Topic of the Week - Lice and Mites - Prevention and Treatments

[Tillicans]

Good idea, especially in this hot weather

 

[rottlady]

Sevin i

I recently treated my chickens with permethrin spray for stick fleas and put Vaseline on their faces and necks and then sprayed the coop with sevin spray.
I am thinking I will need to retreat both in 3 wks when the eggs hatch ................?

Sevin is illegal to use in poultry

I would spray the coop every 6 months with permethrin never the birds themself

 

[casportpony]

Sevin is no longer "approved" for use in poultry, but it's not illegal to use it, as in no back yard chicken owner is gonna get in trouble for using it.

Permethrin is "approved", and *can* be sprayed on the bird and coop.

-Kathy

 

[Tillicans]

I'm shocked no one here has mentioned diatomaceous earth as a way to manage parasites.  There are naysayers, but I love the approach this woman uses, as part of keeping her flock healthy and happy.  Do exercise caution whenever working with DE, around people and animals.  So, pal close attention to the safety instructions near the bottom of the article.  http://www.fresheggsdaily.com/2012/01/holistic-trinity-acv-garlic-and-de.html

Thanks for the link. I'm new to chicken raising but not to prevention medicine in its natural state. I kept hearing people criticise D,E that it is useless. Since I have been using it now for six months none of my girls have had any infestation of lice mites worms. I will continue to use it within the coop and nesting area, and also apple cider vinegar and garlic. I appreciate everyone has their own opinion and I respect that.
I'm not fond of chemicals on myself, my dogs or my chickens. I rarely visit a doctor I eat whole foods and feed raw food to my dogs as well. My chickens get fresh food not spoilt food or mouldy food. I clean their coop daily especially the nesting area. If I get mites I will then deal with them however I can to be rid of them. But trust prevention is better than cure.. I've said my piece.

 

[rottlady]

True

Sevin is no longer "approved" for use in poultry, but it's not illegal to use it, as in no back yard chicken owner is gonna get in trouble for using it.

Permethrin is "approved", and *can* be sprayed on the bird and coop.

-Kathy

True the police won't come knocking on a homeowner with a personal use flock, but if you sell eggs or meat birds it is not legal to use

See post 17
www.backyardchickens.com/t/1142760/medications-and-pesticide-withdrawal-times-for-layers#post_17795043
The word illegal is used by FARAD

 

[BlackBrookPoultry]

white wash inside the coop and the roosts and permethrin powder on the roosts and birds. I use permethrin powder on dogs and cats as well.

Permethrin should not be used on cats! It is very toxic to them. I actually just had to have my cat on IVs for 2 days to stop her seizures and high fever after being exposed to a .05% permethrin home spray.

 

[BlackBrookPoultry]

I've never had to treat for scaly leg mites, and can't imagine applying anything to 48 pairs or chicken legs several times to treat them, either.  I'd go with the spray, on their legs, while roosting, as a much more user friendly approach.  If an actual poultry expert tells me ahead of time that it won't work,  I would listen.  hope it never becomes an issue here!  Mary

I have a friend who's in his 70s and has a ton of bantams running around his sheep farm. When they have chicks late in the year he gives me the broody with all of the chicks. The hens always have terrible leg mites. I use swat ointment for horses. I slather their legs with it just one or two times and it takes care of the leg mites.

 

[Beekissed]

This week I'd like to talk about a creepy crawly topic: external parasites, such as mites and lice (and fleas and ticks). I would like to hear what you all consider the best way to deal with these very common parasites on your flocks, as well as their housing. Specifically:

- What do you do to help prevent mite/lice/etc infestations? (I.e. preventive treatments on the birds themselves and in the coop)
- What are the tell tale signs of an infestation?
- What product(s) works best to combat mites/lice etc?

Preventative~they pretty much dust themselves and have many spots to do so, but in the winter months they utilize the floor of the coop where the DL is the driest, providing a fine dust for this purpose. Twice a year I dust the roosts and the bottom of the nest boxes with pyrethrin or permethrin powder, whatever I have on hand at the time. Twice a year I also massage castor oil into their scales, particularly before winter and do a good body inspection.

When I receive new birds to the flock, they are dusted thoroughly with pyrethrin powder and legs, combs and wattles are massaged well with a thick application of castor oil.

So far that's been the ticket. The only time I've had to deal with lice or mites in 40 yrs has been when getting a flock back from a bad place of management where they had resided for over a year and one time some years previous to that my flock got scale mites from new birds introduced into the flock...since then, all new birds get dusted and oiled up with CO when they arrive.

Mostly a free range life, good dusting spots, culling for healthy stock and the steps described above keep my flock free of parasites, even when introducing new birds into the flock that have obvious signs of scale mites and lice when they arrive.

Two products that work best are permethrin(roosts), pyrethrin(birds) and Castor oil(scale mites, both for preventative and treatment).

I've never had a case of red northern mites in the coop at all, so can't speak of them.

 

[Tillicans]

I agree with Beekissed, keep the coop clean and the chickens are healthy.

Top of the list for me to prevent mites, lice etc:
Is to have many spots for dust bathing inside the coop and outside when free ranging, they know what to do put D.E into the dust bath.
Keep their food and water clean by making sure they are changed regularly. Nasties in water if soiled. Use A.C.V in their water to strengthen their immune system. Keep them away from wild birds.
Clean and disinfect Coop regularly especially roosts.
I am not a person that reaches out for chemicals prefer to use natural products, but I have used
Pestene on the birds if they are infested with lice and mites and that works.
D.E in their pellets, around the coop, and dusted on them and their nesting boxes.
In the wild I have seen many chickens in perfect health no mites or scales no chemicals.
Rule of the thumb keep the coop clean. I like the idea of castor oil.

 

[Folly's place]

My birds free range, and the wild birds are also there, and sometimes get into the coop during the day. They will bring mites or lice sometimes; I check some of the birds at night on their roosts every week, or any time something doesn't look right. Last summer/ fall I had mites twice on the birds, and finally discovered permethrin spray concentrate, so much easier to use than the dust!!! Mary