trouble with dust baths.

[cluckin tractor]

might get a 44 gallon drum cut a 1/4 of it and fill with the stuff and that should be good enough. will try once i get some more oxy gas

 

[cluckin tractor]

i cant seem to find de in australia. is their other names

 

[dirtgirl49]

To cluckin tractor - Here in Oz the powder used for mites etc is known as Pestene and is made by Inca company at St Marys in New South Wales (Ph:02 9833 1728) They should be able to let you know who your nearest supplier is - or in turn they can probably mail some to you. It comes in a 500gm cardboard sprinkle tube (reminds me of a can of Ajax sink cleaner!!)

My chooks have a favorite spot up the far end of their run under the Crepe Myrtle tree - where it gets the afternoon sun and they fight for pole position and will even sit on top of each other to get to have their dust baths. They then sit and preen each other!

 

[cluckin tractor]

yer that is the stuff i use. handy tube but it has gont up from 11 bucks to 16. good stuff. i askked about DE at a farm shop (co-op) crt or landmark or something but they had never heard of it

 

[dirtgirl49]

Cluckin tractor - Have you tried looking at the vetshopaustralia site. They seem to have lots of products on there suitable for caged birds to counteract fleas, lice etc.. I find them very cheap and buy all my dogs flea and worm stuff from them and they cost me half what the vet tends to charge. That Pestene powder has gone up again to $17.50 at a few places (perhaps they have cottoned on to the fact that a lot more people are starting to keep backyard chickens!)
Also my breeder who supplied me with most of my Silkies recommends spraying the birds with a low irritant fly and mossie spray. He said to just make sure you cover their faces and give them a quick spray. He has been breeding Silkies and other poultry for 50 yrs+ and he gave me a basic facts sheet on health care of chickens etc.

I must admit I haven't had any problems with lice etc and I am always checking the girls - perhaps their dust baths are doing the trick.

 

[wingsofglory]

It is also called "diatomaceous earth"

It is ancient deposits of diatoms that are fossilized I think. It is mined. It is white and looks like powder. The sharp particles wreck insects. Harmless to eat and kills internal parasites too and for people too, so its sold here also in health food stores in "food grade". It is naturally occurring and does not have insecticide in it. It is also sold for swimming pools I think for filters.

Some companies selll it as insecticide by adding insecticide chemicals to it. You don't want this kind.

 

[dirtgirl49]

Thanks wingsofglory for the full title of DE. I have googled it and found it is sold here in Australia and recommended due to it's natural properties. I am sure my daughter will know all about it as she is a geoscientist.