The emergence of a carnivore in poultry cannot go unnoticed. Hens become nervous, constantly itch, pluck feathers on themselves to complete baldness. Such troubles are brought by a small and inconspicuous parasite - chicken eater, which is difficult to see even with the naked eye.
Who are the eaters
Consider what this parasite looks like. This is a small tick resembling a louse, with a narrow body no longer than 2 mm long. The insect is light brown, almost yellow in color.
The parasite has 6 paws with a pair of claws on each. They are designed so that the loafer can easily cling to the body of the bird and just as easily move along its surface. Basically, the loafer appears due to unsanitary conditions in the chicken coop. Untimely cleaning, rot and garbage - an excellent environment for the appearance of this parasite.
Active reproduction of insects begins from the moment they hit the body of the bird. They eat fluff, feather base and epidermis. Parasites are very hardy, they withstand a sharp change in temperature and lack of nutrition.Important! Charcoal is an excellent antiseptic, which is why it should be present in the chicken coop. You can also use seashells or chalk. Substances are placed in a small container and installed in the house, which saves the layers from annoying parasites.
Infection pathways
The appearance of downy-eating in birds is a disease called malophagosis. It has no age restrictions and can occur in both young and old chickens. In addition, it spreads rapidly. The appearance of one infected individual entails the infection of the entire livestock within a week.In order to avoid an unpleasant ailment in your household and to protect it from parasites, it is important to understand exactly what ways cannibals can get into the house:
- A healthy bird can get an ailment as a “reward” by taking the same dust baths with infected individuals.
- Wild birds, which are their carriers, can also bring peroids into the chicken coop.
- The maintenance of sick and healthy layers together, their use of the same perches, nests, the placement of such birds in one cage.
- People can also bring these ticks on their clothes and shoes if they were in a room where the beetle already lives.
- Often, roosters are a source of chicken infection, as they are less likely to clean feathers and are less accurate than laying hens.
During an increase in the activity of chickens, the risk of their infection increases greatly. These periods fall in the spring and fall. There are other situations that provoke an outbreak of the disease:Did you know? Over the course of its life, one female carnivore lays about 120 thousand eggs. This process is cyclical and never stops almost. And one chicken can become a habitat for 10 thousand parasites at the same time.
- low levels of poultry, excessive dampness and dirt, which provokes the occurrence of infection;
- nutrition of chickens, poor in vitamins and minerals, which leads to a weakening of the immunity and the organism of birds in general;
- small size of the house, which leads to a high concentration of birds.
Symptoms of appearance
By the way the bird behaves, you can determine the presence of a parasite. The appearance of peroids will certainly make itself felt by a number of signs that have striking differences from other diseases:
- the bird constantly itches and strives to snatch feathers;
- in places baldness is observed, and holes are formed in the place of feathers that have fallen out;
- plumage has damage at the base;
- birds are very nervous, constantly clean their plumage;
- the growth of young individuals slows down, adult chickens slowly gain weight because they lose their appetite;
- hens cease to rush.
If you do not pay attention to the abnormal behavior of birds for a long time, this can lead to a decrease in their productivity. In addition, laying hens, peeling the skin, form wounds that eventually fester.
Pus and inflammation in the wounds are very dangerous. If untreated and prolonged disposal of parasites, this can lead to the death of a laying hen.
Harm and Danger
If we talk about the dangers of this tick for the health of the chicken, then the main damage it can cause the productivity of these birds. Under the influence of eaters, the chicken’s body weakens very much and is not able to function normally. Egg production of birds is reduced by an average of 10%. Chickens grow much slower than usual, while their sexual development slows down significantly and maturity comes much later.
Decorative breeds suffer primarily aesthetically, since the plumage structure is disturbed, baldness appears. Affected feathers fade.
Unprotected areas of the skin appear on the body of the chicken, which are easily affected by infections. The skin is covered with wounds, in which dirt accumulates and creates a favorable environment for the multiplication of microorganisms. As a result of this, in addition to the defeat by the cannibal, the laying hen begins to get sick with other, no less dangerous diseases.
How to deal with peroids
Feeling the parasite, the birds are trying to cure themselves. But no matter how hard they try, it is impossible to get rid of mites without human intervention.
