Stick tight Fleas... HELP!!!!!!

[Newchickiemamma]

Ok so my Wyandotte, President lincoln is her name, is so moody. I tried to apply some Vaseline and she bit the q-tip. She also pecked me (thank god I was wearing gloves!) I have dusted the entire coop with DE and am doing a full cleanout this weekend. Is there ANYTHING I can do to get these fleas off of her without getting near her face? It seems like the DE has helped tremendously as a lot are gone but some are still on her. And worse, she had a poultry tick on her face right by her eye the other day!!! I’m assuming it’s a poultry tick because it was a dark reddish color and engorged so it looked like a big bubble on her eyelid. It was about the size of a small pea but not totally round. When I went to put her in from ranging it was gone and there was a small hole where it was. I know we definitely have more problems than just the sticktight fleas and this is just a very minor infestation. I know this because she is itching like crazy, shaking, and constantly biting at her back and under her wings. The other chickens seem to be fine because they spend most of the day in the run whereas president Lincoln spends all her time in the nesting box (she’s broody). Someone posted to use permethrin but I’m a little nervous to use a chemical treatment. Has anyone used this on their chickens before? Any help is greatly appreciated!!

 

[ronott1]

Ok so my Wyandotte, President lincoln is her name, is so moody. I tried to apply some Vaseline and she bit the q-tip. She also pecked me (thank god I was wearing gloves!) I have dusted the entire coop with DE and am doing a full cleanout this weekend. Is there ANYTHING I can do to get these fleas off of her without getting near her face? It seems like the DE has helped tremendously as a lot are gone but some are still on her. And worse, she had a poultry tick on her face right by her eye the other day!!! I’m assuming it’s a poultry tick because it was a dark reddish color and engorged so it looked like a big bubble on her eyelid. It was about the size of a small pea but not totally round. When I went to put her in from ranging it was gone and there was a small hole where it was. I know we definitely have more problems than just the sticktight fleas and this is just a very minor infestation. I know this because she is itching like crazy, shaking, and constantly biting at her back and under her wings. The other chickens seem to be fine because they spend most of the day in the run whereas president Lincoln spends all her time in the nesting box (she’s broody). Someone posted to use permethrin but I’m a little nervous to use a chemical treatment. Has anyone used this on their chickens before? Any help is greatly appreciated!!

Remember when we said to use pour on ivermectin? You put two or three drops on near her vent. It is like putting frontline on a dog--works from inside the hen.

The dead fleas may not fall off though.

Some think it is cruel, but holding a chicken upside down will calm them down

 

[Newchickiemamma]

Thanks! I also read putting them on their side helps... I’m willing to try anything! I love these girls and I know they love me it’s just president Lincoln and her hormonal moodiness. I’m just hoping I can get ahold of her to get her upside down. Usually I have a hard time just getting her out of the nesting box.

 

[Latestarter]

Sometimes you just gotta "man up" and do what needs doing. Remember, you outweigh her like 10 to one worst case. Grab her and hold her. You can lay her on her back and place a towel over her head. If she can't see, it will calm her down even more than just being on her back. Take care of her body then wrap the body in the towel and take care of her head.
http://www.livingwithbugs.com/permethrin_pyrethrum.html
It is a natural product or man made based on natural. There is no withdrawals that I'm aware of and it is great and effective. You will need to clean out the coop and nest box and spray the entire inside area down well. You may need to re-treat in 10 days. Just to be sure.

 

[ronott1]

Sometimes you just gotta "man up" and do what needs doing. Remember, you outweigh her like 10 to one worst case. Grab her and hold her. You can lay her on her back and place a towel over her head. If she can't see, it will calm her down even more than just being on her back. Take care of her body then wrap the body in the towel and take care of her head.
http://www.livingwithbugs.com/permethrin_pyrethrum.html
It is a natural product or man made based on natural. There is no withdrawals that I'm aware of and it is great and effective. You will need to clean out the coop and nest box and spray the entire inside area down well. You may need to re-treat in 10 days. Just to be sure.

permethrin, spinosad and pour on ivermectin are good choices. There is a chance that the fleas have resistance to ivermectin though.

DE and they will be back! If you really can't get rid of them, you can use fiprinol but that can be hard on them.

