How to Combat Scaly Leg Mites in Chickens

This week I have been dealing with scaly leg mites.  Scaly leg mites are teeny, tiny creatures that live under the scales of chickens' feet/legs.  They pass their days happily protected in this safe environment.   As the waste these little Nasties produce accumulates, it causes the scales on the chickens' legs to lift up and sometimes fall off.  This is a common problem in chickens that free range or spend a portion of their time outside because they catch these pests from wild birds.
About 3 weeks ago I noticed my Barred Rock, Jennifer, limping slightly.  I thought that she had injured her leg but about a week after I noticed that a few of her scales on her leg were lifting up.  Poor girl.
So....how to get rid of these mites?, you ask.

Step 1:  Remove all the old bedding (pine shavings in my case) and burn it (I'm not sure if the burning part is necessary but it makes me feel better).
 Step 2:  Clean every nook and cranny of the hen house with warm water that has a few capfuls of bleach and a squirt of dawn dish detergent.  Pay special attention to the roosting pole.  (My husband made another roosting pole entirely--my old roost was a tree branch and we switched to a 2x4 with the longer end up and rounded off the edges--I thought that the mites would have more places to hide in the nooks and crannies of the tree branch over the smooth surface of the 2x4)
Step 3:  Sprinkle the coop with  a generous dusting of diatomaceous earth (DE).  DE  helps control ticks and mites by getting in between the feathers and grinding ticks and mites.   Bwaaa...ha...ha...ha!!!!!!  The DE should be food grade because the chickens will undoubtedly be eating some of it.  I purchased the DE at Tractor Supply Company for $8.99.
Step 4:   Try to catch your chickens by chasing them.
Step 5:  Try to bribe your chickens to come near you with treats so you can catch them.
Step 6:  Get a friend to help you catch your chickens so you can spray their legs with Scaly Mite Protector from Manna Pro and then massage it in.  The whole foot and let and pads of feet too.  This product is all natural.  You can use vaseline or another oil as well--the idea is to smother the mites to death.   
Step 7:  Repeat steps 4-6 EVERY DAY for 10 days or until all signs of mites are gone.
Step 8:  Reclean coop on day 10.  It takes 10 days to break the lifecycle of the mites.
I am on day two of the regimen and I will let you know the results in eight more days.

Garden...FAIL.

So this year I decided to plant a garden.  

I planted sugar snap peas (all eaten down ground hogs--I got three peas--not three pea plants--three peas). 

I planted potatoes (eaten by something else).  

I planted peppers (they just didn't grow--I don't have any idea why).  

I planted onions (didn't grow).  

I notice from my blog post that I also planted basil from seed...I have no idea what became of that haha!  

I also had the seed and desire to plant corn, watermelon, zucchini, and butternut squash that I never got into the ground.  

I planted two varieties of tomatoes.  

Above is a picture of my Martino's Roma organic, heirloom tomatoes.  My babies that I grew from seed.  Seedlings  

However....dun, dun, duuuun--below is another view.  This is blossom end rot.  This is a physiological disease not an infectious one.  It has to do with the plant not being able to uptake enough calcium.  It was quite alarming--I'd never seen that one before.    

Welp, I hope that this might make you feel a little bit better about any garden troubles you experienced this year!!!  Can't be this bad :-)

Job 1:21

Cuckoo Marans????? OHhhh...I hope...I hope...I hope!

Miss Pasty the chicken in question

Miss Pasty pondering the color of her legs (compare to chicken to her left)

Barred Rock I think Jennifer but maybe Clarissa anyway not important!

Please don't let my intense longing for this chicken to be a Cuckoo Marans sway your opinion!  Here is the back story for anyone interested in my chicken drama.    I had ordered 6 chicks: 1 Barred Plymouth Rock, 1 Buff Orptington, 2 Easter eggers, 1 Golden Campine, and 1 Welsummer.  The night that they were going to ship I got an email from the hatchery around 9:14 PM that not enough Welsummer chick's had hatched.  (Now when I ordered several months before I had clicked the box "accept no hatch day substitutions").  I immediately emailed back that I would, indeed, not only accept hatch day substitutions, I would, in fact, accept any number or type of chicken they would send me.  I then called and left a message on their phone (after hours) detailing again my wishes.  Thankfully, a few minutes later I received an email from them thanking me for my "prompt response" and letting me know they had also gotten my voice mail.  I guess they are used to "hatch day crazies" like me.  Two days after the email,  my sweet chicks finally arrived after a long agonizing wait and a perilous journey.  My peeping package contained seven chicks, some bedding material, a heating pack, and a packing slip.  On the packing slip only 6 of the chicks were accounted for.  1 buff orp, 1 campine, 2 barred rocks, and 2 easter eggers.  The seventh chicken was not mentioned on the slip but looked a lot like the barred rocks...so I've always assumed we had three.  The third barred rock was always a little smaller, slower to feather and just looked a little different.  We've always wondered if maybe "she" was a rooster.  But last night it dawned on me, "what if she's a different kind of chicken?"  What I came up with is that she is a Cuckoo Marans.  She is black and white but the barring is definitely not as crisp as the other two Rocks .  Overall, her plumage is more black esp. in near her tail.  Her neck is longer and her tail feathers are definitely a different shape (hers swoops up and theirs does not go up at all really).  Her legs are a different color (hers are flesh colored while the rocks are yellow).  She also is the noisiest chicken.  She screams a lot (I have no idea if Marans are noisier or not).  I have tried to take pictures and I would love to hear anyone's opinion .  I also posted a pic of one of my Barred Rocks for comparison.

Best Songs for Running

Here are the top 4 songs to upload to your mp3 players when heading out for a jog.    The #3 pick seriously made me cut my run short once and go home because I thought I was going to get struck by lightning (listen and you'll understand)
#4  Rebel Intro by Lecrae

#3 On Distant Shores by Five Iron Frenzy

#2 Awake O Sleeper

  


#1 These Frail Hands by Brave Saint Saturn

Things I like to compost

1.  fruit and veggie scraps
2.  leaves
3.  dryer lint
4.  hair/fur (human/cat)
5.  egg shells
6.  dried out lawn clippings
7.  weeds from garden
8.  coffee grinds and filters
9.  used tea bags
10.  napkins/paper towels
11. old cotton socks
12.  wool yarn ends

Stuck Inside.

It is a beautiful day and I'm stuck inside with a nose dripping like a faucet.  Seriously, it's a little scary--I'm sure I'm inches away from severe dehydration at this point.  I always thought people were sort of wimpy when they didn't go out because of allergies but I take it all back. I understand now.
On an unrelated note, my cat who is locked in the basement (so he eats more slowly and doesn't throw up) is trying to get out of the cat door right now with the force of a full grown man, make that two grown men.  What in the world!?!  I wish I had a video.  Really, it's only been like a half hour, kitty!

GROWING AND GROWING!