Mites

[apryl29]

Sorry if this is been answered before but I wasn't finding the answer I was looking for with a search. I just noticed that my Leghorn rooster has mites. I noticed them on his leg first then saw they're also in the feathers just above his legs. Everything I've seen about mites says to put petroleum jelly on their legs, but his mites aren't solely on his legs. I also saw about the permethrin spray. I'm not understanding exactly how that works. Am I supposed to spray his entire body, just where I'm seeing the mites? He has been separated from the rest of my flock for about a month bc they kept pecking his tail though I tried to reintegrate him last weekend. they started pecking at his tail again so I left him separated. I checked a couple of my pullets and did not notice any mites on their legs or bottom feathers but I'm wondering if I should treat them too. I need to clean their Coop soon anyway but how exactly spraying it down? Do I put the stuff in out spray bottle and just spray until it's damn do I spray it till it's soaking? I appreciate any suggestions people can give. thank you.
Edit: I now see one of my pullets does have them so I will assume that all the other ones also have them too. I'm really overwhelmed by this right now. I would appreciate any help anyone can offer.

 

[Eggcessive]

If one has mites they all do. The coops, bedding, and roosts all have to be treated. Mites hatch out every 5-7 days, so they need to be treated (birds and coop) at least twice or more ro get the newly hatches mites. Leg mites are different than body mites. Leg mites should be treated with oil or vaseline once a week until new scales grow in. Body mites can be the northern fowl mites, which on found any time, or the common chicken or red mite that only feeds at night and hides in the cracks of the coop during daylight hours. Permethrin 10% spray is good to use for the coop or in warm weather for the chickens. The permethrin garden dust can also be used on the chickens, but the concentrated liquid is economical in that it mixes many gallons for use in a bottle sprayer for the chickens, or in a large container sprayer dor the coop. I would treat the whole chicken. With lice, they usually only get them in one area, but mites can be anywhere although more common on the vent area. Make sure that you are aeeinf mites, and not lice. Lice usually leave white-grey clumps of eggs at the base of feathers. There are other treatments for mites.

 

[apryl29]

Thank you so much for your response. It made me feel a lot better. I'm fairly certain they are mites. I had one crawling on my hand and it looked like a little dot with tiny Little legs. I have several questions and I hope you can answer them for me. What should I do first, treat the chickens or clean the coop? It's Ohio and it's starting to get cooler in a little bit windy today. So what should I do with the chickens after I treat them? Should I have them all outside the coop and then put them inside the coop after I clean them? Or have them inside the coop clean them and then let them out? Should I dry them after I clean them or should I let them air-dry. Unfortunately I don't have a separate place to put them or the means to make one. Should I be concerned about their run? Do I need to do anything to clean it? After I clean out the coupe and spray it down should I put down straw, or leave it empty since I'm going to have to clean it again in a couple days? My rooster is in a separate area that is just pretty much a dirt floor with chicken wire and a plastic tote. Besides emptying the straw out of the tote should I be concerned with the dirt on the floor?

 

[Hiyaherc]

Hi Apryl! As Eggcessive stated above, if one of your flock has mites more likely all have mites. Unfortunately, I have had to deal with them myself. If I see a mite problem the first thing I do is a complete coop clean out, including nesting boxes. You want to also make sure that you destroy or dispose of the cleanout contents far away from your coop as possible. I like to keep the girls locked out of the coop while doing this so as not to create any respiratory problems. After cleaning, I put down some DE on the floor and the bottom of nest boxes before putting down straw or pine shavings. Once the dust has settled then the girls can come home. The same day I clean the coop I would recommend dusting all of the girls. I have found a poultry dust at Tractor Supply which works well. However, I dust the girls in an area in which they do not free range. You do not want to dust them near their food and water source. I also try to avoid areas where there are pollinators presents since it is an insecticide. You would want to re-treat in a week or so and at the same time do another total coop cleanout. It is well worth the time and energy, especially with the Fall and Winter weather coming you would want to make sure that the coop is clean and free of mites. You may want to also add some DE to their bathing area, this way they can clean themselves in it which will also help rid the mites. In severe cases you may have to wash the bird. They may do some complaining, but after several days of baths they will thank you. When bathing you will need to change the water frequently because as you are washing the bird the mites are falling into the bath water. Also, when you dust the birds, I would get a pantyhose or sock similar in material to make a dust ball. You want to gently dust, in some cases lightly squeeze the dust ball at their rump, breast, behind the back of their head on their neck and under their wings, avoid immediate contact with their vent. You want to avoid contact with their face and try to both avoid breathing it in. Do it in a well ventilated place. With respect to the leg mites, I also under that petroleum jelly will help do the trick. Make sure you also clean up their pen area if possible. Hope everything works out well for you and your flock.

