Tiny Bugs Everywhere!

[taylorc_atx]

I feel like I have read through every thread that mentioned mites and still can't figure out what's going on with mine

I recently got 4 chickens (raised them from chicks) and transformed an old garden shed into a coop. It has new wood floors, metal sides. About a month ago I was hanging with the chickens in the coop and noticed bed bug like bites all over me and did some researched and figured it must be bird mites. I read through the threads and bought poultry dust as well as permethrin 10%. I threw away the pine shavings, sprayed the whole coop and the chickens once and then again 10 days later.

Everything seemed good for a while. I hadn't noticed the mites on the birds but I have seen feathers all over the coop. Just this morning, I went in to clean their droppings tray and found little red/brown mites crawling around underneath it. I sprayed the coop, removed the bedding, sprayed the birds but I'm worries the mites might just be in our yard? I let them free range during the day and they go in and out of our bushes and all over. What can I do to keep them from getting re-infested? How can I find out where they are coming from?

I'm located in Austin, TX if that helps at all!

Thanks in advance for all of your help!

 

[Egghead_Jr]

Sounds like quite the infestation.

Check the birds in typical areas, around vent is best on layers for mites. Lift back feathers to inspect for lice, they will nit on base of feathers. If the mites or lice are on the birds then repeat treatment. If these are just some random TX insect and not on the birds themselves I wouldn't worry about it. Insects are host dependent. If they are not targeting the birds then they are of little concern. As in poultry lice don't jump to dogs and poultry mites don't thrive away from poultry. Insects are incredibly host dependent. Inspect birds to determine if these little things are even thriving on your birds.

Edit to add- Dowsing the birds with spray is needed. If you are not using a garden type hand pump sprayer then likely you are not applying thoroughly. You can't willy nilly it. Douse birds, keep away from head and eyes. 100% effective. Repeat 10 days later to kill any hatched from eggs attached to birds during first treatment.

 

[Compost King]

Permethrin was the best purchase I have ever made. (Besides my farm)

Same here, in both powder and liquid form. I use Hi Yields Livestock Dust the most, Permethrin is the active ingredient in that. I use a liquid version too but only when their is an outbreak. I get mine at a local garden shop because its cheaper there for me than the livestock/feed stores.

 

[taylorc_atx]

Thanks for the quick responses!

I am using a spray bottle but my chickens are tough to chase down. 2 of them will let me but the other two run away. They are currently free ranging in the yard because the coops is wet with spray. I can't physically see any bugs on them but that doesn't mean they aren't there.

I'm curious what to do with their pine shavings. This morning I completely threw everything out and sprayed down the coop but haven't refreshed yet with new bedding. Should I just wait since I have to do it again in 10 days?

 

[Egghead_Jr]

You don't have to toss the bedding every time you spray. The first time yes and spray entire coop. Second round just spray cracks in wood joints and maybe mist top of bedding.

If you spray in the morning and have a person to aid you it's quite easy to take a bird at a time from the coop. One person holds the bird, the other sprays. Lift wing to spray under, turn bird and lift other wing, hold birds butt to sprayer, belly then top. Let bird go and grab another. And again, a one gallon pump spray for less than $10 makes this chore take a fraction of the time with complete confidence of dousing bird and coop.

 

[taylorc_atx]

Ok so I sprayed the entire coop and each bird on Thursday. I just went to clean out their droppings tray and noticed the same little bugs crawling around underneath it. I sprayed them with the same permethrin that I mixed on Thurs so it wasn't quite as fresh but it didn't seem to kill the bugs immediately on contact.. do you think maybe they aren't mites? Or maybe I should mix it a little stronger?

See attached picture for reference. It's tough to see but they are tiny little red bugs.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Ok so I sprayed the entire coop and each bird on Thursday. I just went to clean out their droppings tray and noticed the same little bugs crawling around underneath it. I sprayed them with the same permethrin that I mixed on Thurs so it wasn't quite as fresh but it didn't seem to kill the bugs immediately on contact.. do you think maybe they aren't mites? Or maybe I should mix it a little stronger?

So tiny - so hard to ID. You can try a stronger mix but whatever they are, they could possibly be resistant to permethrin if a higher % mix still doesn't work.

 

[cmom]

I use pine shavings in my coops. Repeated weekly thoroughly spraying every crack and crevice, everywhere in the coop are necessary because it does not kill the pests eggs, which also applies to Elector PSP as they state in their fact sheet for mites. I also use permethrin poultry dust in my nest boxes. Again, good luck...

You need to spray 3 or 4 weekly thorough sprayings. There is no egg withdrawal period.

 

[CRChicken]

I noticed these little bugs everywhere in the coop in broad daylight. They don't appear to be on the chickens. I have checked the chickens several times. We have seven pens and changed out the bedding on the roosts last week. The bugs are heavily concentrated in the coops with new bedding. They have also spread to the outside of the feed containers outside of the pens. They also randomly hitch a ride and will leave a small bite on my torso and ankles. What are these? View attachment 2370426

The same mite maybe? Northern fowl mite. We recently got new straw for the garden. My birds don’t have straw in their coop but range during the day and play in that straw.

Clean coop, toss straw, treat coop with Pyrethrum and regular nest spots plus do indoor cleaning?

 

[cmom]

This will work for most pests, permethrin. I used the 0.50% solution but I use the concentrate. Here is a solution sheet for the different permethrin concentrates by another BYC member I also use the poultry dust in my nest boxes. If you have a smaller area you can also use the premixed sprays.