Fowl ticks? Please help...

[Dutchgirl]

A few days ago we noticed a tiny tick attached to our Cochin rooster's earlobe. It was small and kind of light blue colored. We pulled it off with tweezers.

I was reading the most recent issue of "Out Here" (a magazine published by Tractor Supply Co.) and I noticed an article about livestock pests. In the poultry section it listed a parasite called the "fowl tick" (NOT the chicken/red mite.) It didn't list a picture, but it said that it can cause anemia in adult birds and can kill chicks with loss of blood. Oh no!

And just now I went out to the chickens again, picked up the Cochin rooster again, and noticed that he has TWO MORE ticks, one on his earlobe (again) and one on his comb. What to do???

PLEASE DON'T SAY THE ANSWER IS GUINEAS. We actually own four guinea keets and they are in the six-week process of teaching them where home is, we can't let them loose right now. I need a short-term answer.


I don't know if these are fowl ticks or not, if so I'm... frightened.

 

[Dutchgirl]

Does anyone know?

 

[dawg53]

Here's a couple of pics of fowl ticks I found online. Get some sevin dust and rub it on your roosters comb and wattles, then dust the rest of him. Dont get the dust in his eyes nor nostrils.

 

[Dutchgirl]

Thank you. Yes, those pictures look very similar to what I found. Should I continue to pull existing ticks off with tweezers? I pulled the most recent one off by hand and I believe I got all the mouthparts.

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

First, are you sure they are fowl ticks? Look in the crevices and cracks around the roosts. If you don't see them, look carefully again about 30 minutes after sunset tonight. I'm afraid that dusting the birds with Sevin dust won't control them. You have to get to where they are hiding during the day, kill them there and seal off those retreats. Check out my byc page to see how I successfully dealt with a fowl (Poultry) tick infestation: https://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=56638-poultry-ticks Good luck.

 

[Dutchgirl]

Quote:
No, but that was the closest I could find to them. I just checked and made sure I knew what they look like: they are LIGHT BLUE colored.

Look in the crevices and cracks around the roosts. If you don't see them, look carefully again about 30 minutes after sunset tonight.

Well, I looked on the roost. It's an old mattress frame. There aren't any smears like you mentioned in the link: we don't keep our chicken coop as clean as you do, I'm afraid.

I'm afraid that dusting the birds with Sevin dust won't control them. You have to get to where they are hiding during the day, kill them there and seal off those retreats.

What should we use to kill them?​

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

They are sometimes referred to as "blue bugs." It's very possible they are fowl/poultry ticks, but I think it's best to know for sure what you are dealing with because that will make all the difference in how you attack the problem. Exactly how large were the small ticks you saw on your bird? Only the first larval stage can be found on the birds during daylight hours, so if they are fowl ticks, they would have to be quite tiny. An old mattress frame would be perfect habitat for them too. Again, check right around sunset, if you see them, you'll know for sure. If you wait too long, say a couple hours after sunset you may miss them. I found that Orange Guard (found at Ace Hardware) worked quite well at killing them. I also communicated with a byc'er from Australia that successfully killed his poultry ticks by spraying linseed oil around the roosts. You might want to think about changing the roosting situation to limit their hiding places and ability to find their way back to the chickens once they drop off after feeding. If you can't get rid of the crevices where they hide it can be quite difficult rid your coop of them. Sevin dust on the ground may help to some extent also, but they have become resistant to many of the pesticides I have listed on my page. In short, I fixed my problem by (1) removing their hiding/aggregating places, (2) spraying everything with Orange Guard over a two week period and (3) limiting the ways that they can find their way back to the roost. Remember, that even once you get rid of all the ticks in the coop, the larvae on the chickens will continue to drop off over the following 10 days. Be vigilant!

 

[southerndesert]

Quote:
Very well written and good info everyone should read. Nice coop!

 

[Gallo del Cielo]

Quote:
Very well written and good info everyone should read. Nice coop!

Thanks! The tick page is really just the first draft and not complete. I keep telling myself that I have to finish it someday. The poultry ticks are so strange with their habits that it is easy to miss an infestation for a very long time. I'd encourage everyone in the southern states and warm climates around the world to check at least once a month for them (especially if you live in AZ!).

 

[1livelychick]

Man...something else to worry about

Thanks for the info.!