Yet another post asking about Mites. Sorry I need more help

[HeatherLynn]

Ok so I found food grade DE and I admit the stuff seems to work great BUT I still keep getting buggies on the birds. Ok so first my polishes got infested with lice. No clue how. No one else showed any signs but out came the de and the 7 dust. The regular dust bath spots got a good dose of DE. Can I do the same with 7? Anywho the offending birdies also got a good dusting with 7. They were separate from the others so I thought that would be fine. Now my baby birds who are still caged but the cage is inside the coop have Mites. Losing my mind. Ok so today I gave them a good DE bath. I will check them over tomorrow and probably dust a bit of 7 on them. I cannot see how this is not affecting the other birds. They must have them too I just am not seeing them yet. So obviously the DE I am using so liberally is not doing enough. So what do I do now. I hate to catch them all. Its such a stressful thing for them and in this heat.... well its just stressful. Can I add 7 dust to their dust bathing spots? will this help or hurt? Or do I bite the bullet and pull in the family to start a production line to treat all the birdies?

Also how is this happening. No new birds have been brought in. The last girls have been in with the others just 3 weeks but I had them for 21 days before I let them join the flock and I checked them regularly. I will win this battle over the bugs somehow. So any other advise would be appreciated.

 

[math ace]

My hens showed signs of lice a few months ago. I treated them aggressively - - - just like I would a human.

I used Adams Flea and tick DIP with grow inhibitor. Using the DIP is much easier and covers better than the spray.

1st - - Get a five gallon bucket and fill it with water EARLY on a WARM / HOT day.

2nd - - add the appropriate amount of dip.
I think you can make it a little weaker than the dosage on the bottle and still get the job done.

3rd - - calmly dip each chicken one at a time. Dip the bird up to its neck. DON'T let them get it in their eyes or on their heads.
Let it stay in the water 30 - 60 seconds. Swish the water around their back and make sure you are getting good coverage.

4th - - camly sit the bird on the ground.

They will look like drowned RATs. Do it on a Warm / Hot day - EARLY - so that they have plenty of time to dry out before night.
I have leghorns and they look so much cleaner after this experience. None of my chickens seem to mind the experience.
The leghorns do act "drunk" for a few minutes, but I think it is because of the added water weight on their skinny bodies. None of my other chickens act funny - - - but they are large fowl compared to the leghorns

It is easier to do this with 2 people. One is the catcher and the other is the dipper.

Adams flea dip is good for lice and mites. Lice live on the birds. Mites live in the surrounding area.
Mites are a PAIN because you must treat the bird and the coop and the ground.
Others can join in with what they recommend using for the coop and ground.

NOTE: You must retreat - - - you have to break the cycle. I treated every 10 days for a month on the lice. I never saw any after the first treatment - - - but I didn't want one little lice to get away from me and start the cycle all over.

I don't know how long it takes for MITES to cycle. What ever the period is - - - don't treat too soon and don't treat too late. There is a brief window that you must retreat in.

Hope this helps.

 

[kathyinmo]

As important as treating the birds is treating the coop. You must totally clean the premises. Empty out the coop of everything, including feeders, waterers, all bedding, etc. Dust out cobwebs, dust, etc. Roosts must be cleaned and sanded off. After a good cleaning, spray everything with Sevin or Adams flea and tick spray, or something with permethrine in it. Mites hide in every little crook and crany.

Note .... DE will not treat an infestation. It is good used as a preventative, but not as a treatment.

Good luck to you. I know it can be a real pain!

Remember, as Math Ace said, to retreat. The eggs from mites and lice will start hatching and the cycle will start all over again.

 

[HeatherLynn]

Sigh, I was hoping to avoid the infestation part. I have been cleaning the coop every 2 weeks since the beginning and treating with DE in the hopes I would not have to deal with this. So very annoying. I guess I will go buy some masks, some spray and get to work then. I have been treating the coop with DE also but this still came up.

 

[lurky]

This is a concentrate and lasts forever. It will take care of any bug on them. You use a bucket big enough to dip the bird into. I used a big horse bucket and it fir the birds right to the neck easily. Then with a gloved hand i got some on their heads and made sure it soaked in
through the feathers. I had on spazz out and flip right out of my hands and fall head first into this stuff. She is fine, so it must not be tooooo bad for the birds. my flock had a problem years ago and i used this product and its never had to be used again yet (knock-on-wood).

http://www.randallBurkey.com/PERMETHRIN-10-8-OZ/productinfo/26091/

I had a couple silkies with bugs.......but dipped them all just to be safe. ( DE did NOTHING

)

 

[PoultryPedia]

For chickens that have crests or muffs and beards, be especially sure to treat those areas. You can carefully shake Sevin Dust on (while shielding eyes, nose & mouth with your fingers), or dip a Q-tip in the insecticide and daub some of it onto those areas.

So sorry for the bothers you are going through!

If you ever get too desparate a problem, do a Search to find out about using Frontline. You have to buy it from your vet with permission and it is VERY expensive, but it is VEEEEEEEEEERRRRRY effective when you are up against a tough, recurrent mite problem.

 

[Cindy in PA]

Quote:
Frontline can be bought at most pet & some feed stores, you do not need a vet to prescribe it anymore.

 

[burquechick]

Wow, that sucks. I'm so glad I live in New Mexico.

 

[Wanda]

how much frontline would you put on a chicken?

thanks,
Wanda

 

[HeatherLynn]

Yea the really feathery crew seem to be the ones I have to watch the most carefully. They don't seem as into dustbathing either which would help since I have the DE in their dust bath too. So can I put sevin the dust bath areas?