What could it be?

[ancee]

My four girls have stopped going into the house to sleep. A few weeks ago we had mite for the first time. What a palaver it is getting rid of them! But, they are gone and I am vigilant. The chickens were also powdered and the house is finally mite free. (I'm a bit obsessive now!) we have a long run with various roosting bars and logs for them to perch on. They seem to be sleeping on the roosting bars but won't go in the house. It was really hot so we thought they might be too hot in there, but it's gone a lot cooler now and they still won't go in. They lay eggs in there but don't sleep. Any ideas?

[kathyd]

I wonder if the mites are still there, but you just can't see them? Alternatively maybe the birds just enjoy sleeping elsewhere! Once my birds discovered sleeping on a roosting bar on the coop roof, they refused to go back inside. Having said that, our coop is under cover in a secure outbuilding which we lock at night, so nice and safe. Not sure how I'd deal with it if they were outside... Also, in terms of heat, even though it's cooler it's still quite hot and humid most nights (at least over here). Don't forget chickens have feathers, they can't whip their nighties off like we can if we get too hot. Some of mine wander around with their beaks open even on days when I think it's gone cooler.

[muddled]

whenever mine have stayed out, it's been redmite.

I know you're being vigilant but it's still possible they are lurking somewhere to emerge late at night.
Does your coop have roof felt on it anywhere? That's the mites' favourite hidey space.
Also remember that the powders rarely work on the eggs of mites...so two weeks after treatment finishes a second flush is very common.

Treat all over again from scratch, add diatomaceous earth to wherever they dustbathe as well.
You can often lure birds into a coop by putting a light (a little pound shop LED will do it or shine a torch in there) daft birds are drawn to it like moths! But do check for redmite late at night first.


I've kept chooks a long, long time now and redmite still catch me out from time to time.
They LOVE this weather,
they're hard to spot,
even harder to get rid of;
and they have always turned out to be the reason my girls stay out....every single time.

[ancee]

I will keep looking. One goes in sometimes, ( there is one pile of poo in the morning) one is being bullied so I think it's her. When we had mite in the house they laid eggs under the house, I thought, hmm, strange, then looked for mites... Found them very quickly running all over me! They weren't red though. They were beige. I've sprayed the house every day for a fortnight. Powdered the girls. I change the newspaper every day. Everything got jeyesed and blasted with a full on hose pipe. The shavings they lay in were changed and I keep spraying them just in case. Not seen one mite in a week now...

[ancee]

Sorry muddled, just seen your questions. The roof is wooden. I will dust and spray again. And the light sounds like a good idea thank you

[frias]

I found a couple of red mite by running a damp white tissue under the perch at night. Have pressure hosed the coop,sprayed with Smite and painted with Creocote. Still keeping a close check though as I'm sure they will be back this weather. I also covered the girls with red mite powder and put Diatoms in the dust bath.
The mites are only red when they've had a feed. Otherwise they are grey/black. Mite poo can be seen sometimes and it looks like a fine grey dust. That can be seen in the day but the mites can usually only be found late at night with a torch. Nasty critters.

[kathyd]

I agree, creocote (B&Q used to sell it about £10 a tin) and diatom. And I do find mites in the daytime - once you know what you're looking for you'll start seeing them everywhere! Argh! Or is that just paranoia . But I do find that although hopefully we've got rid of them from the coop, I do see them in other places on old wood or cardboard, often if I disturb them and the sun's on them so they have to run to hide. So don't be fooled into thinking that you've got rid of them, they may just be lying in wait... And to be honest, when I used special expensive red mite spray, it only cleared them for a few days at a time - it doesn't really penetrate deep into all the nooks and crannies where they can hide. That's why creocote is better - if you scrub it in hard, leave it to dry for 2 or 3 days to let the smell dissipate (girls will need re-housing during that time - cardboard box in a shed or garage maybe?), then fill every inch with diatom before replacing shavings, you should find it keeps it clear for much longer - a year, a couple of years, maybe even more.