mites

[djdancer]

How do I know if my birds have mites? I've had my first for 2 1/2 years. We inherited him. Shortly after him moving into our home I began to experience itchiness on my body. Mostly in my ears and head. I now have 2 other birds but have tried putting a sheet over their cage, tape, etc... and have found nothing.

I also think my dog is infected with mites because he is always scratching but no fleas. Recently put frontline on him and he's back to shaking his head and it looks like mites are in his eyelashes (I don't see any but...) his eyelids are swollen and he's constantly scratching them and licking his paws (which he never does) and biting at his back legs.

Now I'd like to bomb my house (or something) but it's cold here and I can't take the birds out. Is there some safe way of treating my house just in case it is mites? I'd like to know what is safe to treat the birds just in case they do have mites. I don't see any fleas on my dog at all, I've used a flea come to check on several occasions and he's an inside dog.

 

[crimson]

mites come in many forms and sizes.

Red mites are about the size of a pin head and typically red, but only after eating.
Feather mites are impossible to see and eat the shaft of your birds feathers.
scaley face mites are easier to see they are brown and crusty and usually appear across the cere of the bird.

you need a Pymethrin based product to treat your dog such as Advantage or Revolution.
you need Ivermectin for your bird, which you need to get from your vet.

I would recommend taking both of your pets to the vet.

Your house sounds like it's infested with something, give your dog a bath, and see what comes off and floats in the water, you should be able to find something.

I hope for your sake it's not mites, they are a royal pain to get rid of, so are fleas.

Unfortunately I know all too well about mites, they are terrible in Canada, so I am quite experienced in eradicating the little buggers.

 

[djdancer]

Crimson thank you for replying. I don't see any fleas anywhere. I actually think it is mites. I can't find anything at all though. My birds are not losing feathers or anything like that though. I am itchy in my head and ears. On my face too. No one else other than the dog seems to be affected though. I have a condition similar to MS so that might by why I'm feeling them. I put the frontline on the dog as I do every month. He's shaking his head (no yeast infection and no smell coming from the ears) and something got in his eyelashes and made his eyelids swell. I do plan on taking the birds to the vet but don't know about the dog because after consistently putting olive oil around his eyes for a week he's finally healing so don't know if the vet will be a waste of money for him. I'm on a fixed income so I usually go with holistic all natural treatments for everything.

How did you get rid of mites? Last year I put down diatemasous earth all over my house. I think I've had a mite problem on and off for a couple of years but can't find anything. I have 3 birds total so just might take one of them to the vet.

 

[djdancer]

Crimson can you tell me how you got the mites out of your home. I'm reading horror stories on the net. Does anyone ever truly get rid of them? How do you treat your home while the birds are in it? It's cold here so I can't very well bring them outside.

 

[crimson]

I won't lie, they are a royal pain. two thing worked for me, as I had hundreds of them as well, in my bird room, and in our bedroom. I got rid of them for a few months then they came back, and back again the next summer. I've been free and clear of them for 2 years now.

you need two things: A.I.L. (Avian Insect Liquid) readily available at most stores in the U.S. such as LadyGouldian.com, and probably at the Mybirdstore.

A.I. L. is to treat the environment, ie: cages, toys, perches, etc.... purchase the concentrated form 100ml or more...it is pricey but well worth it!!

when you treat the environment you MUST treat your bird(s) as well. you can purchase it in the states as well from any farm supply place, BUT be very careful before you administer it. remember that type of Ivermectin is only used for sheep, cattle, goats, etc....NOT FOR BIRDS....so the dosage would need to be diluted to the proper dosage for a bird. YOU NEED TO CONSULT YOUR VET!!!

my vet worked it out for me, so I suggest you purchase it from a vet to be safe, to administer it correctly, I can't stress that enough.

what you really should do is place a white towel over your bird cage for one night.
check it in the morning, lift it up gently and look underneath....if you see little red bugs you have mites....if none are there, do it again for the second night, etc...

Also check THE ENDS of rope toys, you know the screw knobs, unscrew them and see if any are there....I had hundreds hiding in mine and just about FREAKED!!!

for now remove ALL THE TOYS, swings, rope toys, all of them, remove the perches and add clean ones(only wooden ones)
put new dishes in daily.

also check under the cage and remove the tray to see if there are any. these little buggers hide everywhere. if there are any clips remove and check them.

as for the toys, don't throw them out, place them in a large garbage bag and seal it tight, until you figure out how to treat them.
you can run them thru the dryer for about 20 minutes on high which will kill them, or you can treat them with A.I.L. it takes at least 24 hours for them to start to die off so don't put the toys back in the cage until you spray at least twice in a 48 hour period.(I waited almost 2 weeks spaying almost daily)

The only time birds loose their feathers is if they have feather mites. red mites suck blood usually at night time, you might here your bird flying around frantically during the night time....that is a very good indication that you have a insect problem.

my birds were tired during the day, cause they were being pestered at night and it was interrupting their sleep....you might want to watch for that as well.

this could go on and on, but that is the best advice I can give you.

if you have more questions you can pm me

 

[Mike17]

Rather that put stuff through a dryer, it might be cheaper and more effective to pile everything into a large garbage bin liner, seal it up, and put into the sun for the day. This would be effective even in a Canadian summer although pretty useless in winter I don't possess a clothes dryer (most people in Oz use the sun & wind- and find it amusing to see a clothesline or "Hills hoist" as we call the rotary ones, marketed in US as "solar clothes dryer") This generates very high temperatures, enough to sweat moisture out of "dry" seed when I forget and leave containers outside (but I live in sub-tropics).

 

[djdancer]

I've checked for the red things many times. Actually I now only use white sheets to cover cages. I haven't found any yet... Also two of the cages have white trays in them and are covered in newspaper and I constantly check them. Also put tape around the cage too and didn't find anything. None of my guys loses feathers. The sun does lose some at night but he stays in the same spot all night. He's a sleeper. I have their daytime cages and night cages. It's warmer at night upstairs so they sleep up there. Our first floor can get down to 60 degrees at night and I've heard that those temperatures are too cold for the birds. Correct me if I'm wrong. I'd rather be wrong there because I'm up all night putting wood on the fire.

So I may be barking up the wrong tree? No pun intended. lol Maybe the dog has a different kind of mites?? I know he has something going on because of the head shaking, swollen red eyelids and licking the bottom of his paws (which he has never done). I do use frontline monthly...