[vfr400boy]

Iv had a bad infestation of red might this year iv never had meany before I keep my coops and birds clean but this last month or so iv been over run with um in 2 coops , is ivermectin any good I have an apontment with vet tomorrow about some ivermectin , have any ov you used it ? Thanks in advance

[Rosemary]

We bought it but didn't use it. It's not licenced for poultry so there is do withdrawal period for eggs or meat. We sell eggs to the public and decided it just wasn't worth it. And of course we eat the eggs ourselves and the whole point of that was to eat as chemical free as possible.

[devonlady]

If you can wait 'til I can put it up I have a plan by Pammy Riggs "Cunning not chemicals" Read it today!

[Buffy the eggs layer]

I have used it but I always creosote my coops inside and out every summer and this seems to be extremely effective against red mite. If you have a bad infestation and the hens are anemic as a result the vet may prescribe it to help you get on top of the problem.


Other ways of tackling red mite are Diatom and a weed wand if you dont like the idea or creosote

[landroverroy]

Yes it is good for removing an infestation from your birds as it kills any that go to feast on them and therefore gives an immediate improvement. However, you may need to use some of the other methods suggested to totally irradicate them from the house.
As mentioned it is not licenced for poultry, for which reason vets usually recommend a withdrawal period, just to be on the safe side. This period depends on the vet and may vary from a week to one recommendation that eggs from treated birds are never eaten during the lifetime of the birds. (Reason for this is that all eggs ever to be laid are already formed in the bird by the time it starts laying.)
However, when Ivomec is used on animals for which it is licenced, there is no withdrawal period before eating the meat, and there have been tests done in the States which found no residual trace of the chemical in the eggs of the birds treated at the recommended (pro rata) dose.

[devonlady]

I don't know if "The Landsman" is restricted to South Devon, I get mine at Mole Valley Farmers and it's free!
Pammy Riggs is a regular and very experienced contributor and I read this article by her yesterday,
To precis a bit,  "Red mite do not live on the bird but lurk in the house and only go onto the bird when the warmth of the roosting hens lure them down."
To overcome this she recommends the following............"If your house is on it's last legs, burn it and get another" (an option not available to most of us, D.L.) or try this.
"Take one hen house, ensure enough material strength to suspend the perches from wires or strong string from points in the roof structure. For a small flock a cut down branch from the hedge is good enough. For a larger flock a grid- like perch gives stability. You have now foxed the red mite army! Any living in the structure of the building will have a job to find their way to the perches where their meal roosts. For a belt and braces approach a decent blob of axle grease or similar high up on the suspension wires gum up their tiny limbs.
Don't expect that to be an end to it because re mite will infiltrate anew. Keep a close eye out for telltale signs on the suspended perches and remove them to the bonfire. Re-string a clean set and off you go for another few months mite free. Use cunning, not chemicals and your birds will thrive."
You could possibly look the whole article up on Google.

[Clansman]

You could also have Northern Fowl mite which are very common and live on the bird all the time, these will need treating to remove them.

[vfr400boy]

Thanks for all replys , I will try hanging the perches from wire , iv used durumitex on the coop and powder on the birds this I Thort had worked but they came back ! , how much will the ivermectin be I have 32 birds ? Thanks

[waterbuffalofarmer]

Wouldn't fumegating the house work?

[Marches Farmer]

I have tried the branches suspended from wire approach but found my large fowl didn't appreciate the garden swing effect at all and ended up roosting on the floor.  Would've worked better if the wires had been tensioned between the floor and the roof beams.  I've used ivermectin in the past - I think at 4 drops for chickens and 7 for turkeys, with a week's withdrawal. I also cleaned out the house thoroughly, sprayed the suspect hidey holes with Raid while the hens were out during the daytime and left the doors open for the fumes to disperse and it worked.

[Buffy the eggs layer]

You would put on drop on the back of the neck of each bird when they have gone to roost. ( they are quieter then) and do this three times, each one week a part. A large fowl may require 2 to 3 drips and you dont get many drops in a bottle.


My poultry specialist vet who treats commercial flocks across the north of England prescribes it for poultry so it seems to be trusted by poultry professionals if not by the average vet in a small animal practice who may be just "going by the book" 


The red mite are very sensitive to uv rays so the more loght in the coop the better though they will hide in dark spaces. The Diatom slices through their endo skeleton then dries them out but they need to come across it so put it in your hens dust bath and dust the hens with it before bed and the mites that visit them will come in contact with it that way.

[vfr400boy]

He's given me 2 small bottles of ivermectin , I Thort he wud of given me the sheep stuff but its for canaries and small birds

[F.CUTHBERT]

As mentioned it is not licenced for poultry, for which reason vets usually recommend a withdrawal period, just to be on the safe side. This period depends on the vet and may vary from a week to one recommendation that eggs from treated birds are never eaten during the lifetime of the birds. (Reason for this is that all eggs ever to be laid are already formed in the bird by the time it starts laying.)
However, when Ivomec is used on animals for which it is licenced, there is no withdrawal period before eating the meat, and there have been tests done in the States which found no residual trace of the chemical in the eggs of the birds treated at the recommended (pro rata) dose.

Ivomec pour on has a 15 day meat withdrawal for cattle and Ivomec injection has a 49 day withdrawal for cattle and 37 days for sheep. Neither should be used on milking cattle or sheep or used on dairy cattle due to calve within 60 days. Other brands have different withdrawal periods but i think they all have a withdrawal period.

[Buffy the eggs layer]

yeah the small bird stuff is the one for poultry. Its powerful stuff you only need a little drop.

[vfr400boy]

I did a deep clean on Monday and used the ivermectin on my birds , birds looking loads better now and iv only seen 2 mites today , it has a 7 day egg withdrawal will it be ok to feed the eggs to the ferrets ? Thanks