tell me your experiences with Chiggers

[Kelly FG]

My DH was working in a damp, brushy area(not on our property) & he seems to have contracted chiggers.
I have checked my flock thoroughly & I do not see any bugs on them. I dust them with DE regularly.
DH is sure he got the chiggers at work, I'm hoping he didn't get them from my birfd. Has anyone ever gotten chiggers from their flock?

 

[Mac in Wisco]

No, damp brushy areas are breeding grounds for chiggers. Tell him to use some bug spray and duct tape his pants around his boots before he heads back there.

 

[homecatmom]

What are chiggers, and do we have them in Calif?
Cathy

 

[Mac in Wisco]

They are mite larvae. Some call them redbugs. They usually bite you where the clothing is tight and warm, like around the socks or the waistband. They actually inject an enzyme at the base of the hair follicles that causes a red, swollen, oozing, incredibly itchy sore. Soap and water removes them but it takes a while for the bites to heal.

 

[homecatmom]

ohhh, nasty little buggers. I have never heard of them around here. (thankfully)

 

[okiechick57]

ewwww I loathe chiggers......they don't go after me ever.guess I have bad blood........but eat my kids up......I put clear nail polish on em......seems to take care of them.and yes.duct tape on pants works wonders....

 

[Mac in Wisco]

I've run into them everywhere I've been. We had them growing up in Wisconsin. When I worked as a power lineman in Ohio, every time we had to work in tall grass we duct taped our pants to keep them out. I didn't think about it fishing one time in Kentucky and sat in the tall grass at the edge of a lake pulling out bluegill. The next day I had about 500 bites from my toes to my chest. That was probably the worst I ever got them. Here in Texas we get them in our lawn in the early summer after it's been raining a while. I usally end up with at least a few bites around my ankles at some point each year. The neighbor across the street lets his sideyard grow a couple feet tall and drains his washing machine out there to keep things growing. I only ventured over there once and that was the last time...

 

[WoodlandWoman]

It also helps to spray your shoes and socks with bug repellent. After you've already been bitten, applying an antihistamine lotion, like calahist, helps with the itching. They itch more than a mosquito bite and take longer to heal. Scratching just makes it worse.

It's definitely the long grass areas that are a problem.

 

[Newchickenmom&kids]

If you don't like to use bug spray...you can also go to a drugstore and buy powdered sulfur....you just sprinkle/rub it around your ankles...put around socks/shoes...put it around armpits and/or cuffs or sleeves of clothing....works great!! Generally cheaper too!!

 

[davecash]

i hate chiggers. rub the infected spots with rubbin alcohol. itll burn but itll get rid of it quick.