[newatthis]

I hang my head in shame, just cleaned out the chicken coop and put the bag with the old straw/shavings from the coop and i droped the bottle of diatom earth in the bag and took the whole lot out as you do when cleaning out, and i went to pick the bottle up and dropped it again with a small scream as it was almost coved in red mite.....
I know that there is a lot of help here but i need help finding out where i can find some of the stuff that is used,

1/ i have frontlined the hens 2 weeks ago and did do a good clean and used diatom earth evey where floor sides and any holes that i found..

so is there anything esle i can do

ps after reading that someone had red mite in their compost bin, it didnt go in there my o/h put it on the fire to burn them(i hope it kills them ) then we can use the ash to put on the compost heap afterwards..
so sorry it's a long post but im woundering if it had anything to do with health problems my hen had (she had lost the use of her legs yesterday, and sadly had to be put to sleep this morning)


zoe

[joyfull]

ok no need to be ashamed as the majority of chicken keepers will get red mites in their coops at sometime in their chicken keeping life. If you can get any poultry shield from your local supplier then do so, if not it is available from places like ebay, flytes of fancy etc. Thoroughly empty your coop and spray the poultry shield every where in your coop - I use a pressurised hand help sprayer from the plant section of places like B n Q etc. When this is dry make up a paste of diatom and water or disinfectand (add a squirt of washing up liquid) and paint this over all joints and on the perch ends. Put clean bedding in. Repeat this weekly and you will soon get on top of it. Good luck 

[newatthis]

Thankyou Joyfull, i will get another bottle of poultry shield from my local pet supplier, and clean it out again at the weekend and burn the old stuff again till i know it's safe to compost

[orchardlady]

There are two ways of buying Poultry Shield. Concentrate or diluted...you need the concentrated. It's far better value and you dilute it down to the required strength. If you buy the diluted you never have enough and find yourself skimping. You really  need to soak your house with the stuff. Also look under felt roofs and covers. Strip off and treat then replace with corrugated roofing. Best of luck. Red Mite are the bane of hen keepers. There are lots of posts on here so have a good read but I certainly second all that Joyfull has said.

[grenhouse]

I got a 5ltr bottle of concentrated poultry shield off ebay, very reasonable, about £4 cheaper than anywhere else and it's handy stuff to have. I had bad mites in the height of summer. I cleaned the house every day for about 3 weeks, using poultry shield every day too. I also used diatomic earth and added some in the dust bath and on the birds once a week.

I haven't seen a red mite since. Just persevere! and there certainly isn't any embarrassment with it!

Steve

[newatthis]

thankyou for your replys, i will get a large bottle of concentrated poultry shield today or friday, and have a good clean on the coop(which is a 4ft by 4ft shed),
what do i use for the soil, just in case they are in that too??
once again thankyou



zoe

[grenhouse]

I just used diatomic earth, but I don't think red mite will spend long in the soil, they will just try and find somewhere nice and cosy! Like a coup!

Patience is the key.

Steve

[joyfull]

I just used diatomic earth, but I don't think red mite will spend long in the soil, they will just try and find somewhere nice and cosy! Like a coup!

Patience is the key.

Steve

they can live on the ground without food for 30+ weeks 
I tend to be a bit clumsy when I spray my coops (well clumsy all the time really) and the spray goes everywhere - the coop, the ground etc  as does the diatom.

[chickadee11]

I felt bad about my infestation too, wouldn't wish it on anyone but glad I'm not the only one.

[hillfooter]

Look in your Personal Messages newatthis  I've forwrded my usual advice on getting rid of RM for good without the sweat of constantly cleaning and itching

HF

[newatthis]

thankyou hillfooter

[hillfooter]

I just used diatomic earth, but I don't think red mite will spend long in the soil, they will just try and find somewhere nice and cosy! Like a coup!

Patience is the key.

Steve

It's a horidily unmemorable word but it's "Diatomaceous" Earth.  It just helps make the house RM unfriendly but as it only works on contact needs to be used liberally.  Best to paint on a slurry made from dilute disinfectant and a slurp of fairy liquid, add Diatom until a creamy batter consistency and paint on all perch surfaces and into all corners of the house and nestbox and where ever they colonise.  Best done after you've got rid of them though as a preventative.  Won't usually zap a bad infestation on it's own. It's very drying and is great for preventing droppings sticking to the perches.  Try to avoid washing it of when cleaning and it lasts a good while. Not the total answer for RM though.

HF

[grenhouse]

I did state in my post previously that I used poultry shield and a lot of cleaning out. The diatom answer was in response to what to put on the soil.

HF I did use in one of my sheds a similar mix, but rather than using diatomic earth I used garden lime and water, that seemed to sort the little blighters out! From what I gather it wouldn't be much point mixing diatomic earth with water, as it is the separate dust fragments with sharp edges which cut into the mites protective outer layer. If you mix diatomic earth with water then surely this would mean that it couldn't function in this way? (Not trying to be picky btw but just interested if there would be any benefit to using it in this way rather than just using lime or something?).

However you do it it's a pain!

Steve

[orchardlady]

Once the slurry mixture is dry (only an hour today) it basically fills every little nook and dint in the wood of the perch with the finest dust, it will knock off a bit so handle perches when replacing with care.

[hillfooter]

I did state in my post previously that I used poultry shield and a lot of cleaning out. The diatom answer was in response to what to put on the soil.

HF I did use in one of my sheds a similar mix, but rather than using diatomic earth I used garden lime and water, that seemed to sort the little blighters out! From what I gather it wouldn't be much point mixing diatomic earth with water, as it is the separate dust fragments with sharp edges which cut into the mites protective outer layer. If you mix diatomic earth with water then surely this would mean that it couldn't function in this way? (Not trying to be picky btw but just interested if there would be any benefit to using it in this way rather than just using lime or something?).

However you do it it's a pain!

Steve

It's "diatomaceous" earth Steve and it will be totally effective painted on as a slurry once dry.  It is much longer lasting than dusting it as it sticks well in all the right places and it is really effective as a drying agent for the droppings.  It stays when you sweep out if you are careful so doesn't need to be reapplied every clean out just touch up on the perches when needed.

I'm very anti using dust in the house as chx respiratory systems are very susceptible to infections and suspended dust is a killer it irritates their airways and a single suspended speck of dust can carry hundreds of viruses.  Also even outdoors I wouldn't dust the birds with DE.  See http://www.shagbarkbantams.com/de.htm which is more negative than I'd be as there is benefit to so it's a balencing act really