22 years, and heard that you could microwave the Spanish moss to get rid of redbugs. You might also try dusting it with 5% Sevin. If that kills mites, it may kill redbugs too. Just shake it out good before you put it in the nests.

 

[AmyRey]

Ahhhh... the microwave. Hadn't thought of that.

I had planned to debug the moss before using it (not that I've noticed any bugs) and couldn't quite figure out a harmless-to-the-chickens way to do this.

Thanks!

 

[shesell]

The only issue I can think of is that sometimes the moss has tiny bugs in it. We call them chiggers and they cause intense itching after they bite. It's not a rule that all of the spanish moss has chiggers, but I know we don't use it for bedding for any animal here.

Sheila

 

[Sugar Sand Farm]

I use spanish moss in my nest boxes and have not had any problems. We are in Florida. I know another BYCer from Florida also uses it. Don't know if I am just lucky or what but my birds have never had mites of any kind. Micki

 

[PeepsInc]

Here's everything I've ever been told about that moss. DONT TOUCH IT!.... You'll get a type of scabies from it. Those mites will crawl under your skin. Use hay in your nesting box.

 

[AmyRey]

I first tried hay, but it soon got buggy too.

*** shrug ***

 

[SallyF]

Go to this website and read the section on "why Spanish moss is used for stuffing." If you decide to microwave it, you might look that up on the Internet also. If you put it in dry and run the oven too long, it might catch fire.

http://www.terrebonneparish.com/local/culture/spanishmoss/spanishmoss3.htm