Red mite infestation

moonshadow

Ive got a serious red mite problem in the coop,all advice greatfuly received

Askim

Me too, blow torched yesterday, & going spraying Tixol tonight, it is not on the market anymore, it is the only way I got rid of them last time, tried all the sprays & powders

A

Iyaibeji

Red mite - are they what we used to call "blood suckers" as kids?

Mothman

Iyaibeji wrote: »

Red mite - are they what we used to call "blood suckers" as kids?

No totally different

Iyaibeji

Mothman wrote: »

No totally different

Ah, thanks.
I've seen tons of blood suckers around and was worried in case they were red mite.

Rho b

If it is possible to lock the hens out of the coop after they have layed then I suggest the following. Buy a couple of cans of Raid or similar fly/wasp killer (Aldi/Lidl normally have them for sale) - the spray type that contains Permethrin. Clean out all the bedding in the coop and remove the roosts if you can. Put on a mask and gloves and carefully spray into the corners of the coop and along the edge where the floor meets the side walls. If you cannot remove the roots then spray underneath them especially where they are attached to the side walls of the coop, also do under the roof area and where or it it is hinged. Please be very careful doing this as you could get overcome by the spray yourself.
Leave for about 15 to 20 mins and check the coop again - hopefully you should see the little feckers leaving their daytime hiding spots and crawling onto open timber. Give them a spray to kill them off.
Repeat the process again.
Ventilate the coop for an hour or so before allowing the hens access to it. Spray it again the following day until you no longer see mite activity.
Also dust you hens with louse powder in their neither regions and under their wings. You can also all some louse powder to their dust bath. There are other ways of treating mites/lice but the products would not be licensed for use in poultry.

Rho b

I forgot to add - if you could move the hens to alternative accommodation for a week or so then I suggest you creasote the inside timbers of the coop, paying particular attention to any joints, corners or crevices - dig the paint brush into those areas and soak them with it. Then leave it ventilate for a few days to get rid of the smell before letting the hens back.
Red mite feed at night on your birds, a bad infestation can weaken birds quickly. You will not see them during the day but if you look at night with a torch you will have no problem seeing them.
Best of luck and hopefully you get rid of the feckers.

aonb

Isnt creosote a banned substance now? or no longer for sale? I cant imagine the fumes from creosote would be something that the hens could tolerate in a warm closed coop? We have creosote on fencing in the garden - it seems to be oozing and soft/wet when its hot too.

DIATOM EARTH (google it) is a natural substance is WILL kill redmites

My hens have been refusing to go into their house for the past week. Their combs/wattles are a bit pale. I know I have been fighting a loosing battle with red mite for many weeks. (Wasp/flyspray/louse powder/derris powder all have 0 effect on the b*ggers)

Now that the hens are obviously stressed by the mites (egg production down too & they;ve been fantastic layers) Ive taken the coop out of the run (its a bloody nice coop too :mad:) and replaced it with a **PLASTIC** dog kennel. (My husband has added door and perches and nest boxes - all made of plastic). I Have ordered DIATOM EARTH (google it on http://www.organicanimalfeeds.ie/diatomaceous-earth/) After much research the general consensus is that wooden coops are a disaster if you get red mite (Ive kept hens for years, this is the first year Ive got them) so with a plastic coop you can power hose or scrub it out with disinfectant/water easily and it will dry. Redmites love wood and all the little nooks and crannys. Diatom is also a super sounding product that will add to their dustbath and feed as well as the coop!

(note, I thought I was keeping on top of the mite infestation, when in a matter of days (I was sick) the mite population EXPLODED :mad: so make sure you keep a v.close eye on the situation too :eek:

Rho b

Timber coops maybe a disaster for harvesting red mites but I would never consider putting my hens into a plastic coop. They condense in the winter due to the body heat of the hens making the bedding a habour for all sorts of unpleasant moulds/yeasts.
I have been keeping hens all my life. The best housing for hens is a large stone/block building with a high roof and lots of ventilation. I do not care how much ventilation you put into your plastic coop, it will sweat with condensation in the winter and be too warm in the summer.
Diatom is a good product but slow acting and a long term use product.

aonb

Rho b wrote: »

Timber coops maybe a disaster for harvesting red mites but I would never consider putting my hens into a plastic coop. They condense in the winter due to the body heat of the hens making the bedding a habour for all sorts of unpleasant moulds/yeasts.
I have been keeping hens all my life. The best housing for hens is a large stone/block building with a high roof and lots of ventilation. I do not care how much ventilation you put into your plastic coop, it will sweat with condensation in the winter and be too warm in the summer.
Diatom is a good product but slow acting and a long term use product.

yes Rho b, agree with you completely on the condensation in a plastic coop being a major issue. A plastic coop is not a good option for long term use I agree with you, but this time my timber coop was so infested so quickly with red mite I had to get the hens out of there fast, and had a plastic coop/kennel that I could adapt for temp use quickly.
I would LOVE to have a stone/block building for my hens, but unfortunately I dont.
I have only 3 small hybrid hens in the plastic coop at the moment.
The elderly huge obese retired Rhode Island pure breed hens I had to seperate from my 3 small hybrids because they were bullying the small hens so much (pecking order) and being so much heavier, were injuring the small hybrids.
Anyway, I'll move the hybrids out of the temp plastic coop before the winter, before then the plan (back problems at present) is to steam clean the lovely state-of-the-art timber coop, seal it inside and out with fence paint or similar, then put really thick layers of yaght varnish, and then a strict regime of diatom earth to see if I can keep the red mite out. Any other advise/ideas to help avoid them coming back to the wooden coop?

Coles

One thing worth trying might be to whitewash the interior of the coop. That should seal up any cracks between the timber boards while also disinfecting it.