Starting to get paranoid about using things like diatomaceous earth on my chickens :(

[Chick-n-duck mom]

To be honest it was his fault - he would wear his pajamas out to the coop to say good night to the chickens, then after hugging them he'd wear the pjs to bed. All bugs find me tastier, so while I slept the mites would chew on me, and this repeated for weeks (until I was so paranoid I made an appointment to assess for bed bugs, as the bites looked identical) until one day hubby went, "Huh, I just came in from the coop and there's little bugs on my hand."

If nothing else I learned how to very thoroughly eradicate mites from the chickens, the coop, AND the house!

That’s just the sweetest thing ever!!! What a sweet guy, your husband. Any man who hugs his chickens every night is awesome I my book! Sorry about the bugs!

 

[rangstadt62]

DE has properties that can be carcinogenic. They use it in pool filters. Also birds get mites. Not aware of them dying from it!

 

[Ellegibs]

Has anyone actually used DE and gotten sick from it? Or their birds? (Sorry for hijacking the thread )

I use food grade DE and put it in their feed. I also use the agricultural version (found in Tractor Supply) and sprinkled it through their nesting areas, dust bath, etc.
I've never had an issue.

 

[7 Biddies]

I don’t know why DE would be ineffective. I had fleas on my house and a good dusting eliminatEd them ALL! I put DE down whenever I clean the coop and it works well. I would use any toxins, especially ones that kill bees! They have enough problems, right now.

 

[rangstadt62]

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/what-is-diatomaceous-earth#what-it-is

 

[chickencoop57]

Has anyone actually used DE and gotten sick from it? Or their birds? (Sorry for hijacking the thread )

I've used it and never gotten sick from it and neither has my birds. However, I don't use it very often, either, maybe once or twice a year.

 

[SuperWhoLockian]

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/what-is-diatomaceous-earth#what-it-is

Thank you for this article. Sounds like food-grade is the way to go if you feel there is an infestation or a pet may have worms. Don’t use the other and still use PPE to not inhale it.

 

[galanie]

DE is a desiccant. If, like me, you are in a humid climate, it won't be as effective as it is for someone living in a more dry climate, say like in TN where it's always 20-50% less humid. For example today the relative humidity is, under sunny skies, 50% whereas there it is 30% under the same conditions and temp. Doesn't sound like much but trust me, when the temps are very high or very low, you really feel the difference. I an unable to simply hang herbs to dry; they'll never fully dry nearly enough to last very long.

While it's true that DE, in it's natural state does have sharp edges, food grade and the like have been processed to "round off" those sharp edges. So it works mostly as a fine dust that will dry out things. This is how it can kill insects. That powdery dust gets in their joints, makes its way into their systems and causes them to sort of dry up.

And is also why it doesn't work for many people. If the stuff has already soaked in moisture from a humid environment (which it will, either before or after being used) then it's effectiveness is reduced. It being a fine dust, it can and will aggravate the lungs and sinuses. The material itself isn't toxic but it can cause problems depending how much is inhaled/ingested. And that is the problem. Too much of anything is never good and excessively dusting/using it can cause issues beyond what it's meant to solve. Perfectly fine to solve a recent problem but if the trouble is ongoing, there are issues to be looked at and treated more aggressively.

I had a problem with them once. I just dusted the birds and area with permethrin and that pretty much did the trick. Checked back closely a few times. No more bugs, no more powder. Perfectly safe to do so. I might have used DE if my climate was such that it would be effective, but I don't so I just used permethrin. Once. Everybody was fine.

 

[Kimberjo2]

So, after revisiting some articles warning about the dangers of Diatomaceous Earth, and now I've successfully managed to freak myself out over chemicals that could make me sick.

Any reccomendations for things to prevent mites that won't kill
me in the future? This kind of stuff manages to freak me out a lot, so using better products would be more reassuring

I have been using Diatomaceous in chicken coop for years with no damaging side effects to my chickens. I lightly dust everything not heavy. No mites here! My son in law uses it successfully around perimeter of the house each year for ant control…he swears by it.

 

[Yukonn15]

So, after revisiting some articles warning about the dangers of Diatomaceous Earth, and now I've successfully managed to freak myself out over chemicals that could make me sick.

Any reccomendations for things to prevent mites that won't kill
me in the future? This kind of stuff manages to freak me out a lot, so using better products would be more reassuring

I have kept a flock since 2012 and DE has always been my go to for parasites. Just make sure you get the food grade kind not the one for pools. I get it at tractor supply. It is harmless to people. i don’t know if mites were bad this past year or because of the wild birds but I am currently treating my flock with DE. Or if you would rather spray your flock I recently got a recipe 10 oz. Water, 1oz garlic juice, 1teaspoon of a combination of different essential oils, like lavender, clove, lemon.