How to get rid of chicken lice using folk and chemical means

Poultry farming » Chickens

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Kira Stoletova

Lice in chickens is a problem that many breeders face, regardless of the number of flocks kept on the farm and the conditions under which they are kept. In the language of science, this problem is called mallophagosis. It is considered one of the most common diseases in the poultry industry.

Lice on chickens

To date, about 40 species of arthropods have been recorded that live on poultry. Their diet consists of feathers or down, as well as blood. The most common pest of this series is the louse. The complexity of solving the problem lies in the fact that parasites of several species can simultaneously live on one individual.

Mallophagosis is a dangerous disease, because chicken lice live on humans as well as on birds. To prevent this from happening, the fight against parasites must be carried out immediately using folk remedies and medications.

What do chicken parasites look like?

Chicken lice
Chicken lice are parasitic external insects that feed on the blood of mammals. They have microscopic dimensions - within 0.4-0.5 mm. The body is reddish-brown, flattened. After saturation, the filling of the stomach is visible.

Paws with small claws help them fixate on the victim. The head is quite large and mustachioed. The mouth contains chewing jaws (mandibles), with a sharp process for sucking blood. Externally, the chicken louse is similar to the human louse, which is where the name comes from.

Parasites emerge from egg-shaped capsules that develop over the course of a week. The louse nit is a translucent cocoon, whitish in color. Having hatched, the young begin to develop rapidly, moving into the adult stage. This leads to active distribution.

The lifespan of lice is 1 month, which they spend only on birds. There are varieties of lice that feed on both feathers and blood. Then bald spots appear on the bird.

Application procedure

Before mass treatments, each series of Creolin-X is tested on 10-15 animals. If the animals do not show signs of toxicosis within 24 hours after treatment, treatment of the entire livestock begins.

Working emulsions of Creolin-X are prepared immediately before use, taking into account the content of the active substance in Creolin-X, under the guidance of a veterinarian or paramedic. At the same time, the volume of working emulsion required for processing and the amount of Creolin-X required for its preparation are determined (see table).

Signs of bird infection

Insects cause significant discomfort to the bird, as evidenced by a number of signs:

• Concern appears: the chickens peck themselves, trying to catch the bloodsucker, tearing out feathers in shreds.
• Stop eating food.
• They lose weight sharply.
• They don't lay eggs.
• Multiple bald patches appear on the feather cover.
• Chickens slow down in growth and development.
• Chickens stop sleeping
• Eyes become inflamed.

Lack of proper treatment leads to the death of the bird population.
Lack of proper treatment leads to death of the bird population. The risk of being attacked by harmful insects especially increases during molting. Lice love fresh feathers.

It is difficult to diagnose chicken lice with the naked eye. The most favorite habitats of lice:

• under the wing;
• in the neck and legs;
• around the anus;
• near the eyes.

To detect parasites, they use a special method of heating the chicken for 10 minutes - thermotropism. As a result, insects crawl out.

Causes of lice in chickens

To detect parasites, they use a special method of heating the chicken for 10 minutes - thermotropism.
Infection with chicken lice occurs for a number of reasons:

• failure to comply with basic hygienic rules for keeping a flock;
• crowded coop;
• tactile contact between healthy and sick individuals;
• interaction with infected birds from outside, rodents;
• weakening of the immune system.

Such problems do not arise if the chickens are kept clean and comfortable, with regular free range.

How to remove chicken lice

Parasite control measures involve two successive stages: treatment of the poultry flock, then housing. All this is done as quickly as possible to prevent the spread of the epidemic. The process involves the use of pesticides and folk remedies.

If a problem is detected, all birds are moved to a new place, and the chicken coop is disinfected.

Special insecticidal preparations are purchased at a veterinary pharmacy. Regardless of the chosen method, the bird is treated twice: immediately and after a week. It is important that chemicals do not leak into the birds' eyes and beaks.

If a problem is detected, all birds are moved to a new place, and the chicken coop is disinfected

What drugs should I use?

There are many commercially available products that help cope with mallophagosis (infection with external parasites). Their effect is local: they kill pests, but do not cause pathological harm to the bird.

The most common forms of release:

• Drops that are enough to apply in small quantities to the affected areas. Suitable for use for a month, which is enough to destroy larvae and adults. Contraindicated for chickens and weakened birds.
• Sprays with a prolonged effect on adult lice and nits. Each chicken is completely sprayed with them.

