| Archive for Downsizer For an ethical approach to consumption |
| VM |
Red miteJust found my first attack of red mite since becoming chicken keeper a year ago. Have read through previous posts on it and am going back down to allotment with blow torch in hand (little cooking one only!) as that's what I have available right now.In terms of other things to do / use - I notice that Jocorless and Spicy Cauldron (I think) mentioned a herbal powder/liquid - where do I get this from? And does it work? Is it something to use regularly as a preventative or only when there is an attack? Someone mentioned limewashing inside of house - anyone know anything about this? If going to use pet-friendly wood-preservative, mentioned by dpack, would I still need to keep the chickens out of the house for a while? We have a fixed run at the allotment and only one hen house at present - so to treat like this, we'd have to make another temporary house. |
| jocorless |
You can get it from most poultry suppliers - Ascotts also do it
http://www.ascott-dairy.co.uk/acatalog/Mite_and_Louse_Powders_Sprays.html#aMD136 I think it only works as a preventative rather than a cure though - I haven't had red mite this year as far as I know but I've been using Stalosan F, Diatom powder and Poultry Shield and checking regularly seem at the moment to be doing the job |
| colour it green |
we are only using diatom at the mo. seems to be working. a good clean out with some diluted jeyes is not a bad start. |
| Chez |
People on the poultry forums recommend Ficam W - I don't think you have to take the birds out, but I'm not sure. There's something called Poultry Shield as well, that is supposed to be good. And someone else recommended using pyrethym-based ant powder mixed in with the bedding and around the perch ends.
You can vaseline the ends of the perches, too, that slows the little b*ggers down a bit. |
| LynneA |
Is Citrox any good as a general disinfectant? We use it when the local tom cats get territiorial over our shed, and it kills the smell as well. |
| goosey |
I use Barrier (that's the company) Animal Healthcare; Louse Powder, or their Red Mite Powder. Can use louse powder on cattle,horses, poultry ,rabbits etc etc. Slow release over 6 weeks.
Suitable in organic systems. No pyrethrum, but citriodiol. Not for aquatic use or waterways. It has always done the trick here 
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| GSHP |
I also use Barrier red mite and louse powder on the hens and blowfly repel for sheep. Fingers crossed all have worked well so far. |
| Liz in Ireland |
I threw all my green ideas to the wind when I was inundated by red mite last year 
Creosote was good on the outside. Did it first thing in the morning on a fine day and the hens were back in at 10pm. Strong solution of Jeyes fluid in every nook, cranny and surface inside. Not licenced for hens but one squirt Frontline under one wing for bantams, one squirt under each wing for hens. Ant powder in the corners and nest areas. Am going away for three weeks on Sunday.Hens off to the kennels tomorrow, so intend to creosote again on Saturday!
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| Mutton |
Frontline - as in Frontline spot on for killing fleas? |
| mutti |
As a red mite pro - unfortunately - I can only recommend Ficam W for actually knocking them dead. It is a hazardous material and really not very nice to use but it works. It is available from Bowden and Knights in Norfolk (satchets are sent by mail).
You apply it once, on a dry day - get the birds out of the house and away from it. Let it dry - job done. This treats the house. You need to spray/paint in all the nooks and crannies as this is where the red mite hide. If you have redmite on your birds - then you will need ivomec or ivermectin drops. Withdrawal period on eggs and meat. I think alot of the other products on the market don't really tackle the problem head on - they may 'manage' the problem, but redmite can re-emerge easily and numbers grow at a horrifying rate. |
| mutti |
Prevention wise - it is not a question of husbandry. It is down to your local environment. Alot of people think that having trees over your run and coop encourages the redmite. Obviously a mild winter doesn't help matters. I noticed that people reporting redmite problems on forums etc are far far less than last years.
Creosoting  your house will help matters. Again, a horrible substance but when it comes to the nasties it works. Vaseline on the ends of the perch can help stop the red mite from crawling onto the roosting bars and getting on the birds.