 

[apryl29]

Thank you for your response. I just picked up some poultry dust. So if I were to block my girls into their run while I clean their coop, the take each chicken, one at a time to a separate area and dust them, then release them into the coop, I should be fine, right? How should I clean the run after the birds are all clean should I just sprinkle de out there too? We have there a wooded area behind our property I can dump everything. Thank you for that suggestion. I don't want them getting them again from the old bedding. Should I put the jelly on everyone's legs, or only if the legs look infested? I don't want to miss someone. Do I put it on their toes too? Sorry if I sound daft, but I don't want to mess this up, or potentially spread the mites into my car or home, or to my pets.

 

[JaeG]

Red poultry mites live in the coop hiding during the day in the cracks and crevices. A good way to see if it's those you are up against is running your hand under the roost bars. If you come up with squished bugs and blood streaks, red mites are your problem. If that is the case concentrate on cleaning and treating the coop.

Northern fowl mites stay on the birds so treating your birds is the best strategy there. If you are noticing them on your birds it's most likely Northern fowl mites.

I had a bad infestation of red mites and found DE to be ineffective as a preventative. The mites were in the deep bed of DE in my nestboxes in their thousands! If you dust them with it they move away, but it doesn't kill or control them. Elemental sulphur I've found to be much more effective as a dust to rub into cracks, crevices and sprinkle under bedding.

This is a very good site for identifying your parasite: http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/08/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification.html

There's a link to her page about scaly leg mites too.

 

[Hiyaherc]

Unfortunately it will take more than one cleaning and one dusting. I would do it again in a week. Also by putting DE into their dry bathing area this will allow them to roll around and clean themselves in it. DE dehydrates the mites which causes them to die. You may also want to sprinkle DE along their backs when they are settled in and roosting at night. Sprinkle only a small amount along the base of their neck and toward their tail. The DE will fall into their feathers. Thankfully I can say for a fact that at least by 2 cleanings and dustings you and the girls will see relief. You just want to make sure you rid yourself of the infestation before the cold weather sets in where it will be harder to do a coop cleanout and treat the girls. DE at my Tractor Supply is food grade. You may want to gently, gently sprinkler the areas in which the girls like to hang out while free ranging or in their pen. I rake out their pen daily and like to sprinkle some fresh DE into their dust/bathing area weekly. You do not want to overdo it with the DE. While DE is all natural it can also be toxic in excessive quantities and can cause respiratory problems to both humans and chickens. A little goes along way. With leg mites, the scales will appear to not lye flat and are turning up. You will want to clean (with an toothbrush or non abrasive brush)and then treat those areas with the jelly. The entire flock may not have leg mites. That is a difficult question. I would examine them all and if it appears that they may have the beginning signs...lightly apply the jelly after cleaning. The jelly actually smothers them. Also back to the mites, you may want to check them weekly to make sure that the population was eradicated. You have the mites that come out at night to feast when it is dark, you will need to go into the coop while it is dark. You will see them crawling on the roosts. You will only see those types of mites during the day during a really bad infestation. Also depending on the type of mite, some mites live on the chicken, while others only come out at night to feast on them. If you see them during the day as mentioned on your arm, this is most likely the type that lives on the chicken. Two cleanings and some light dustings should do the trick. Use the sprinkle method and the DE in the dusting area as a preventive. Reminder to also use the poultry dust in moderation. A light dusting in a well ventilated area for both you and your flock is best, that is why I would recommend the dust ball so that it goes where you want to apply it and not everywhere else. Keep us updated on how you and the girls are doing.

