Complete Guide to Chicken Lice Control: Learn to Easily Get Rid of Chicken Lice
Chicken lice are common external parasites of chickens, mainly living on the feathers and skin, about the size of a sesame seed. Chicken lice spread mainly through direct contact, and can also spread indirectly through shared equipment.
Clinical symptoms: because the chickens are irritated by the biting and gnawing of the lice, their skin itches, they peck at themselves restlessly, feathers break off, the skin is damaged, and over time they cannot rest well and lose their appetite, resulting in anemia and weight loss. In severe cases, young chickens may die, growing chickens have their development stunted, and laying hens show a drop in egg production. The chickens' resistance to disease is markedly reduced, and they are prone to secondary infection with other diseases.
Control measures
1. Killing lice on the body surface.
(1) Spraying to kill lice. At noon in spring, autumn and winter, you can choose non-toxic lice-killing essence (mix 5 ml of non-toxic lice-killing essence with 2.5 L of water) or Houning insecticidal aerosol, non-toxic Duomieling, deltamethrin (Decis), etc., prepare a diluted solution according to the product instructions, and spray (pick up the chicken and spray against the direction of the feathers).
(2) Sand bath to kill lice. For adult chickens, you can choose sulfur sand (mix 10 parts yellow sand with 0.5-1 part sulfur powder and stir evenly) or use non-toxic lice-killing essence, ivermectin, avermectin, etc., prepare a diluted solution according to the product instructions, then mix 10 parts yellow sand with 0.5-1 part of the diluted solution, stir evenly, and let the chickens take a sand bath.
2. Killing lice in the environment. You can choose non-toxic lice-killing essence or Houning insecticidal aerosol, non-toxic Duomieling, fenvalerate, deltamethrin, etc., prepare a diluted solution according to the product instructions, and spray the floor, walls, roosts, litter and cracks of the chicken house and exercise yard to kill chicken lice in the environment. If necessary, repeat the treatment once after 15-28 days.
3. Precautions.
(1) The above drug dosages are for reference only, and the product instructions shall prevail. When using the drugs, calculation and weighing must be accurate, and stirring must be even. For the first use, first conduct a small-group trial with 10-20 chickens; only when there are no toxic side effects may use be gradually expanded, and if there are toxic side effects, the dosage may be appropriately reduced or another drug with lower toxicity may be used instead.
(2) Lice-killing drugs all have a certain toxicity, so do not contaminate feed or drinking water, and promptly clean up residual liquid or medicated sand after use. After spraying drugs in the chicken house, sufficient ventilation is required.