Help! We've got some type of mite :(

[MyFamilyAndOtherAnimals1]

Last night I went to put my two pekins to bed when I noticed my arm was itchy... yuk! - they're tiny tiny little black mite. I've thoroughly cleaned out the coop, and covered it and the two birds in a powder said to get rid of mite (which was suitable for putting on the chickens!). Anyone got any other suggestions on how to get rid of the disgusting things? - any particular products or methods?

Also, I was reading this morning that fruit trees can get red mite- my patio plum tree, situated close to the chicken house, is looking really ill - could the two be related?

Sounds like red mite infestation. Be warned it takes ages to get rid of it! You have to break the egg cycle - it's as bad as nits!

You'll need to clean the coop with a good poultry disinfectant like Poultry shield several times a week for a good 6 weeks or so, let it dry. The pink red mite spray is also good too.

What powder did you use? I really rate diatomaceous earth. You'll need a lot! www.flytesofancy.co.uk/chickenhouses/Diatom_Parasite_Control.html Use it everywhere, very liberally every time you clean the coop (it is a great preventative too).

You need to soak the coop when you clean it - get into every nook and cranny. What sort of roof is the coop made of? You may have to remove it.

I also treat the birds with an ivermectin spot on. Not licensed for chickens as nothing is - but it is fine as long as you dose appropriately and follow egg withdrawal.

Not sure about your tree but interestingly enough the only infestation we had was when the coop was under a tree.

You have my sympathies - it is horrid!

Thank you so much @theunsure , that's such a useful reply! I hope that three step approach should work (spray, powder and spot-on) - I might see if my local mulberry hill has those in stock to speed the process up - rather than wait for shipping :)
Perhaps I'll find something to treat the tree too - it can't hurt!

Not sure those are red mites. Red mites stay in their hidey places until the hens settle to roost, and are red when engorged with blood. But I expect the treatment is the same.

This might not be considered exactly great - however, here goes. Diesel or petrol. Paint your wooden coops/runs with this (obviously whilst your chooks are elsewhere) and it will not only break the egg cycle - it'll protect for approximately a year or so.

As Dark (hello, lovely!) says, red mites only attack at night. They hide in the nooks and crannies and swarm out - and yes: they can kill your chooks, by rendering them anaemic and prone to other infections. We had a couple of outbreaks, and tried everything to get rid of them, until my great-aunt (who has been around chooks her entire life) suggested that we paint the coop with petrol. And it worked.

However, all chooks should be treated with ivermectin for mites/ticks annually. Because they're birds. Whose feed attracts other birds... wild ones who will carry mites/ticks upon them.

Hope that helps.

Hello Contrary!

Maybe wood preservative would do the trick?

"... Maybe wood preservative would do the trick?"

We've found not, unfortunately. It was only through talking to my great-aunt, and almost sobbing down the 'phone at her because my favourite chook had died in my arms because we just couldn't break the cycle, that I was informed about the diesal/petrol trick. My great-aunt (bless her!) actually went off for a few days and quizzed... although I suspect interrogated might be a better term for it... her farmer friends in the rural community she lives in (my SIL having to drive her from one farm to another) and the owners of the shop she buys all her feed from (she has a huge farm of her own) about it. Her father, who also kept chickens, used this to coat his wooden coops and so, my great-aunt had always used it... but suddenly she wasn't sure it was that which was working (she's never had an outbreak of red mite, in any of her flocks). Except, they all went "yep; that's what we use, too...".

Wood preservative doesn't suffocate the mites/their larvae. Think of it like headlice (urgh!) - we use chemical treatments on them, to suffocate them on our families hair, because nine times out of ten, the herbal treatments do bugger all. It's the same with the red-mite. They're the bird version of headlice. So, the chemicals in the diesal or petrol works the same way as the chemicals in our headlice treatments. Wood preservative is the herbal version which might work once... but then you find to your devastating cost that it actually hasn't, it's simply limited the numbers enough for the while it took to make you think that it's worked.

Good luck, OP. And if you try the country version of diesal or petrol, remember to make sure that there aren't any naked flames nearby!

i also discovered my coop covered in mites this week. Haven't seen them before. I wondered what they are since, they are out and about in the whole coop at daytime? Is there any other kind of infestation tat can be confused with?

Wehose down the wholecoop yesterday. Totally covered again today! Poor chooks ! Can I put the diatomaceous earth straight on them? How does one do this?

It’s the hot weather, the bastard mites love it and breed like rabbits. The pink stuff is ok, I don’t like using diatomaceous earth because it’s not great for us to breath in.

I’ve had some success with Johnson’s mite spray (usually used for budgies) I spray it all over the coup and a few sprays on each bird. But you can’t really eat the eggs for a few days afterwards.

Honestly it’s almost impossible to get rid of once you've got it. The key is to keep on top of cleaning, a proper clean once a week isn’t good enough really. Must be several times a week. I’m thinking of buying an omlet coup as the plastic ones a meant to be better than wood as the mites have less places to hide x