Hi everyone, this is a very interesting thread as I just logged in to ask a question for a friend here in France - last week, he noticed hundreds of thousands of what he describes as minuscule red fleas on his hens (he has about 35 laying hens) and covering the wood inside the coops. He picked up some of the hens and saw the "fleas" running around between the feathers. No-one here (we are in Brittany, West France), not even the vets, seems to know what to do, but he eventually found a treatment in a local farm shop. His hens are in a large enclosure near to a wood with various trees, including pines, oaks... He recently bought two goats which are near to the chickens - could they be the cause? But they do not seem to have any fleas on them. He keeps his coops very clean. When we spoke today he couldn't remember the name of the product, (Rodeo something he thinks, but loads of ingredients!!). He "powdered" the hens one by one, very thoroughly. They seem to have gone, but his question is - will they come back and what caused it? Many thanks for any help. Tilly xx
Treating the hens is not enough. If it's red roost mite, which it sounds likely it is, then the coop will need a thorough cleaning with an insecticide to kill them off. Then hens become weakened as their blood is being sucked every night by the mites and they are at risk of dying.
I can't read it but here's a fact sheet in French with information about which areas are more likely to have a mite outbreak and your treatment options. I do recommend Neem oil painted on the inside of the coop, especially in all the nooks and crannies as that's where the mites hide during the day, and why they are so difficult to eliminate.
Hopefully your friend can get on top of this. Goodluck!