Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by steph on July 10, 2011 at 12:30pm

Have you tried using a generous amount of USDA Food Grade DE to dust the chicken, nesting boxes and coop? 

It can be used both internally and externally to rid the birds for parasites.  Mixing 5% DE into their food regularly keeps the birds free of all intestinal parasites and worms and also provides hen with an excellent source of calcium for strong egg shells.  Rubbing it well into their feathers down to the skin kills all external parasites such as fleas, ticks, and mites.  The birds love to dust bathe in it.  Make a dust box with DE and Play Sand mixed 50/50.  Dusting all of the nest boxes keep them free from fleas and mites and encourage hens to lay there rather than driving them off the nests because of the pests that love the bedding.  Sprinkling / dusting the rest of the coop and runs kill the parasitic pests and other like fire ants and slugs, but also kills fly maggots, and acts as a deodorizer, reducing chicken poo smells dramatically and reducing fly activity substantially.  It also acts as a moisture absorbent to help keep things dry.

Permalink Reply by Dawn Janz on July 10, 2011 at 3:06pm

I have a couple jugs in the garage and will start using it tomorrow which is the weekly coop cleaning day.  I may as well prevent the problems

Permalink Reply by jenprosser on July 10, 2011 at 12:56pm

i'd love to see a photo of the piles of ticks. I've never seen that before.

 

Permalink Reply by Jennifer on July 10, 2011 at 1:15pm

Yes on the DE. These guys are in the walls, in every little crevice, piled up on top of each other in 4 or 5 layers..

 

http://www.backyardchickens.com/web/viewblog.php?id=56638-poultry-t... - scroll down for pictures. This is exactly what we have. According to this article, these ticks can result in many sad symptoms including depression - and its true! I'm totally depressed!

Permalink Reply by steph on July 10, 2011 at 1:29pm

ick

Permalink Reply by steph on July 10, 2011 at 1:22pm

Here is what my friend recommends:

A product that is excellent for infestations is Adams Flea and Tick Dip. It is mixed as it says on the label in a 5 gal. bucket and you dip each bird up to the top of the neck. You can smell it on them for about a month (not objectional), so there is no need to re treat in 10 days as with most products. It also contains permethrin, so poultry dust may work almost as good. The good thing about the dip is that it can be sprayed over the whole coop, roosts, nests, run, and all.

Permalink Reply by Jennifer on July 10, 2011 at 9:02pm

I'll look into it - thanks!

 

Permalink Reply by grygon on July 10, 2011 at 8:29pm

Last time I was at the feedstore on Isleta (Quality Baits) they had these spray bottles with chickens and ducks on the label and I remember it said something about ticks.  It was safe to directly spray on the birds and their bedding, I seem to recall.  Might give them a call and get the name of that product and see if anyone closer to you carries it.

Permalink Reply by Vanad on July 11, 2011 at 12:09am

Holy cannoli batman! Ew! and Owch! Poor birds! I would use the dip like everyone is saying and than sprinkle that DE everywhere! I would also make sure that their nesting boxs are covered in DE too. Extra treats to the girls to pick up their spirts. I hope that the steps you took to clean up the coop and seal it help too. I surely hope I don't run into this. :( Hoping your girls/birds and you feel better soon! Good Luck!

Permalink Reply by Jennifer on July 11, 2011 at 7:50am

The previous owner to this house dragged an old, tick infested antique coop onto the property and I'm pretty sure thats how we ended up with them. We burned that thing down, but enough of the ticks had already moved into our new shed to start re-populating - and thats what we're dealing with now. These ticks don't live on the chickens, they hide in the cracks and joints of the shed and come out at night to feed on the chickens..then go back into the walls to hide during the day. You'll know if you have them because the area around the cracks get speckled black from their poo. Also, ticks can live for years without an animal host to feed on. They just sit and wait.

Permalink Reply by Dianne Valdez on July 11, 2011 at 7:10pm

You don't need to burn down the old coop, unless you want to, you can use the DE all over it and you will be amazed at how well it works on killing these ugly buggers.  If you used it periodically in their dust bath spot and in the nest boxes and their coop it will keep them gone.  Also, ticks live in our dirt so it is something many of us have to deal with just having dirt and no antique coop.  We use DE on our dogs and in our garden and it has been a God send. 

Dianne

Permalink Reply by Jennifer on July 11, 2011 at 9:21pm

Right...I have been using DE, the problem is its hard to shove DE into the ceiling and framework of the coop. I'll let you know how it goes with the spray we're going to use this fall. Antique shed was burned to the ground long ago - there was no saving it.

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