My eco solution to rat problems

[Patricia W]

I'm doing a trial - not very scientific though! I've used ant powder in the cracks of an eglu which had red mite -but not in the cube, where I've relied on the spray recommended by the vet. Too many variable to make it really reliable, but I am interested in how effective the ant powder is. My instinct is that it will work - and it's much the cheapest solution.

 

 

Tricia

[The Dogmother]

I think you're right Tricia any powder that contains permethrin seems to be very effective.

 

I'm a belt and braces gal and use a spray I have made up, then a powder - seems to work very well *touches wood quickly*

Edited August 16, 2010 by Guest

[Jools]

I'm doing a trial - not very scientific though! I've used ant powder in the cracks of an eglu which had red mite -but not in the cube, where I've relied on the spray recommended by the vet. Too many variable to make it really reliable, but I am interested in how effective the ant powder is. My instinct is that it will work - and it's much the cheapest solution.

 

I read on another forum about someone who did a trial with two (yes TWO lol) red mite, a jam jar and some ant powder ..... while not exactly statistically valid, they concluded that the ant powder (containing permethrin) worked.

[chickencam]

I have been cleaning out the Aubiose from the house, going over it with my blowtorch, then dusting with Total Mite Kill powder before refilling and a dusting on top of the clean bedding every 3 days, and I am mostly finding dead mites in the bedding now.

 

We dusted the girls with Total Mite Kill powder yesterday too. We are away for a week and a half from Saturday, so I want to be on top of things before we go.

 

One thing that I have noticed since the mite numbers have dropped, is that the colour has come back into the egg shells. My girls didn't seem to have been greatly affected, they didn't look pale, but the eggs shells had lost their colour. Eggs were also smaller and had thin shells.

 

I gave the girls a good look over yesterday and they all looked nice and clean, and their combs are a good colour.

[CallyChook]

well, today I need to redo the coop and keep putting it off, I'm so tired! going to hassle the husband into helping me when he gets home at 6pm, with the bribery of making him a really hot chilli con carne for tea AFTER the coop is reassembled. I'm 32 weeks pregnant now and have totally gone off spice, so been making very bland curries and chillis, so with my thinking, a bit of huffing and puffing around the garden and the promise of a mouth-burning dinner sensation, might just do the trick!!

 

Then after dark, as it's my first nght off work in 4, a cuddle with Sir Galahad and the ladies (while actually they get powdered) followed by a cuddle on the couch with hubby, sounds good to me.

 

best censor myself there before I get overexcited with all this cuddling....

[Alis girls]

I have just cleaned girls Eglu out and in tray were some fast moving bugs - salmon coloured very tiny. Are these red mites? Checked a hen who happened to walk past - looks clean - not off lay, chirpy and rush into Eglu at night. Help are these red mites - read Clarets guide on them and will do tissue test.

[Alis girls]

And should I do Hemp stuff in run with powder dont want to OD girls.

[Patricia W]

Could be - but don't panic! The best way I have found to tackle it, is to take the eglu apart so you can get into the cracks and little holes in which they lurk. At first I used Poulty Shield to wash everything down but am now switching to Total Mite kill. Expose all the bits to the light as well because the little so and so's don't like it. And watch out for the underneath of the run bars - that's where mine were.

 

Then I'd now put something with permethrin in all the cracks where they can hide. I went to the vet and got an expensive flea spray, but thanks to Claret have now discovered ant powder ( or you can get a spray).

 

Anyway, once everything is clean and sprayed or powdered put it all back together. I then put aubiose mixed with Diatom in the next box and in the poo trays.

 

I went through the palaver again 4 days later and then a week later. Fingers crossed - no mites at last inspection.

 

My vet told me not to bother treating the chickens but some people do with Frontline ( not licensed for use with poultry in theUK and there's an egg withdrawal period)

 

Watch out for cats with the permethrin - it's deadly.

 

Hope this helps!