There are also powders and liquid solutions.

Several best drugs

If there is a large accumulation of lice on a bird, it is recommended to use the drug “Butox”. It comes in powder or liquid form and dissolves in water, according to the dosages indicated in the instructions on the package. The resulting solution is used to pollinate the chicken.

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When there are few parasitic clusters, drops are used: Bars, Frontline, Neostomazan. Sprays that are also effective are: Dichlorvos, Reid, Get, as well as liquid solutions of Tetrix, Karbofos, Executioner.

Chemical insecticides against chicken lice

When there are few parasitic accumulations, drops are used.
The most common chemical insecticides are:

• Insectoacaricidal powder - sprayed and rubbed into feathers. For a one-time treatment, 2-5 g is enough.
• Butox - the contents of the ampoule are dissolved in four liters of water.
• Beafar, Frontline - an insecticidal spray that is used to spray the chicken until the feather cover is completely moistened.
• Promectin is an effective drug for treating chickens by mixing it into drinking water.

For treatment, you can use the following formulations: Stomazan, Neostomazan. Due to their toxicity, they are contraindicated for laying hens and poultry going to slaughter. Any treatment must be repeated after 8-10 days to destroy the remaining larvae.

Folk remedies

Along with chemical means of control, there are folk remedies that are no less effective in terms of impact. The most common:

• Table vinegar: dilute in water (take 1:3 proportions), and pollinate the bird from a spray bottle.
• Kerosene: completely exterminates adult beetles, to a limited extent – ​​larvae. Each chicken is processed and transferred to another room.
• A mixture of alcohol, kerosene and gasoline: the ingredients are combined in equal proportions, and then applied to the damaged skin areas of the bird. The method allows you to destroy lice nits.
• Herbal infusion: 300 grams of a mixture of wild rosemary, chamomile and tansy, brew with six liters of boiling water. Boil for a quarter of an hour and cool. The method is suitable for minor lice infestations.

To repel pests, a kerosene-ammonia solution is applied to the bird’s neck, and bunches of wormwood, wild rosemary, and tansy are hung in the chicken coop.

To repel pests, apply a kerosene-ammonia solution to the bird’s neck, and hang bunches of wormwood, wild rosemary, and tansy in the chicken coop.

What products should not be used?

Some remedies help against chicken lice, but harm the bird itself. Others do not cause harm to birds, but accumulate in muscle fibers and eggs, after which, when they enter the body of people, they cause intoxication.

To remove chicken lice, the use of endrin, chloradane, heptachlor, benzene, and hexachloride is prohibited.

When using approved chemicals, it is important to observe their dosage, since exceeding it can also affect the quality of chicken meat.

Disinfection of the chicken coop

Having discovered parasites on chickens, they treat not only the chickens, but also the poultry house. All surfaces are disinfected, including the flock’s favorite places. But first, the inhabitants are evicted and a general cleaning is carried out.

Preparations for spraying chicken coops are divided into 2 categories. Some can be used in the presence of birds, others cannot. The last category is cheaper in cost, but requires a lot of effort and time. The approximate consumption is 0.5 liters of solution per cubic meter of treated area.

Having discovered parasites on chickens, they treat not only the chickens, but also the poultry house

Preparation for disinfection, washing

With a large number of birds, it is difficult to treat each bird with medicine. Therefore, the spray method is used. After preparing the solution, wait until the birds calm down and sit on their perches. Then they carefully spray the birds, trying not to scare them away.

Further actions:

1. The chickens are transferred to a clean room.
2. Throw away unsuitable bedding, litter, leftover food, and droppings.
3. Wash the internal structures of the chicken coop.

After the measures taken, protective clothing (mask, gloves, body suit) is prepared to ensure human safety when working with insecticides.

Treating the chicken coop for parasites

The chicken coop is disinfected sequentially.
The chicken coop is disinfected sequentially, thoroughly spraying the interior space with a sprayer. Use insecticidal preparations of your choice:

• Entomazan is super.
• Stomazan.
• Diazonin.
• Butox.
• Peritrum.
• Sevin.

An alternative to aerosols is steam treatment or fumigation with insecticidal smoke bombs (for example, Peshka-V). The checker weighs 50 g and is designed for a room of 200-250 square meters. m.