 

[Newchickiemamma]

So I just attempted to remove one from each of my chickens to ensure this is exactly what I’m dealing with. I started with my most tame chicken. I picked her up and held her on her side, she was falling asleep as I picked at the ONE sticktight flea on her. As I pulled on it she shook her head slightly but I got it loose and either crushed it or lost it before I could examine it further. My other extremely tame girl doesn’t appear to have any on her at all! So I moved on to my wyandottes, my silver laced is very skittish but never pecks or scratches so I knew she’d be a safe bet. I did the same thing as the other, held her on her side and decided which one I was going to pull out. It seemed like there were two or three bunched on top of one another near her eye so I went there. She was being so good and tame. Two of them crumbled upon compression of the tweezers, the third was stuck fast. I couldn’t remove it. It was clearly causing irritation to her every time I pulled at it and I felt like I was pulling a piece of her skin off! Is this how these fleas are? Do they come off easier when dead? I can’t stand the thought of torturing my poor babies yet I know I need to get these things off of them! I am now second guessing myself and thinking maybe this is just small particles of dirt stuck on their face? How would I know the difference? I didn’t even attempt my other Wyandotte. She made her way back to the nesting box while all of this was going on and that’s where she’s the meanest. I’m going up when it gets dark to look for mites, I will take a picture of her face and what I believe are the fleas and post it.

 

[ronott1]

So I just attempted to remove one from each of my chickens to ensure this is exactly what I’m dealing with. I started with my most tame chicken. I picked her up and held her on her side, she was falling asleep as I picked at the ONE sticktight flea on her. As I pulled on it she shook her head slightly but I got it loose and either crushed it or lost it before I could examine it further. My other extremely tame girl doesn’t appear to have any on her at all! So I moved on to my wyandottes, my silver laced is very skittish but never pecks or scratches so I knew she’d be a safe bet. I did the same thing as the other, held her on her side and decided which one I was going to pull out. It seemed like there were two or three bunched on top of one another near her eye so I went there. She was being so good and tame. Two of them crumbled upon compression of the tweezers, the third was stuck fast. I couldn’t remove it. It was clearly causing irritation to her every time I pulled at it and I felt like I was pulling a piece of her skin off! Is this how these fleas are? Do they come off easier when dead? I can’t stand the thought of torturing my poor babies yet I know I need to get these things off of them! I am now second guessing myself and thinking maybe this is just small particles of dirt stuck on their face? How would I know the difference? I didn’t even attempt my other Wyandotte. She made her way back to the nesting box while all of this was going on and that’s where she’s the meanest. I’m going up when it gets dark to look for mites, I will take a picture of her face and what I believe are the fleas and post it.

Yes, kill them first and then remove them if you need to

 

[Newchickiemamma]

Could the DE have made them crumble like that? I know it dries them out but everything I’ve been reading says they stay stuck until removed even after they’re dead. That’s why I am second guessing myself if they really are stuck tight fleas or if I just have dirty faced chickens.

 

[Newchickiemamma]

I went up to the coop... what an experience that was! (my property backs up to a Christmas tree farm and the coop is back by the trees) I was petrified with all the noises I heard coming from those trees! And the chickens were sleeping! Two of them were sleeping standing up! I looked for mites on President Lincoln and didn’t see anything. Her skin looked a little crusty but I didn’t see anything crawling. I did see a lot of little black bugs scurrying ON the coop itself. I am wondering if those were the mites? I’m also wondering if that’s why two of my chickens are sleeping standing up? They all used to huddle together and sleep but now they aren’t. So I wonder if it could be mites causing the issue. Any ideas?
I still didn’t get a picture of the fleas, president Lincoln was sleeping and I didn’t want to wake her by trying to move her head. Plus, I forgot my gloves in case she pecked me!

 

[ronott1]

I went up to the coop... what an experience that was! (my property backs up to a Christmas tree farm and the coop is back by the trees) I was petrified with all the noises I heard coming from those trees! And the chickens were sleeping! Two of them were sleeping standing up! I looked for mites on President Lincoln and didn’t see anything. Her skin looked a little crusty but I didn’t see anything crawling. I did see a lot of little black bugs scurrying ON the coop itself. I am wondering if those were the mites? I’m also wondering if that’s why two of my chickens are sleeping standing up? They all used to huddle together and sleep but now they aren’t. So I wonder if it could be mites causing the issue. Any ideas?
I still didn’t get a picture of the fleas, president Lincoln was sleeping and I didn’t want to wake her by trying to move her head. Plus, I forgot my gloves in case she pecked me!

You really need to treat the coops with permethrin and alternate with spinosad. If there is that much wild life around you will need to spray the coop once a month and alternate.

You can get captain jacks bug dead juice and mix a spray the same strength to kill garden pests. Spray the coop when the chickens are not in it. It is not toxic to the chickens and will persist for a month out of direct sunlight.

The next month use permethrin. Do that during the spring to mid Fall. Check the chickens too to make sure they are free of bugs.

You might not have to do this more than one season. Keep an eye on it though.

DE will not stop the bugs