It is necessary to start the fight against peroids from the moment of detection of the first signs of their appearance in the chicken coop. The infected individual must be immediately resettled from the rest, and healthy chickens should be treated with insecticides. The house is thoroughly cleaned and disinfected; additionally, surfaces can be treated with a blowtorch or steam.In parallel with preventive work among healthy livestock, medical measures are being taken for sick birds. In order to get rid of parasites, often use chemicals or folk remedies.
Did you know? The eater is dangerous not only for birds, but also for people. This tick can be a carrier of typhoid or salmonellosis, and also cause allergies. His bites cause severe itching, which can lead to swelling.
Chemicals
The use of chemical remedies for eating food is a very effective way. In every veterinary pharmacy you can find a lot of parasitic drugs. These poisons affect the nervous system of pests, which leads to their rapid death, while not affecting the feathered organism. To make the use of drugs more effective, the following rules must be observed:
- Preparations in the form of drops should be applied to the withers so that the chicken could not reach the feathers and poison. Ticks die in a couple of minutes, so beak tying can be another way to protect the chicken.
- Sprays are sprayed at a distance of 15 cm. You can protect the bird's eyes from getting the medicine by covering its head with a cloth.
- The action of all drugs is aimed at the destruction of adult insects, but does not affect their eggs. In this regard, the procedure for the destruction of ticks must be repeated after 7-10 days. If you ignore it, then in two weeks the chicken will again suffer from parasites.
Important! Chemicals are too toxic and not suitable for chickens, so for their fragile organisms, it is worth choosing more gentle means.
Insecticides
As for such drugs, now on the shelves of shops full of various funds, but the most popular and affordable are the following:
- "Nowhere" - This is a human preparation in the form of a spray to remove lice. It has no less effective effect on birds. Its price is quite high, in connection with which it is most often used to process a small number of livestock.
- Butox - well displays various types of insects. It is made in the form of ampoules. You need to dilute the drug in the ratio of 1 ml of the drug to 1.5 liters of water. It is sprayed on feathers and is also used for processing houses.
- Front line - It is sold both in the form of drops and in the form of a spray. It only harms adult ticks. Subsequent processing is carried out after a week.
- Insectol - With this tool, the chicken treats the areas under the tail and wings, spraying the drug in an amount of 0.4 ml until the feather is moistened slightly.
- Arpalit - a ready-made spray for the complete processing of poultry, which will protect the hen from further infection.
Disinfectants
Disinfection of birds is mandatory with the appearance of eating. Conventional remedies will not help to exterminate ticks, the desired effect can be achieved only thanks to those drugs that react in combination with water:
- Butox - ampoule preparation for ticks and other parasitic insects. To process one chicken, you need one ampule. The drug penetrates the skin, and is excreted through the digestive system, which produces a complex effect on a number of parasites. Divorced with water in a ratio of 1: 1.
- Entomozan - used to process chickens. Before the procedure, all eggs are collected in the chicken coop, and then the birds are irrigated with a solution of the drug and water (5 ml of Entomozan per 1 liter of water). Re-treatment is carried out after 9 days.
- Neostomozan - the drug is used in the form of an emulsion. It is formed as a result of the reaction of the drug and water. For chickens, it will be enough to mix 1.5 ml of solution with 10 liters of water. The liquid is poured into the spray gun and the bird is sprayed.
- Tsifoks - this drug treats specific areas of accumulation of ticks. The solution is prepared at the rate of 10 ml of the drug per 5 liters of water. After 12 hours from the time of treatment, the drug should be washed off with a damp cloth and a soapy solution.
Repellents
There are also a number of drugs that do not have a fatal effect on parasites, but repellent. This is a fairly effective prophylaxis for healthy chickens, especially if an infected individual has already wound up in the population. The following drugs are most used to eliminate the ailment:
- Front line - It is used as a drug for ticks in dogs, but also suitable for birds. Quite effective and non-toxic. The drug is applied to the withers. Its action lasts several weeks.
- "Leopard" - It is used to destroy various varieties of parasites not only in animals but also in birds. The tool should be applied with a pipette to the neck of the bird, the recommended dose is 1.4 ml. With the help of this tool, the processing of the pest from pests is also carried out by the method of spraying the drug.
- Vitomax - available in the form of a spray, has a low cost. It is better to spray the product starting from the tail at a distance of 30 cm to the lightly moistened plumage. The spray should penetrate the skin, but be careful not to get it in the eyes.