To prevent parasitic infestations, use containers with ash and fine sand.

2-3 hours after completion of work, new bedding is laid out and fresh food is poured in.

There are no universal remedies that simultaneously destroy eggs and adult lice. Therefore, treatment is carried out every 10 days until the infestations are completely eliminated.

Control measures

The destruction of parasites on poultry will not bring a long-term effect if zoohygienic parameters of housing and feeding are not ensured. The room is cleaned, the floors and walls are treated with insectoacaricidal preparations. The poultry is treated with an aerosol, and if the population is small, it is bathed in the working emulsion of Deltsid or Entomazan S.

Do not use products not intended for chickens.

Since parasite eggs are resistant to insecticides, you should wait until the larvae hatch and re-treat. This must be done no later than 10 days after the first. Otherwise, the larvae will become sexually mature and lay new eggs.

Do not use products unless chickens are specified in the instructions for use. This is either unsafe or economically unfeasible. Traditional veterinary medicines are ineffective or toxic.

On large poultry farms, technological breaks lasting about three weeks are provided, during which the premises are free of birds. During this time, the parasites remaining outside the bird's body will die. Therefore, when processing chicken coops on personal plots, it is recommended to transfer chickens to temporary premises.

Prevention of parasite infestation

To prevent parasitic infestations, containers with ash and fine sand are installed in the chicken coop. Birds taking such baths daily are less susceptible to infestation with lice and other external parasites.

Additional measures:

• A net is stretched over the pen to prevent free birds from interacting tactilely with the chickens.
• Pigeon nests, if any, are removed from the barn.
• Seal up any holes and passages in the chicken coop through which rodents can get inside. They are the main carriers of parasites.

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Once a month, the bird must be examined for the presence of external parasitic infestations.

Once a month, the bird must be examined for the presence of external parasitic infestations.

Table: folk recipes on how to get rid of lice at home

To remove parasites from chickens, aggressive chemicals are replaced with improvised means. A list of the most effective recipes can be found in the table below.

For better effect, you can use essential oils with other products.

Can lice live on humans or other animals?

Chicken lice do not take root on humans and animals, since dense skin and lower body temperature prevent them from adequately feeding. However, they can bite quite painfully.

Bite areas must be disinfected and treated to prevent infection from being introduced inside. If insects get on your hair, just wash your hair with shampoo.

Chicken lice do not take root on humans and animals

Other external parasites

In addition to fluff eaters, a number of other external parasites are identified:

• bedbugs;
• fleas;
• ticks.

Unlike lice, fleas and bedbugs can exist not only on birds, but also on humans. Several types of mites are especially dangerous for chickens. Their treatment is difficult due to their nocturnal activity: they hide from daylight.

Ticks rarely appear when birds are kept in cages, due to the lack of perches and straw bedding.

Preparations for all external parasites are the same in terms of their effect.

Red chicken mite

This type of tick is dangerous, as it is a carrier of cholera, plague, and borrelosis. The main habitats are wet litter. They reproduce well in poorly ventilated areas.

Red chicken mite

Adult representatives measure 0.6-0.8 mm in length. The body is dark red in color, flattened in shape. When saturated with blood they turn burgundy. To detect ticks, white sheets are used, with which they examine the hidden nooks and crannies of the chicken coop. When insects fall off, red grains are noticeable on the paper.

Syringophilosis or feather scabies

Syringophilosis is a disease that develops as a result of the vital activity of thrombidiform mites in the feather stump. The pathogens are small in size: length – 1.2 mm, width – 0.6 mm. Matte white or grayish tint. The upper shield is covered with paired elongated setae, and the back is covered with two similar pairs. A powerful flattened proboscis protrudes from the front. Ticks are equipped with a sucking-piercing jaw.

Syringophilosis or feather scabies

They parasitize en masse, settling in the feather cover for at least a month. They develop in stages: eggs, larvae, protonymphomas, deutonymphomas, adults. Birds six months and older are most often affected. The infection is transmitted by airborne droplets and through tactile contact of sick chickens with healthy ones.

The peak incidence occurs in spring and summer, with isolated outbreaks occurring in winter. Mostly birds living in regions with warm climates are affected. Ticks die instantly at low temperatures, in room conditions - within a week. They are viable on the victim for 2-4 weeks.

