- Apr 30, 2012
- 60
- 1
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I'm pretty new to the chicken world and in June 2012 I purchased seven 2 day old Silkie chicks (I was hoping for pullets but ended up with 5 cockerels and 2 pullets instead.. lol). I've already sold 3 of my cockerels and today, I took my remaining 4 to our very first Poultry Show. I know they are only 4.5 months old, but it was close by (NYS Fairgrounds) and I also wanted to see if anyone was selling any Silkie pullets/hens to add to our current flock. HERE'S THE PROBLEM: So today at the show we found 2 blue Silkie pullets and bought them. I was prepared to quarantine them and was/am going to do this for about 3 weeks to 1 month- away from my current Silkies (someone told me that would be the safest amount of time.) I figured I'd bathe them first- and put them in their new quarantine cage. Note: these 2 were not from the same breeder... I bathed the first one (#1) tonight, and all went well, she was so good and so cute! I bathed the second one (#2) and all of the sudden, around her beard, I noticed these white clumpy/egg looking things attached to the base of her feathers. I KNEW this wasn't normal, as I just bathed my 4 Silkies the night before for the show today. I took pictures and I will upload them here. When I was blow-drying her, I also noticed these little red flea/tick/mite guys on the towel (dead) and I saw a few on her that were alive. UGHHHH. So now both of the "new" Silkies are quarantined SEPARATELY out in my garage. I re-checked #1 and I saw one little red pest on her. I think #2 gave it to her on the transport home as they were in the same cage (I was going to quarantine them together.) I sprinkled DE on them and on their pine shavings. (Both of these Silkies are about 4-5 months old). From reading tonight, I "think" these are mites and what is all around #2's beard are mite eggs (they are on her feathers very tightly.) A website I was reading said the eggs can form at the base of the feathers around the beard. YUP! I am so disgusted and upset that a show wouldn't check birds- or is it not a normal thing for shows to do? (This was my 1st ever chicken show and I'm pretty new to Silkies in general). Although, you couldn't see the eggs until she was wet. Now I'm concerned about my original 4 Silkies who I've raised since 2 days old and are perfectly healthy. Right now those 4 are on the exact opposite side of the house in their coop- but they were at the show and in the car on the ride home- but in a separate cage.) I'm SOOOO glad I decided to give #1 and #2 baths today- otherwise I would've put them together in quarantine. Tractor Supply was closed by the time I found these eggs and mites (or what I think are mites). So now I don't know what to do about the 2 in my garage. I think #1 will be fine (as soon as I find out exactly what these are, and how to treat her.) On the other hand, #2 seems completely infested with these pests AND eggs! ANY ADVICE WOULD BE GREATLY GREATLY APPRECIATED! (BTW, I think this was my first and last Poultry show.)