Folk remedies
The abundance of chemical agents allows you to quickly get rid of the nibbler, although you can also refuse them, since it is possible to remove the pest with more environmentally friendly, and most importantly, cheaper means.
Herbs
In our fields and gardens there are a lot of all kinds of herbs that can save the chicken coop from the beetle. The most deterrent plants for these mites are wormwood, chamomile, tansy and rosemary. All this forbs is dried and ground, after which the powder is scattered on the bedding. This will serve as an excellent prophylactic against chicken fleas.
Another way to get rid of ticks is powder from a blackberry and twigs of hellebore. Bird is showered with this mixture, which helps to get rid of parasites of already infected chicken. But this remedy carries a certain danger for weakened chickens, in this case you need to dilute the remedy with water (2 g per 0.5 l).
Decoctions and infusions
Decoctions of herbs can be treated no less effectively than with medicines. For example, infusion of chamomile is brewed as strong tea, and rubbed into the affected areas of the skin for a week. You can also use this method to eliminate the disease in chickens.
It is also recommended to brew a solution of tansy and wormwood, which then wash shelves, walls, feeders and drinking bowls in the house. To do this, you need to brew one of the plants in boiling water in a ratio of 1: 1 and let it brew overnight.
Ash
Ash has proven itself very well in the fight against chicken fleas. Its mixture with sand very quickly removes parasites.
In order to prepare this tool, you will need ash and sand in the same proportions. These ingredients are mixed and placed in a container that is installed at the entrance to the chicken coop. It is better that there are several such baths, then it will be easier for layers to bathe without interfering with each other.Insects cannot tolerate such procedures and die or run away.
A cream can also be made from ash by adding vinegar or kerosene to it. With this medicine, the chicken is lubricated and left until the onset of effect. Air access for parasites is blocked and they die. But such a procedure can only be done with adult chickens.
How to get rid of poo-eaters in a chicken coop
To completely get rid of parasites and prevent their occurrence in the future, as well as for prevention, it is necessary to disinfect the house.
Compounds of chlorine and aerosol can help in this way. But what exactly to process the chicken coop, consider below:
- Slaked lime. In this case, an ordinary whitewashing of the walls is performed, also the product should be sprayed on the bedding in the chicken coop. Lime dries the surface and prevents the appearance of moisture. Thus, a favorable environment for the propagation of pests is eliminated. After complete drying, the bird is returned to the chicken coop.
- Bleaching powder. One of the strongest disinfectants is the combination of water and bleach, which should be infused for a day, with periodic stirring in the first 6 hours. After this, the container with the mixture can be placed in the chicken coop for 24 hours, the room must be closed. Chlorine is released into the air, disinfecting it and the surface. Additionally, you can sprinkle the walls and perches. After the procedure, the chicken coop is thoroughly ventilated.
- Chloroskipidar. During the mixing of bleach and turpentine, a reaction occurs during which gases that kill the parasites are released into the environment. Mix the ingredients in a ratio of 4: 1. After mixing, the liquid is poured into several containers and placed in a well-ventilated chicken house. This procedure can be carried out in the presence of birds for five days.
- Iodine Chloride To make this pest control, you will need 10 g of crushed aluminum and 200 ml of hydrochloric acid solution. It is placed in a glass, ceramic or enameled container. During the reaction, violet smoke will be released, which adversely affects parasites.
- Iodine Checker. This product can be used to treat a house without evicting chickens from it. A box with the drug is placed on a refractory surface and set on fire.
Video: Treatment of the house with iodine monochloride
Preventive measures
In order not to waste time and energy on the fight against eating, it is better to timely prevent the occurrence of these parasites. This will help compliance with simple rules:
- Promptly remove chicken excrement and change the litter.
- Disinfect the room at least once a month.
- A good preventive move would be hanging out ligaments from repelling parasites of herbs, as well as adding them to the litter.
- Watch the behavior of chickens carefully.
- If a sick chicken is found, isolate it on time.
- Make sure your poultry does not come into contact with the wild.
- Make sure that the chicken coop has enough space for all its inhabitants.
You can only keep your birds healthy when all the rules for maintaining hygiene in the chicken coop are followed.It is important to remember that a good owner always monitors the condition of his wards and takes action on time if he finds any changes in the behavior of hens.