scaly leg mite treatment

[k-squared]

hello all!
long time, no post.
can someone help me with a scaley leg mite treatment. i have several birds that have recurring problems with it. i know glenda has a recipe that's been posted here several times, but a search comes up empty. i assume that with the new format, old posts have been deleted. i've tried straight mineral oil on the legs in an attempt to smother them, but that hasn't worked. i've done the bag balm/vaseline thing too, but that's so messy. any suggestions or if you have glenda's old recipe, it would be much appreciated.
thanks
kathy
k2

[Evy]

The bag balm thing works best. A bit of Sevin worked in will speed things up. Ivomectin rubbed on is the best ( wear rubber gloves ). Glendas recipes of motor oil, kerosene, etc. are dangerous. You need to dust or spray the building & perches as well to prevent reoccurances.

[k-squared]

hey evy! thanks! good to see that you are still around!
yes, kerosene/motor oil....i thought glenda's recipe involved something like that. i wasn't too keen on using it, but it's getting ridiculous. i do spray the the building and perches on a regular basis, but i have several birds that seem to have it all the time. i might have some ivomectin....i've recently cleaned out the chicken supply box because so much of the stuff was really old, but i might have kept that. hopefully, it's still good. if not, i'll do the bag balm/sevin dust mixture and slather them up one of these nights.
thanks!
kathy

[chicken farmer]

I have found that kerosene and even petroleum jelly work very well

[MattL]

K,
Good to see ya again! I always use WD40, spray every day for a week or so.
MattL

[Evy]

K,
Good to see ya again! I always use WD40, spray every day for a week or so.
MattL
Hey, Matt, have you read the warning label on that?

[greg rountree]

Strombergs has some products that work really well--I have a friend that uses Vaseline petroleum jelly straight from the jar--I guess it smothers them. Pesky little critters are'nt they? :( Greg

[k-squared]

K,
Good to see ya again! I always use WD40, spray every day for a week or so.
MattL
Hey Matt!! good to see you as well! It's nice to see familiar "faces" still on the board! :o)
WD40 would be much easier than vaseline or bag balm...does it smother or is it the chemicals? Although, like Evy, I"d be concerned about using it...especially having the fumes lingering in the coop all night as that's the best/only time to catch them to do a treatment.
kathy
k2

[MattL]

Never had any problems with it. Use it all the time. The Amish use it for their artiritus(Sp).
MattL

[HunterFarmer]

A plug for Ivermectin.

I've cleaned my flock with it and when I obtained some new started birds early last spring that were full of not only body lice, but feather eating lice (mites? Not sure what bug this is) and loaded internally they cleaned up very nicely with Ivermectin.

The previous year a rooster from another farm showed up here with scaley, ugh! Cleaned him up too.

None have shown recurrent infection or infestation since. I followed an article in the Poultry Press but use a pipet rather than a needle and syringe. I also consulted my veterinarian. I apply the dose to their skin area just below the vet where lice tend to accumulate. When I need to treat all of my birds I do this at night with a head lamp to easily handle my birds and set them to the side so I know who is done, etc.

I am about to check everyone now as most egg laying has stopped and it is a good time to treat if needed.

[CindyS]

I have used bag balm and vaseline with good results, dipping their whole leg in mineral oil also works well. Remember if they have a bad case it will take a long time for the legs to return to normal even if the mites are dead. One application will usually kill the bugs but several treatments will help soften the scale.

[Rich]

What many people forget about any parasite control measure is that you can kill the adults, but you need to come back and reapply a treatment so as to kill the pests that hatch from the eggs. Most pest eggs incubate for different lengths of time based on environmental temperatures so this time of year it can be more variable. When ever I have a pest problem, I try to treat weekly or even every other week until I'm sure I have it under control. Four treatments usually gets the results I want. One other thing to consider is where are the pests coming from. While people who constantly bring in outside birds can reinfect their flocks, if you birds are exposed to wild birds, be aware that they may be the source of your pests and look for ways to minimize exposure if possible. Just a couple of additional cents worth of information.

[k-squared]

None have shown recurrent infection or infestation since. I followed an article in the Poultry Press but use a pipet rather than a needle and syringe. I also consulted my veterinarian. I apply the dose to their skin area just below the vet where lice tend to accumulate. When I need to treat all of my birds I do this at night with a head lamp to easily handle my birds and set them to the side so I know who is done, etc.


what is a pipet and what dose do you use? i'm assuming you apply to the skin topically. i've done that...for large fowl, the dose i was given was 6-7 drops, but i applied it to the skin on their backs, not near the vent. i treated all the girls a couple of months ago with it, but my bottle is a few years past expiration, so i don't think it's very potent any more even though i've kept it in the basement refrigerator. i'll have to invest in some more as i think it's the easiest way to get rid of internal and external parasites. i just wasn't sure if it was that effective on the leg mites or if something else would work better. probably for the bad cases, the ivermectin, plus slathering bag balm or vaseline on the legs would be the best method.
that's funny....i use a headlamp too!
kathy
k2

[Blackorps]

Vetrx is very good for scaly legs as well.

[HunterFarmer]

Eye dropper is another word for pipette! Yep, 6 to 7 drops for LF.

[cathryn]

I use carefully measured ivermectim to get internal parasites and scale mites three times a year, and frontline spray or poultry spray on a regular basis to keep all lice, mites,and feather mites off my silkies. My vet gave me a script so I can use the off use wormers and frontline on my show birds and not worry about the Dept of Ag if they pop in for an inspection.
If I bought or found a bird in my barn with scale mites, I would treat the entire pen w/ivermectim, and I would repeat the (ivermectim) eprinex in 10 days. Plus follow up with extra spraying, then put them on my regular schedule. While using the extra poisons, I would add b complex and a little red cell or 747 to my silkie's feed. Cath