Treating Flock for Lice/Mites

[Kiki]

Ask @KikisGirls about her most recent fecal, you might find what she says interesting.

My fecal was negative.
Not only did I see tapeworms I saw a round worm too.

I saw the tapeworms before the negative fecal test and the round worm after the negative test results.

I no longer trust "regular" fecal swab test.
I will for ever insist on a FLOAT test.
(Is that the correct name for it @casportpony ? )

These worms were seen in a dog but still this same vet was the one that last tested my chickens poop!

 

[casportpony]

My fecal was negative.
Not only did I see tapeworms I saw a round worm too.

I saw the tapeworms before the negative fecal test and the round worm after the negative test results.

I no longer trust "regular" fecal swab test.
I will for ever insist on a FLOAT test.
(Is that the correct name for it @casportpony ? )

These worms were seen in a dog but still this same vet was the one that last tested my chickens poop!

I think float is one of the terms they use. Also important is the float method, but I don't know enough to say more than that.

 

[Kiki]

Well what ever the method is called where they simple smear some fresh poop on a slide and look at it under the scope...will not cut it for ME anymore.

I want the more "accurate type" of poop testing from now on.

 

[Kiki]

This:
https://ahdc.vet.cornell.edu/test/detail.aspx?testcode=FECQL
is what I am talking about.
This type of test.

 

[FishMtFarm]

FYI, northern Fowl mites are usually carried on mice and other rodents so pest control on these guys is just a crucial as treating for mites. The mice nested in my hay over the winter and then this spring when I pulled it out of the loft to stack down stairs, I saw mites crawling all over my arms. The mites came off the move and infested my hay. Had to dispose of all the hay and spray my whole barn. I keep advantage drops on my chickens so luckily, they had no bugs on them but I spray my coop once a week or two weeks with permytherin ( spelling?) after I clean just as a precaution.

 

[dunnmom]

I'm about to dip my girls. My hubby is anti-chemical anything on our chickens, so that leaves me with few effective options. Thankfully he didn't get on my case about it when I had to treat our flock for fowl pox, but I convinced him the antibiotics were absolutely necessary for their survival because of secondary infections. Only one shows signs of scaly leg mites, but I figure it's probably best to treat everyone at the same time, as I have young chicks in the run.

I got the idea from a former post on here to use neem oil and make a dip out of it (2tbsp. to 1 gal. water). Neem oil is supposed to be effective against many types of insects and parasites, but it's more expensive than the mite/lice sprays. People use it to spray their gardens, so I'm not too worried about it's safety.

We'll give it a try and see how it goes, I guess. But if it doesn't work, I'll have to sneak in a Permethrin treatment while DH is at work to avoid the argument. I try my best to keep things natural, but sometimes effectiveness matters more.

 

[Backyard Bruce]

What are these drops you guys are putting on your chickens to combat mites.
Is it something like frontline for chickens? Is it effective like peritherin. Where can you buy this stuff.

 

[Kiki]

What are these drops you guys are putting on your chickens to combat mites.
Is it something like frontline for chickens? Is it effective like peritherin. Where can you buy this stuff.

It's made for cattle.
Feed stores carry it.
Ivermectin.
It is sold in two forms...injectable and pour on.
Anyone that uses it here have a picture of the bottle?

 

[Kiki]

 

[townchicks]

Here's the skinny on fecal tests. What is looked for on the slide, from either float or direct smear, are the worm eggs. Eggs are shed by the adult worms in cycles, so it is possible to have worms and have nothing show up in the feces. Usually it it best to do 2 tests, 2 weeks apart, if nothing is seen on the first test.