 

Tricia

[Alis girls]

Did the tissue test - nothing - not sure if could get Eglu back together again - have sprayed powder in nest box and roosting bars and may attempt to take apart at weekend when have more time. Have ant powder - didnt know it was bad with cats - had sprayed on kitchen floor as we had an ant prob. Cats didnt go near it thank goodness. thanks for advice - what about run?

[Alis girls]

I have read back and forth on this subject and dont want to harm my hens.

I have cleaned out Eglu with an animal disinfectant whcih I got from farm suitable for hens etc. dusted bars and nest box with red mite powder and took top off Eglu and puffed ant powder in. worried sick girls will be toxic with all this stuff. light is fading now but should I be looking on hens for mites and when is best time in day or night time. i am now anxious and confused and raked red mite powder thro hemp run stuff. I dont even know if it is red mite. Please advise - anxious newish hen mom

[Patricia W]

The mites hide in dark cracks during the day, then come out for a blood feed at night when the chickens go back in. They don't live on the chickens but you can find a few on them sometimes.

 

Red mite powder is more a preventative I think. But don't panic tonight. It sounds as though you'll have made a good start in getting rid of them - but then you don't know you've got them.

 

Tricia

[Fleurchicken]

Hi,

 

I have been struggling with mites - who knows which sort - for several weeks now and posted about this sometime ago - but still have a problem. I can not find the beginning of this thread but know I am meant to post about mites here.

Can anyone help explain this to me? I gave up trying to get rid of the mites by diatom and scrubbing etc and two weeks ago I bought an igloo. Dismantled the wooden house, removed it to another part of the garden, sprayed it with flea spray from top to toe. I had frontlined my three Chucks the day before, diatomed the new igloo and put the girls in there. Kept checking every other night, but the mites are still on them when I check with a torch. I washed, disinfected, dried and flea sprayed the igloo, but they are still crawling on the girls (and me!!) whenever I check. I will obviously keep washing and disinfecting the igloo, but how exactly does one get rid of these critters. I can't find any blood wipe when I check the plastic roosting bars etc, but they are easy to spot on the girls at night and I have caught several on me. (I actually feel I am infested with them, but I think/hope this is an active imagination as I've only found them on my arms etc on returning from the chicken house). If these were not redmites, but norther fowl mites how should I be treating them? The same as for redmite, or differently?

Please help, I bought an igloo thinking this was going to resolve this problem and I can't believe that even with all the scrubbing, spraying and frontlineing teh critters are still sucking my Chucks blood!

[Heidi-Hi]

Oh, that feeling of them crawling on your arms are the most horrid feeling in the world! Did you maybel put your Eglu in exactly the same spot as the where the wooden house was? I found washing the RM off on the lawn just transfered them to the lawn, and they were hiding in the grass

[The Dogmother]

If they are crawling on the birds, then they are unlikely to be Red Mites. Are they black or brown?

 

Tiny black specks will be northern fowl mites, while slightly bigger tan coloured ones will be lice. I would spray each bird with either Johnsons ant*-mite spray*, Ardap spray* or total mite kill spray*, spray each bird on the skin around the vent, under the wings and leg-pits. Repeat the treatment after a week and be vigilant.

 

If it is NFM then the only preventative that I have found to get rid of them is Ivomec Eprinex* (the dose is 0.1ml per kg of bird), which you will need to get from your vet.

 

*these products are not licensed for use on poultry in the UK, but many vets will recommend them.

[Sheilaz]

Yes, I thought the same as Claret; if you can see something on the birds but not the housing it's probably not red mite.

Although you used Frontline, it could still be lice as eggs may have hatched since. Perhaps look up about lice and see if the description matches, they are quite easily identifiable. Or if it's not lice, as Clare says, Northern Fowl mite?

All the best in sorting this out.

[Fleurchicken]

Hi Thanks - they are grey, fast moving and the size of a pinhead. I have looked more closely at the ones on me and they deffinitely look like mites, round and can just tell they are spider like. The one I looked at more closely seemed grey/white with a darker section (hard to say section when they are so tiny) in the centre.

Yes I did put the elgu near the old house - not much room to do ought else unfortunately . Are NFM as sensitive to light exposure as red mite?