 

[apryl29]

Thank you all for all of your help. I was incredibly overwhelmed this morning when I realize they had mites and was really upset. I appreciate all of your guidance. Right now I'm waiting for the last of the permethrin spray to dry. Then I'm going to sprinkle the de on the floor and I bought some Pine shavings to use instead of the straw I normally put down since I'm going to have to clean it out again soon anyway. What should I do with the straw that I had in my Coop? Will it be infested with mites to or will it be okay? It's the compressed straw you buy from TSC in the plastic bag, but the part that had been opened points up in my chicken sometimes sit on it to look out the window. If I use de with it will it be okay? I've also removed all of my nesting boxes and plan on just putting one back temporarily. I sprayed the rest with the permethrin spray too, but I figured it was better to remove anything I didn't need well I was in the process of cleaning. It should get rained on overnight tonight too and I'll spray it again in the morning before I put it back in the coop tomorrow. I've blocked the door to the run so the chickens won't be able to leave the coop until I get a chance to treat the run tomorrow. It was mentioned to put the de in there dusting places. They have random spots in the yard underneath some pine trees is it safe to put it there? They also have a couple holes they've dug in their run that I was planning on putting some in. I'm going to go put the poultry dust on them and as I finished with them I'm going to put them in the coop. Should I have any special concern with their water or feed containers? I was going to spray them out with water and wipe them down with a cloth. I assume putting the de in the coop prior to putting the chickens in will help kill any mites that may fall off of them, is this correct? Thank thank you again!

 

[apryl29]

Another question, when I clean out the coop again should I also put the poultry dust on the chickens again? I checked a few of the chickens as I dusted them and found only a couple mites on a few of them. Some of them are brown or black so I didn't even bother looking at them. I'm hoping that means the infestation isn't quite as bad on those birds as it appeared on my rooster. When I flipped him over I could see the mites crawling right on his exposed feathers. Something funny happened though, as I was puffing the chickens with the dust I was taking them out of the Run one at a time then putting them into the coop afterwards. When I got down to the last couple chickens it was getting pretty dark and my tiny Bantam rooster was sitting on top of one of my Eggers on the ramp for the coop. It was like he was using her as a Roost. I felt so bad for her. Also without my nesting boxes in place the perches are too high for some of my birds. I ended up having to place each Chicken on the perch after I dusted them. Today has been an experience! I really appreciate all of your help!

 

[Hiyaherc]

Morning Apryl - First thing this morning I would put back together the nesting boxes so the hens do not stress out anymore than they have so they have a place to lay their eggs. If one bird has mites, they all will . Some may have it worse then others and they should ALL be treated. You want to avoid stressing them. That is why I gently hold them and apply the dust in the dust bag and to the areas previously mentioned where the mites will congregate. You need to re-do the total coop cleanout, including all litter material and nesting material. The mites will also be on the litter material and nesting material. You may even see mites crawling on the eggs. I am not a fan of insecticides and always err on the side of caution. That being said, the poultry dust (insecticide you purchased) should be used on the birds and read the label. I would not put it in an area in which they have contact since they can ingest it, this can make them sick. As previously mentioned a little goes a long way. In the dusting/bathing area I use the DE. DE is food grade, but again, it can be toxic if not used properly. In the dusting area, I would mix a ration of no more than 1 part DE to 3 parts dirt/sand. If it were me personally I would use less and would rather sprinkle it in and stir it up and reapply every couple of days due to dampness or wetness. I would avoid using the insecticide in their run or free range area, this is where DE is a better option. Part of the reason for a second cleanout is that you will not necessarily remove all of the existing mites, nor any existing eggs that have not hatched. You will need to break their life cycle and that is the reason for the second and most likely 3rd cleanout to be sure that you have rid them. While the coop may have been cleaned out, there will be mites on the birds, that is the reason for dusting the birds at the same time since they will bring them back into the coop and start a new infestation. When you do the second or third coop cleanout, try to do it at a time of the day where the hens will not want to have access to their nest boxes, most likely late afternoon is when I would do it. Hope that helps and keep us posted. I know it sounds like a like of work, but it is worth the effort for you and your flock. If the infestation is bad it will only worsen. The mites will slowly drain them, causing a reduction in eggs and poor health. The birds then can be vulnerable to other health issues since they are weakened by the mites. In severe, unattended cases, birds may even die. However, on a positive note, since you are addressing the problem this will not be the issue with your flock. I know it can be overwhelming, but you can do it. You will also see that your flock is more lively and egg production will be back up to normal. If one bird has a severe infestation, you may want to try to bathe them. They will all have mites to varying degrees. Keep us posted and you will be fine!