Tick control--what to use??

[Faverolle]

Not sure how bad your tick problem is but I have guineas and chickens, a lot of chickens a matter of fact and I still have ticks. I know they are eating them and definitely helping a lot but it does not solve the problem completely.

 

[RaeC]

Really? Wow. Well, all I know is I had my saddle laying on the ground by the porch, (had just taken it off my horse and dropped it), and about 20 minutes later I went to pick it up, and it must've had 20 on the horn alone!

Last year the ticks were insane. We couldn't walk five feet away from the porch without hordes of them crawling up our pants. It was disgusting. The DE eventually helped there, but, we had to keep applying it.

I only have 19 chickens, so, I don't think they're going to do much good.

 

[chickenannie]

Is there a Lyme's disease vaccine?

 

[Albert Ward]

Guineas can become a pest and although they are protected by law in South Africa, you literally get them anywhere here by us. It will soon by winter here by us and it is usually their breeding season as well. They can really make a nuisance of themselves especially if you have a vegetable garden with a lot of yummies. I still have to see the bird that does not like freshly grown vegetables. In South Africa we get a product called Malasol which we use to spray the pens and the animals to control ticks and lice. It works wonderful and is animal friendly. It can be used as a dust or you can mix it with water and spray it.
Then we have a traditional remedy. Kakiebush is a weed that is really a nuisance but also has a lot of advantages. It even drive away bats if you throw it in the roof of your house or barn. We usually make a tea from this weed and add some pure soap - in our case, sunlight soap and add some white paraffin to it. Then when you need it, you use like a cup of this tea to 5 liters of water and spray/apply it where you like. It drives away plant lice and lice/ticks on animals and their kennels etc. Any one here by us who is a keen fisherman, will tell you, if you go fishing and you have problems with gnats you rub some kakiebush on you! Even mosquito's stay away from you! Look I must be honest with you, the smell is quite pungent and something to get use to - it will most probably drive your mother-in-law away as well!

But it works and is totally environmentally friendly!
Have a nice day
Albert

 

[Duppydo]

I got two guinea hens with my 10 NH reds last yr, all chicks. I'm in a resdential neighorhood and had tons of ticks.I finally had to get rid of the guineas because they were so loud and crazy.They were also teaching a few of my NHreds bad habits, like not going in the coop to roost at night.I have 9 NH reds and 16 white leghorns now and i've seen a big drop in the ticks around my place.They range on about half my property which is 1 1/2 acre. I still have ticks, but nothing like i had before the chicken.
Guineas are fine if you have lots of room, close neighbors that don't mine the noise and if you can handle there nutty behavior. I like calm, and things got much calmer when i got rid of the guineas. I'll have 40 chickens ranging around this season, we'll see how they control the ticks this yr.

 

[RaeC]

I've changed my mind again--I'm not getting guineas. LOL I really can't stand them. I'll get more chickens if I have to, I don't care. 19's not so many, anyway.

 

[erinm]

I HAVE NEVER FOUND A TICK ON MY CHICKENS. tHEY EAT THEM I IMAGINE. ERINM

 

[fzouk]

I got Lyme disease last year and trust me it's awful, which is why I have chickens now. But I still can't get a clear answer as to if they take care of the deer ticks. I know they'll eat the spotted ticks but the deer ticks are only as big as a freckle (if that) and so I wonder if the chickens can even find them? That is the most important thing to me! I will consider a guinea or two but I just like the chickens better. Plus I have a young daughter and even though she does tend to be gentle she is very young and runs all over and shrieks alot- she's not even 2 yet. I heard that if there are disturbances the guineas are likely to just take off and find a quieter area. So back to my original question- will the chickens take care of DEER ticks?

Thanks!
Frances

edited to add that that was really interesting about the things used in South Africa to ward off bugs!