Neem oil for lice: How should I treat them and is this brand ok?

[cmom]

He sure was beautiful.

 

[Mrs. K]

As for the op - really do use poultry dust. Something developed and tested to be sure for chickens. Read the directions and follow them.

MK

 

[MelissaRose]

I'll stick with permethrin dust and powder. I know they work. I have tried DE among other things. My birds looked pathetic but are beautiful now.

ok, thanks

There's likely a reason the manufacturer talks about plants, and not to use on animals.
Mary

Yeah, probably

DO NOT PUT THAT ON YOUR BIRDS. Do not put it where they can reach.

Neem oil is a chemical. Water is a chemical. Blood is a mix of chemicals. EVERYTHING is chemicals. Whether or not something is "natural" has no bearing on if it's safe- asbestos is just a rock that comes out of the ground like that, and a thousand and one plants can be lethal if ingested.

If your chickens are heavily infested with lice, you NEED a commercial treatment. Commercial lice treatments are made to kill lice, and ONLY lice. They are specifically made to be safe for your birds. They will not hurt your birds, but the lice will if you don't get rid of them.

Keep the neem oil for if you need to use it on plants in your garden, but DO NOT use it on your birds. Get those poor birds a real treatment.

ok, thanks for pointing that out.

x2!
Permethrin works, and is safe for them, and BTW, costs way less too.
Mary

ok, thanks

As for the op - really do use poultry dust. Something developed and tested to be sure for chickens. Read the directions and follow them.

MK

ok, thank you.


I have heard that permethrin is very toxic to cats, is this true? I have two, so I am a little worried about that.

 

[Fishkeeper]

It's toxic to cats, yes, but the cats have to actually come into contact with it. They have to have it applied to them and groom it off, or inhale a notable amount.
If your cats don't go in with the chickens, or lick the chickens, they should be perfectly fine.

 

[FowlWitch]

DO NOT PUT THAT ON YOUR BIRDS. Do not put it where they can reach.

Neem oil is a chemical. Water is a chemical. Blood is a mix of chemicals. EVERYTHING is chemicals. Whether or not something is "natural" has no bearing on if it's safe- asbestos is just a rock that comes out of the ground like that, and a thousand and one plants can be lethal if ingested.

If your chickens are heavily infested with lice, you NEED a commercial treatment. Commercial lice treatments are made to kill lice, and ONLY lice. They are specifically made to be safe for your birds. They will not hurt your birds, but the lice will if you don't get rid of them.

Keep the neem oil for if you need to use it on plants in your garden, but DO NOT use it on your birds. Get those poor birds a real treatment.

I absolutely agree. I like neem oil as much as the next person, but if it isn't specifically formulated to be food grade, then you absolutely do NOT want to use it on animals.

 

[Fishkeeper]

Even if an essential oil is food-grade, it needs to be MASSIVELY diluted before you can even think about applying it to an animal of any kind, including yourself. They're best not used in diffusers, also, a lot of them (even when diluted right) can be sinus and lung irritants.
Also? I don't know if you've smelled that stuff, but neem oil REEKS. It's definitely a skin irritant. It's amazing for aphids, though, and gentler than other things on really sensitive plants (orchids, carnivorous plants) when properly diluted. Only downside is, it takes repeated, frequent applications to kill the aphids off.

In short: neem oil, good on plants, bad on animals. Essential oils, (largely) not for animals. Dilute things properly, research what you're using, DON'T assume that something is safe just because it's "natural". After all, what's more natural than a parasite infestation?

 

[MelissaRose]

I think I am going to get some permethren. Is there anything else I should know about it?
Is there a withdrawl for the eggs?
Is spray the best way to apply it?

 

[cmom]

No egg withdrawal. If you have a TSC you can get the dust, premixed spray and the concentrate. I use the dust on the birds and thoroughly spray in the coops. I buy the concentrate but I have a lot of coops so I mix it in a gallon sprayer and the wand helps to reach the hard to reach areas for me.

 

[MelissaRose]

OK, I got some permethrin and it says you can use it on poultry so I think I'm finally good.

I am about to mix it up, its half an once to half a gallon of water, which would be about 1 tbsp to 1/2 a gallon instead of 2tbsp to 1 gallon, is that right? On the package it says 8oz to 12.5 gallons and I don't need that much.

One of the birds we are going to treat is a 1-2 month old chick, is it fine to use the same mixture for that chick or should we mix up another one with more water?

There is no egg withdrawal or anything like that, right?

Does anyone have any tips for me? I think we have about twenty-four birds to treat tonight. I have some people to help me. Should we wear gloves, or anything like that? We are going to spray it on them.

Thanks in advance and thanks for helping me figure everything out. Some of you may know that I have been thinking about this for awhile and am now finally treating them.

 

[MelissaRose]

Another question:

I watched a video about how to spray them and it says spray their vents and under each wing and their neck feathers if you want. For chickens with muffs and crests like silkies, should I do it the same way and not do anything to their heads?