September Pullet Issue
If you have not picked up your pullets, this does not apply to you. However, no chickens will be distributed until 10/3 because of the situation described below.
If you have picked up your chickens during September, Please read below.
This is an event that has never happened at Polaris Farm in our 17 years.
However, the chickens in my pullet barn were possibly exposed to bird lice by two pigeons that I found roosting in the rafters. Two customers last week reported finding bird lice on their birds that came from that barn.
I also examined 20 birds in my main layer flock which are in a building about 200 feet away. I could not find any bird lice. However, I am erring on the side of caution and treating every bird on Polaris Farm as is described below.
As bad as all of this sounds, bird lice are a common problem that shows up in most flocks eventually.
It is very easy to cure.
Rather than having everyone go hunting for lice on their chickens, I am going to assume the worst- That being: the chickens you received from me have bird lice and that they have transmitted them to your entire flock.
The best and surest cure for bird lice and many other parasites is Ivermectin liquid. It is a well-known drug that is safe and effective. Some of you may also have heard of it as an effective human treatment for COVID-19. In any case it is a well-vetted standard treatment for parasites in all livestock.
For standard size chickens, the dose is applied as three drops on the skin on the back or the neck. Do this with 100% of the chickens in your flock. This will kill all of the bird lice and many other internal and external parasites. It is a best practice to do a second application 7-10 days later just in case some eggs have survived and hatched.
Important Facts:
1. Bird lice do not like humans. If they get on you, they will not stay on for long.
2. Bird Lice can only survive for a few days without a host bird to suck blood from. So, there is no need to deep clean or disinfect your coop. During the two treatments all of the bird lice will starve to death or be killed by the Ivermectin.
3. The published FDA instructions prescribe a 7-day withdrawal period for the eggs. i.e. don’t eat the eggs for 7 days. The reason for this is (after I did some digging) was that the dose of Ivermectin to the person eating the eggs could not be adequately controlled, rather than any specific side effects. However, the dosage that is prescribed for chickens is so low that even if 100% of the Ivermectin made it through to the egg (that never happens), and then into your body, you would need to eat hundreds of eggs to get to the prescribed dosage for a 100 pound human. It’s your choice. I’m eating my eggs.
I have purchased a giant bottle of Ivermectin and a bunch of Insulin syringes (no needles, just 3 drops on their neck/back skin). Each syringe contains enough Ivermectin to give seven chickens one dose. Here is a table of how many syringes you need to give your flock two doses.
|
Chickens |
Syringes |
Chickens |
Syringes |
|
1-3 |
1 |
26-28 |
8 |
|
4-7 |
2 |
29-31 |
9 |
|
8-10 |
3 |
32-35 |
10 |
|
11-14 |
4 |
36-38 |
11 |
|
15-17 |
5 |
38-42 |
12 |
|
18-21 |
6 |
43-45 |
13 |
|
22-25 |
7 |
46-49 |
14 |