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

[casportpony]

Gasoline? Good grief! Mary

*Allegedly* recommended by this person:
http://animalscience.uconn.edu/faculty/michael darre.php



Source: http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2013/03/scaly-leg-mites-in-chickens.html

-Kathy

Edited to add:

I do not think that the method shown above is one I would ever try, and I searched high and low for another reference where Dr. Darre suggested this, but could not find one.

Bottom line. Do not believe everything you read!

If you see something that says to use something like gasoline, find at least two other credible sources to back it up.

@Folly's place

 

[Wickedchicken6]

Will mites die in -12C (10F) if they're outside a chicken's body.

 

[casportpony]

Dr. Michael J. Darre's name is on these:
https://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource000790_Rep811.pdf
http://cag.uconn.edu/ansci/ansci/extension/documents/PestManagementonFarms.pdf

No mention of gasoline in either.

 

[poodlechicks]

So sorry!  It's often a favorite who leaves early, very sad.  Mary

Sorry for your loss.

Thank you both!

 

[Wickedchicken6]

I sprayed everything with permethrin before I installed the birds it is good for 6 months
When I build me new coop this summer I will spray the whole inside every crevice with permethrin and let it dry well before the birds move in

Quote:

Spray lightly; it doesn't take much! And it's very easy at night, when you can spray the roosts and the chickens all at the same time, without disturbing them. Wonderful! Mary

So you spray the birds with a 20ml/gallon mixture? Just misting the birds will kill everything right to the skin?

Quote:

Quote:
I've bathed a couple of my worst chickens with baby body wash. I find it seems to kill creepy crawlies the fastest in our sink. They seemed to like being bathed too and were quite content to sit in the water.

I bought a couple jugs of cooking oil, used a shallow pan and dipped the flock's legs at night when they were roosting.
For me, I found it got all over their belly feathers, the roosts and then the eggs in the nest boxes.

I have taken the oldest originals to the vet because they had legs that were in terrible condition. The vet gave an injection of ivermectin. It helped I think but I didn't see worlds of improvement.

When I dusted the roosters, I also sprayed red kote on all of the roosters' legs. I had seen on someone's site that they had this listed for leg mites. So I did a little research. One of the main ingredients is phenol (carbolic acid) which has many uses...but it has antiseptic properties. It can be toxic in stronger concentrations. I believe I read somewhere that it's the base for one of the heavy disinfectants in hospitals. It's also in Watkins petro carbo first aid salve for humans.

Red kote is used as an antiseptic/softening agent for wounds so I figured it was worth trying. The first can I bought was a dream to use...it was very precise in spraying the legs and everything runs right under the scales if you have the rooster tipped. The second can I started seemed very wasteful. The legs did appear better, but I haven't done any follow up. I did catch my old and very wild original OEGB rooster who had the very worst legs...and I see he has had chunks flake off and a decent leg showing underneath. I'll be treating all the roosters before they go into their new building...so I'll be able to get a close up of the condition of their legs and see if the red kote worked. I've also considered using the Watkins salve to see if it works. I really like the red legs on the roosters though.

 

[Linda V]

I'm fairly new at this - 6 months experience, but I have found that CHICKEN GRADE D.E. with wood ash is the best way for my hens!

You simply sprinkle it into their nesting material and because I use the correct form of SAND in the drawer under their roosting perches inside the coop and the bottom of the coop (ground floor) - they do not have any parasites internally or externally! The DE also has kept all ants, bugs, etc., from getting into the coop from the sides, above or the bottom!

So, my advice is CHICKEN GRADE D.E. WITH WOOD ASH!

Whatever works...works!

 

[elizmartin]

posting to keep great information, Thanks

 

[rescue2694]

I don't know if it has already been mentioned in this tread (i didn't read it all), but I have had GREAT results using two drops of Frontline (spray) applied near the vent every 6 months. I haven't seen any lice since starting this treatment 4 or 5 years back. Before that I treated with the usual (permethrin, sevin,ect.) and the birds where always dealing with the creepy crawlies.

 

[mobius]

Whitewash the inside of your coop...this is what I do:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/1096237/whitewash-the-inside-of-your-coop-recipe-cheap-and-easy

 

[casportpony]

. Most such products have withholding periods of 3-4 months for meat and are not approved for use on dairy cows. Unfortunately little is known about the target-animal safety of such pour-ons.

• Never use on rabbits, particularly on young one, which seem to be particularly sensitive to fipronil.

• Never use on chickens and other poultry: they are much more sensitive to fipronil than mammals. However ducks and other aquatic birds tolerate fipronil better.

• Unless prescribed by a veterinary doctor, never use on dogs or cats products for livestock that are not explicitly approved for such use. There is a high risk of overdosing or of adverse drug reactions due toingredients that are not tolerated by pets or are even toxic to them.

Another fipronil link:
http://www.toxipedia.org/display/toxipedia/Fipronil

-Kathy

http://npic.orst.edu/factsheets/archive/fiptech.html

at 5x the recommended dose showed no adverse effects.

• Puppies treated twice with a spot-on at 2x the recommended dose showed no adverse effects.

• In a one-year study fipronil was administered daily to dogs in gelatin capsules at 0.2, 2, or 5 mg/kg. At doses of ≥2 mg/kg several neurotoxicity signs were recorded and one animal died. The NOAEL was 0.2 mg/kg/day.

-Kathy