The Poultry Keeper

Autumn · Joined: 27 Jun 2008 Posts: 494 Location: Suffolk

After reading the post about 'the flea thingies',I've just been out and cleaned the whole coop out with Jeyes fluid - spraying everywhere. ( bit tricky in the wind...all the old sawdust and louse powder blew everywhere!) Just about to put tea tree oil in those cracks under the perch.
I found loads of, what looked like 'black sand' under the corners of the perch, this was after finding them in a heap on the sawdust this morning. little black things. Googled redmite and it isn't them.
One of the hens has taken to trying to sleep in her nest box again and the other sleeps on the sawdust on the floor. We always put them on the perch when we shut them up. The comb of one has been going pink rather than red - could this be to do with these creatures?
Any ideas please.

Photos further down!!

MamaPacker · Joined: 20 Aug 2008 Posts: 322 Location: Essex UK - Sarfend

Any photos? I'd be interested to see for future... *scratches head... and leg.... **

arghhhhh

Autumn · Joined: 27 Jun 2008 Posts: 494 Location: Suffolk

I'll see if I can do the 'micro' bit on the camera as we put a few in a jar this morning....
itching too....think I inhaled enough louse powder to have very clean lungs...reminder to self....don't clean coop when it's windy!! Laughing

MamaPacker · Joined: 20 Aug 2008 Posts: 322 Location: Essex UK - Sarfend

or wear a pair of knickers over your face!

lol

Autumn · Joined: 27 Jun 2008 Posts: 494 Location: Suffolk

nigel · Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2008 6:07 pm Post subject:

did you google "red mite" and "poultry" otherwise i suspect you'd end up with red spider mite that attacks plants

Poultry red mite, at least unfed ones do look like grey\black sand, the ones that have been sucking blood are obviously the red ones that give them their name.

Autumn · Joined: 27 Jun 2008 Posts: 494 Location: Suffolk

Ohhh - thanks Nigel - I think that might be what we have then - have just ordered Indorex, so hopefully that will finish them off.

Stujan · Joined: 05 Jul 2008 Posts: 465 Location: East Sussex

Hi Autumn, I read somewhere on here that after washing the house out they go around all the corners and cracks with a blow lamp and burn the blighters out of the nooks and crannies , it kills all the eggs as well but no doubt if you do try this for heavens sake take care and just a quick flash all around rather than burning the place down.

Autumn · Joined: 27 Jun 2008 Posts: 494 Location: Suffolk

Thanks for that Stujan - my OH is borrowing one from his boss....I will be standing way back - imagine if you didn't let the Jeye's Fluid dry properly first...!
Feel so bad for the girls - especially for the one who's comb has lightened in colour. They really fight to get out in the morning too - we thought they were just excited to be getting out and having breakfast - not so sure now. Confused

Welsh Duck · Posted: Tue Sep 30, 2008 8:18 pm Post subject:

Sounds like red mite to me

Autumn · Joined: 27 Jun 2008 Posts: 494 Location: Suffolk

These are done on a macro setting. The bugs are sitting on a wood shaving. not too clear, but i know any of you who've had them before will recognise them!

Sparklepeeps · Joined: 17 Jan 2007 Posts: 1967 Location: Cheshire

Im afraid it looks a bit like this red mite photo that I found

But someone with more experience than me would be a better source of information.

nigel · Posted: Wed Oct 01, 2008 6:12 am Post subject:

It looks like redmite to me I'm afraid. It can be a real bugger to shift.

The organic powders work really well as a deterrent, but in my opinion once you have it you need drastic measures. I blowtorch over all the cracks in my coops every time they are cleaned and still occasionally I find colonies lurking in an inaccessible spot.

Kitsune · Joined: 13 Mar 2008 Posts: 1410 Location: Manchester

yep definitely red mite.

I've eventually shifted mine after 2 bottles of indorex - it's always worked for me before but I think this lot might have somehow got resistant eggs, little evil things...

I sprayed with Indorex which killed all the hatched and adult ones then cleaned out the coop totally found a small hand held steam cleaner from a charity shop and went round all the cracks and crevasses with it, it took me a good hour and at this point I wasn't holding out much hope, I'd been battling with these blighters for about a month. My next step would have been the blowtorch, after steaming everywhere I sprayed again with Indorex (figured I may as well since I had a 1/2 can left) and crossed my fingers.

It's been 2-3 weeks now and no sign of the mites returning, though I do have dead immature mites stuck in the wood that wont come off, I'm considering painting over them or sandpapering them off, makes me itch every time I open the coop!

Autumn · Joined: 27 Jun 2008 Posts: 494 Location: Suffolk

Thanks everyone. I'm gutted. we only have two hens, so i thought we might be ok...
Embarassed

I've ordered the Indorex so hopefully that will do the trick (as well as the blow torch.) With the Indorex, how long do you have to leave the coop to air before putting the hens back in, as I know when I did my house, years ago, the rooms had to be vacated for hours!