Eglu Go With 2m Run For Sale

[Flossie G]

My girls are pulling out their feathers. I've tried anti-peck sprays, increasing the girls' protein and calcium and greens, with no luck. The bumper bits have arrived, and I am bracing myself for the struggle to fit them.

 

However, I'm beginning to wonder whether they have depluming mites. The one who's suffering the most is preening and fluffing up her feathers a lot, but I can't see any lice on her.

 

Depluming mites are very small and burrow under the skin. Is there an easy way of telling whether my girls have them? And would johnsons anti-mite spray deal with the critters?

 

There are numerous posts about feather pulling. Could depluming mite be our common poultry problem?

[chickinboy]

I'm one of those with the same problem! Even when the pecking stops the feathers don't seem to grow back. There's a LOT of preening and fluffing/shaking going on. I've got DE powder in the dustbath, house, woodchip etc, wash everything in poultry shield etc. I've just bought some ivermectin (not licenced for chickens though - mine is for pidgeons) which you just spot on. I've also just got Johnson's Anti Mite Extra spray, which is apparently good. I can't see anything crawling, or any eggs, but deep at the base of the feathers there are the odd bits of mucky dirt...which may or may not actually be just mucky dirt...I've decided to nuke them to be sure!

 

Let us know how you get on - it's nice to know I'm not alone!

[Flossie G]

Maddening, isn't it? And such a shame - my girls are so lovely (normally).

 

I really don't know what to do. If I fit bumper bits, I might not be dealing with the cause of the problem. If it's depluming mite, I'm not sure that the johnsons is going to help.

 

If you find anything that works, do let me know. I'll do the same.

 

Good luck!

[hilda-and-evadne]

Depluming mites are very small and burrow under the skin. Is there an easy way of telling whether my girls have them?

 

The other symptom that people report is skin redness - it looks really sore.

 

If you search on this forum for flowers of sulphur, you should find several posts from last summer - the remedy that seemed to work for others as well as here is: flowers of sulphur in a carrier cream, eg E45 cream or Nivea or another.

[Egluntyne]

Bathing them with a mild shampoo and flowers of sulphur powder in the water seemed to do the trick for my hens last year. I had to do it a couple of times.

[Chicken Licken]

I had problems last summer and Barry has refeathered after stopping using hemcore in the nest box and applying flowers of sulfur mixed into a cream. Her bottom is looking positively fluffy at the moment after months of being red and bald - I got the flowers of sulfur from ebay and as I am a wuss bought the one that came with the cream to mix it in to. Well worth a trial if everything else has failed.

[Flossie G]

Yes, I've done some internet searching, including on this forum, and flowers of sulphur popped up as a possible answer. One of the girls does have a red bottom; the other is just generally threadbare on her undercarriage. It would be so nice if they were fluffy again. I'll keep you posted on what happens.

 

Many thanks for your replies.

[joegg]

Dog flea shampoo and or ant powder seemed to work last year though i have a suspicion not completely as it seems to have reared its head again.

What intrigues me is it only appears to affect 1 of my four.

[Seagazer]

I'm trying to sort out my Miss Pepperpot. She goes broody at the drop of a hat and pulled out lots of her feathers on her chest. I've also seen her allow the other chickens to pull or peck at her. Her neck is fairly bald and the back of her comb, then it spreads down her chest and to her undercarriage. She's never had a full moult and when the feathers look like they're coming through she just seems to pull them out.

 

Trouble is the feathers on the side of her legs appear to be wearing thin, as if they've lost their thickness if that makes sense and I wondered if perhaps she has this depluming mite. Wouldn't the other two have it too though? She is terrible for pacing up and down the run, rubbing herself along the wire.

 

I take it it wouldn't cause any problem if I was to try the flowers of sulphur and she didn't have the mite?

 

I feel really embarrassed when people see her, as if I'm not looking after her properly but the other girls are absolutely fine. I'm going to look on ebay now for it and just hope it helps.

[sandyhas3chucks]

you would expectthem all to get it wouldn't you.. but it seems not, depends somewhat on their imuune system too, and probably some other factors. I had it on only one as well! Flowers of S did it for me too.

[Seagazer]

How often do you have to rub it in? I've got it coming, I ordered it in cream. It was from a horse supply lady on Ebay. I really hope it works, she looks so awful.

[stoice]

Does the FOS and cream get rid of the mite or just ease the symptoms? My mabel has always had a red sore looking under carriage and is less feathered there. Could never see anything else on her (No mites) but i looked again yesterday and she has what I'd describe as dandruff around a few feather shafts, not lots but i wonder if it's something mite related?

[Ain't Nobody Here]

I think the "dandruff" is just bits of feather shaft (I'm sure there's a name for it but it escapes me just now!)

[stoice]

I have some dog flea shampoo and FOS anyway so i may give Mabel a bath just in case. She has been laying softies for ages despite cod liver oil, limestone flour or Zocal D and it may be down to mites. It will clean up her botty too as she's so fluffy she's always got dirty knickers even though she's wormed and hasn't overdone the treats. It's like detective work, this chicken keeping, isn't it?

[sandyhas3chucks]

holycluck, what wormer did you use?

stoice : it gets rid of the mite as I understand it... though not got a clue by what means, any cream can be used as it is the carrier for the FOS, tea trea , sudocrem , good as it soothes as well. but Aloevera, E45 or vaseline would work just the same.

ANH are you thinking of Dander?

[Seagazer]

Sandyhas3chucks - how much do you have to put into the cream? Mine has turned up but appears to be just the powder (although I'm sure I ordered the cream + powder). I'm really hoping it will work, it would be great to see Butch feathered up again.

[sandyhas3chucks]

oh gawd I can'yt remember, I bought just the powder.

Try searching FOS and reading evderyones experience.or pm Egluntine (I think it was her that posted how much)

I did not find the bathing method much good BTW

[chick wiggle]

Mmm You really have me thinking one of mine might have this. Arghhh, why didnt I think of this Ive never come across it before in any of my hens but one of them does have a bare botty and no signs of anything else, so this could be it.

Will try the FOS now and see how it goes, thanks for reminding me about this one

[Sheilaz]

.......- how much do you have to put into the cream? Mine has turned up but appears to be just the powder (although I'm sure I ordered the cream + powder). ..

 

The cream is just a way of carrying the powder, so you want as little cream as possible just to make it stay on, with as much FOS as it will hold.

FOS is impossible to apply on it's own, it's not a powder like Diatom, it "clumps" so it won't just rub in, you need the cream to hold the FOS in place, so just get as much FOS into the cream as you can.

 

I was really pleased when I did this for two necks & one botty last year, but the necks are going bare again. Quite hard to apply near the head, but that's what I'll be doing this week.

 

Remember, the feathers may not regrow until after the next moult, but the main thing is stopping the problem. Good luck with yours!

[Seagazer]

Thanks Teabag, I can't wait to get this on her today.