The Poultry Keeper

chicklet · Joined: 01 Oct 2006 Posts: 16 Location: Hampshire

Hi everyone
Spring is just around the corner; actually it has arrived in some ways already. I think it would help if we all put in our advice regarding red mite and for the moderator to assemble a heading called solutions or something so that we can all benefit from our combined experiences.
We had a bad case of red mite during the hottest parts of the summer Mad

which went on until the onset of the colder parts of autumn. We dismantled, torched, disinfected, every part of the house and run and dusted the chooks with red mite powder frequently, we did not however seal the cracks in the floor of their run and we think the little nasties were living there, anyone else think we missed the obvious Sad

Does anyone know of a good supplier for decemite near Southampton, Hampshire by the way?
Good luck this spring, I think we are going to need it Rolling Eyes

Spana · Joined: 30 Apr 2005 Posts: 2070 Location: North Cornwall

Was think just that today. I had a bad attack in 1 house last year and sprayed it everyday for 2 weeks with Poultry Shield as well as torching and that seemed to do the trick altho I continued to check every day for months.
Im going to creosote all the little unused houses on a dry day so they are ready for mums and chicks later and have the Poultry Shield ready. Sad

I even had some sort of mite on a garden bench last year. They were horrid tiny grey things and you only had to sit on the bench for a few minutes and they were all over you, in our hair and tee shirts covered. The Poultry Shield sorted them out as well Very Happy

chicklet · Joined: 01 Oct 2006 Posts: 16 Location: Hampshire

This is exactly the kind of information I was talking about as I find it so helpful in trying to put together a plan to stop them from infesting the chooks and spreading to other wooden buildings as I understand that they can live in wood for a very long time without the need to feed. Do you know of a source of real creosote by the way Jan?

thewinkingtiger · Joined: 31 Aug 2005 Posts: 936 Location: East Yorkshire, UK

Like everyone else - I had a nightmare time with Redmite during the summer. I went down to three eggs a day out of 100 birds and I tried every one of the 'recommended' poultry methods.

In the end I got a pest control guy in and he got them clear within two weeks.

He used Ficam W

http://www.ratbait.co.uk/index.asp?function=DISPLAYPRODUCT&productid=351

Sounds expensive but worth every penny that I wasted on everything else

(Obviously you don't need the amount in the advert! lol)

After they got clear of them my egg yield went out of control!

Debs

CP · Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 2:51 am Post subject:

(gulp!) £108 for 500g!! Shocked

mcleod-girls · Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 3:49 pm Post subject:

great idea, I am dreading this

Spana · Joined: 30 Apr 2005 Posts: 2070 Location: North Cornwall

kated · Joined: 01 Nov 2006 Posts: 1744 Location: norfolk

I use Ficam W too. I have hesitated to mention it on previous threads because it is very toxic. But it does do the job. I can buy it in individual sachets which allow you to tip it into 5 gallons of water without actually touching the chemical. The sachet costs me about £4.00.

Kated

chicklet · Joined: 01 Oct 2006 Posts: 16 Location: Hampshire

Thanks Kated, do you have a souce for these packets please?

kated · Joined: 01 Nov 2006 Posts: 1744 Location: norfolk

Bowden & Knights
Unit 6, Ironside Way
Hingham Industrial Estate
Hingham, Norwich#Norfolk
NR9 4LF

01953 851799

However I got the quantities wrong Embarassed

sorry, it makes less than that but I can't remember how much. I know it did all my hen houses (4) and I still had tons left over. It really works well, with no re-occurrence of the mites it the houses for months afterwards.

Kated

chicklet · Joined: 01 Oct 2006 Posts: 16 Location: Hampshire

Update so far, I hope this helps:
1, Biodiversity is the key it seems, we should change the products we use to prevent the mites from becoming immune , however there is a cost factor to consider as most products are expensive to start with.
2, Many of the best products have now been withdrawn for safety reasons (Lets hope that is the real reason and not simply that creosote for example, was just too cheep for the pesticide industry to compete with).
3, Cleanliness is the key, but it must be mite clean rather than just "seen" clean and steam cleaning/blow torching on a one off basis probably wont do it alas.
4, Mixing of non pesticide type products (especially Eco friendly and Organic) would seem to be the best balanced approach, ie "Poultry Shield" followed by "Decemite" and then the birds themselves being fluffed with "Barrier Red Mite Powder". Always read the labels.
5, This is only a start and not a definitive answer, its up to us to provide information on products that we have tested here so that we may all benefit from out joint experience, but we will keep this updated and it will be a useful place to visit (hopefully for prevention rather than cure)
Write soon, write often and never forget why we do this, um Madness is not an option lol.
Best of luck.
Chicklet

chicklet · Joined: 01 Oct 2006 Posts: 16 Location: Hampshire

6, Lets not forget the tried and tested Ficam W (Again please read the lable first). It clearly works and thanks to Kated, we have a supply in a reasonable quantity at a reasonable price.
Thanks Kated and thanks everyone who has posted here so far.
Together we are going to fight back and give our girls a better summer.
Chicklet

NannyP · Posted: Sun Feb 18, 2007 8:11 pm Post subject:

I used the last of my Diatom before leaving the UK. I wish I had bought another large quantity and brought it with me, as I don't think you can get it here.
It was ideal for dusting all over the coop floor after cleaning, into the bedding of the nest boxes, into their pellets for worming, in cat bowls for the same reason and remembering not to put it in Mark's breakfast!

I bought it from here

kated · Joined: 01 Nov 2006 Posts: 1744 Location: norfolk

Incidentally, I discovered when during a weekend and unable to get Ficam W that for an emergency treatment, 3 in 1 oil seems to kill mites. I have tried WD40 after someone suggested it, but 3 in 1 works better.

Kated

CP · Posted: Mon Feb 19, 2007 1:24 am Post subject:

Funnily enough, we didn't get the little blighters last year. Very Happy

We had them with a vengeance the year before. Twisted Evil

It took us 3 weeks of intensive daily cleaning, dusting the girls, soaking everything with Poultry Shield, blasting the nooks & crannies with a paint stripping gun (we haven't got a blowtorch) & finally we got the Diatom.

We haven't seen any since but are always on the lookout for them. We still dust everything with Diatom as a prevention. Wink