Whatever you do, act fast and keep an eye on it. Go and check your coop at night with a torch. If you see ANY, you have to keep treating - but, IMO, use Ficam and you'll not need to repeat. You are not looking to clean the coop with a disinfectant - you need to treat with an insecticide. I would avoid using both things together - don't overload...bets of luck |
| Frewen Feltmaker |
I used to paint paraffin on the inside of the house as a red mite preventative (I was told to do this by a chicken keeper of 60 years in deepest darkest Suffolk).
I might have been lucky, but I never had a problem. I also remember that pigeon keepers used to use parrafin to keep the red mite down too. |
| goosey |
Think I'll try the parrafin, Frewen. 
All this talk of pests, has got me re-thinking about one of my pet peeves, and being a grumpy ol' gal, I have a few 
And that is, the design of poultry houses generally. They make them with lots of fiddly internal struts which makes cleaning out a nightmare. The outsides are smooth, for looks, but criminy! I even had the vacuum out there on an extension once, to get out the crud. I have discussed with Mr goosey, making our own with a practical spec. so I can clean out, and get at pests (who won't have any hiding places anyway) more easily. |
| Mutton |
Funnily enough, our first "little" bout of red mite discovered yesterday has prompted some additions to the plans for conversion of part of an old blockwork outbuilding into a chicken shed - re-screed the floor so it is sloped to drain, render the insides of the walls and have lift out perches. Nest boxes were already going to be block work with removable lids. That should make it all much easier to muck out particularly if we do our favourite of "rounding" the corners - putting cement in and using a thickish cylinder like an old silicone sealant tube to provide the curve.
New question Can geese suffer from red mite? Our geese are currently next door to the chickens, look fine and healthy, but did wonder if the red mite could be there as well. |
| goosey |
Yes, I think a bit of thought when building your chicken house now, will make you glad, later on. Perhaps the red mite episode had a good side.
I have never in 20 odd years, had red mites on my geese, but that does not mean they don't get them. I don't know is the honest answer. The goose houses are separate from the chickens. They do get goose lice; watch out for long thin pale lice running fast, hard to spot on white feathers until you get your eye in. Barriers louse powder sorts it out safely and fast. ETA A decent pool where they can have a good splash, wash, swim, and come out to preen, keeps them clean. They are less trouble than chickens in my opinion. |
| VM |
Thanks for all this.
Had a first go with blow torch last night. Smell of singeing wood a bit alarming - but agree with whoever said it that the snap, crackle, pop of burning mites is very satisfying. |
| Mutton |
Just don't combine it with the paraffin. 
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| Liz in Ireland |
Yes, that was Frontline as in cat flea spray..........Solved my problem on the hens, and the creosote, jeyes etc, and haven't had them since.
My outbreak last year coincided with my having a minor op, but I emptied the coop, creosoted etc, but didn't feel strong enough to carry the black bin bags of used wood shavings etc anywhere. A few weeks later, now minus stitches, I decided to move the bags. They were CRAWLING with mites.............So I decided fire was the only answer, and took them down the the bottom of the garden and lit a match. Twenty minutes later I noticed that a tree in the hedge had caught fire. Too far for the hosepipe, so organised son, daughter, and daughter's new at the time boyfriend to run up and down the garden with buckets of water....not quite what the Consultant meant by gentle exercise! The cattle in the field next door all insisted on standing underneath the showers of sparks. Not wanting to pay the firebrigade again (€100 for a chimney fire) we persevered. And the boyfriend is still on the scene!! Redmite 
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| gingergiant |
I use flash kitchen/bathromm clener.i spray it over the shed and that seems to keep them away
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| jocorless |
Having been all smug about not having red mite - Discovered the little barstewards at the weekend
I sprayed everywhere with ready-made Poultry shield but it didn't seem to make much difference - so yesterday hubbie scrubbed everything down with a Jeyes solution and then power washed it Topped it off with a 20% solution of Poultry Shield and hopefully we've got on top of them - Horrible things - still itching now at the thought of them |