[The Dogmother]

This is what poultry lice look like

 

 

And Northern Fowl Mites....

 

[both images courtesy of Backyard Poultry]

 

As you can see, the colour and size of the critters is quite different.

 

The treatment for both is the same though, although NFM are more tenacious than lice. You will need to treat the housing and the birds as we have described, twice a week apart, then keep up a preventative programme. It's just the same as if your dog or cat was infested and you needed to treat your own home. Prevention and constant vigilance are essential and just become part of your routine after a while. Quarterly preventative treatment and on-bird spraying of any bugs is all it takes.

[The Dogmother]

That sounds like NFM to me.

 

They are sensitive to light, but not nearly as much as red mites. Their poo, which tends to get caught on the chickens fluff around the vent is very irritating to the chooks' skin, so see if you can soak it off before drying the chook and spraying her (you'll need to repeat this a week later). See my earlier post about a preventative treatment that will get them too.

[Jools]

If it is NFM, you could also try using Deosect (not licensed for poultry). A friend had an outbreak a couple of years ago and it was the only thing that worked, though it took several goes.

[HENthusiastic]

Hi guys.

Good luck to all still fighting the RM fight. I'm still fighting and planning and plotting! Two quick questions please.

 

1. Will creocote continue to work by killing redmite that might wander across it a week / month later or does it just work by killing them when its touches them when its wet???

 

2. Will it taint the eggs?

 

Thanks in advance guys.

[The Dogmother]

Good luck HEN

 

By 'creocote' do you mean old fashioned creosote or some new product? Old creosote used to kill the blighters for up to a week. The housing will need airing fully for at least a couple of days before you let the birds back in. Even then it's best the remove the eggs regularly for a while, as with the shells being semi-porous, they are inclined to absorb odours.

[Jools]

By 'creocote' do you mean old fashioned creosote or some new product? Old creosote used to kill the blighters for up to a week. The housing will need airing fully for at least a couple of days before you let the birds back in. Even then it's best the remove the eggs regularly for a while, as with the shells being semi-porous, they are inclined to absorb odours.

 

My understanding is that Creocote is the new "low cal" version of creosote that's available now to Joe Public. Some say it's effective against red mite, others say it isn't, but I'm planning to treat my new house with it so I'll report back if I get the little bloodsuckers in there.

 

The original creosote comes with a recommendation that housing is aired for several weeks before letting the hens back in, but obviously not everyone abides by this. I've read that it has a long residual effect against red mite and that annual treatment, inside and out, is enough to keep them at bay. I'm not speaking from experience as I absolutely loathe the smell of the stuff.

[CallyChook]

Still fighting here, treated the hen coop on Monday and again today (been on nights again in between) got soaked yet again in the rain too! a nice sludge of buz busters powder all round the bottom of my wellies where it started getting really heavy rain splashing around at one point

 

Monday there weren't any mites in sight, Thu I checked and caught sight of a couple, maybe 4 in total, on the end of one perch.

 

Today, a big cluster again behind the perch attachment slat. Little blighters got squished one by one by my rubber gloved hand as I giggled with glee. Then a pressure wash with poultry shield, dust when dry with buz busters, then diatom powder all abouts. ~Fingers crossed~

[The Dogmother]

Sounds like you're onto it then CallyChook.

 

May I suggest a spray or liquid containing Permethrin rather then Poultry Shield? Poultry Shield is a very good deterrent, but isn't as effective at killing the bugs and leaving a beneficial residue as the newer, chemical products.

[CallyChook]

Hi Claret

 

I used the premix pink total mite kill spray on last friday when i did the first treatment, but cant afford another botle at £8. So will have to just cross fingers that the buz busters will have gotten stuck into all the right bits and that physical cleaning will have removed the motherload! A lot of the wood was still dampish when i brushed the powder on and i noticed it stick to everywhere so fingers crossed some of the lovely chemical will have absorbed into the walls and wood of the coop as well as just dusting over.

 

Monthly pay can be a killer, roll on Wednesday!! xx