Acariform mite

This type of mite lives under the epithelium of the bird, on the paws. A similar disease is popularly called “limestone leg.” This is explained by the fact that the epidermis at the site of the lesion becomes denser. In scientific terminology, the pathology is referred to as knemidocoptosis.

Roosters are more vulnerable to acariform mites than chickens. The insect dies at high temperatures, so boiling water is used to treat the chicken coop.

Bedbugs

Roosters are more vulnerable to acariform mites than chickens.
Microscopic insects that cause discomfort and pain from bites to chickens. Infection can spread through the bitten areas, leading to various diseases. Parasites usually attack at night.

Birds can be affected by several types of bedbugs, the most common being the bed bug and the Sigiso bug. These are blood-sucking insects 2-4 mm long and up to 2 mm thick. The color varies within yellow-brown tones.

Fleas

The flea is a blood-sucking parasitic insect with active life activity as an adult. Infects objects by jumping. The larva has no legs, so there is no way to jump. The insect size is about 1.5 mm in length. The body is flattened and elongated.

Chicken fleas

Fleas attack chickens in colonies of up to 100 individuals. They are able to firmly attach themselves to the skin, which allows them to parasitize the victim for a long time.

The European flea feels equally comfortable on birds and humans. Lives on its owner until it is satisfied. Fleas lay eggs in bedding, so the first step is to dispose of them.

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Head louse

Head lice and body lice are very similar in appearance. They often interbreed with each other and produce offspring, changing their “place of residence.” The body louse and head louse are considered sibling species.

The head louse lives on the scalp, most often the back of the head, temple, beard and mustache in men. Thanks to the special structure of the legs, the insect is firmly attached to tufts of hair that have a circular cross-section.

The insect has an elongated shape, 2–3 mm in length, the female’s body length is 4 mm. The body of the parasite is transparent or has a grayish-yellow color. There is sharp pigmentation on the sides.

Lice only crawl. From person to person they crawl through towels, bed linen, combs, etc. They can be picked up in a train car, on the beach, in a store and in a swimming pool.

The louse lays eggs 4 - 5 times a day. Over a lifetime, the number of eggs laid reaches 120 - 140. Egg maturation lasts 7 - 10 days. Most often, eggs are laid in the area behind the ear and the lower part of the back of the head.

Head lice feed 1-2 times a day. After absorbing blood, the insect's abdomen turns purple. The volume of blood sucked by the female at one time is about 0.7 ml. Males suck three times less blood. Without food, the head louse dies within two days.

The lifespan of insects ranges from 28 to 38 days.

Rice. 17. The photo shows a head louse (adult) and a nit.

Rice. 18. After absorbing blood, the insect's abdomen turns purple.

Bird symptoms and treatment

When a poultry flock becomes infected with periodontal beetles and other skin infestations, the productivity of laying hens first decreases. Egg production decreases by approximately 15-20%. This sign is the first warning sign.

Symptoms and treatment methods depending on the type of lesion:

Traditional methods and prevention against parasites

A universal prevention option would be to install an ash bath in the poultry farm with the addition of sand, sulfur, and lime. To repel insects, hang bunches of dried mint inside, and place onion and garlic peels in the corners of the chicken coop.

Tar, which is used to coat the paws of chickens and perches, helps against mites. To prevent parasitic infestations, the chicken coop is regularly cleaned, food and drinking water are changed in a timely manner. The bird is examined more often.

Tar helps against ticks

Danger to humans and other animals

Staying among infected birds for a long time without protective clothing inevitably leads to multiple bites.

Chicken pests do not take root on humans, but there is a danger of an allergic reaction and infection: encephalitis, worms, brucellosis, salmonellosis.

Shelf life of KREOLIN-X

Shelf life, subject to storage conditions, is 2 years from the date of production.
It is prohibited to use the drug after the expiration date. Residues of the drug are neutralized with a 5% solution of caustic alkali or an aqueous suspension of slaked or bleached lime (1:3). Containers contaminated with Creolin-X are neutralized by filling them with a 3-5% solution of soda ash for 5-6 hours, after which they are washed with running water.

Working emulsions, drainage effluents and wash waters generated during cleaning and neutralization of premises, vehicles, containers, equipment and workwear are collected in a concrete tank and treated with bleach (500 g per 10 liters of effluent).