Some may remember that I previously posted about a mite infestation that I fought for over 3yrs after having one of my best Buckeyes die. I had never had a bug on my place and evidently brought some home from a show. Saw "Bucky" looking a little punky and taking on a wet look to him. Told him to hang on another day until I could take him in, bathe him, look him over good, and try to figure out what was wrong. He was dead the next day. Less than a week after bring him home from the show. Then one of the girls started showing the same signs so I immediately took her in that night and I am not kidding when I say she was literally infested with them. Thousands and thousands.
That started me on a 3yr ordeal where I tried Ivermectin Eprinex, Permethrins, Pyrethrins, other Spidercides, weekly episodes of dunking the birds in DE, and all to no avail. Sometimes in dosages way over the recommended. I'd knock the population down only to have it explode again. And I am absolutely convinced that those mites developed a resistance to
each of those.
Then I stumbled across a post while Googling one night. It was from some kind of Scientist or something and he was talking about Fipronil - the active ingredient in Frontline. He was answering someone's concern about being poisoned by it from the chickens. He actually broke down the dosage into percentages that would be ingested by a human if they ate the bird or eggs and basically showed that it's a non-issue.
So I went down to Walmart and bought some ProNyl. Same exact stuff as Frontline but about $20 cheaper. Got the biggest dose for the 135+ lb dogs. Took a few hours and treated the whole flock (over 100 birds) one night with 3-4 drops of it by the vent and I might've put a drop or two on the back of the neck. Don't remember for sure about that. Anyways, the next night I went out and saw very few mites. By the third night I saw no mites! And I ain't had one on the place since. That was back in 2012 I think. Contrast that with watching the stupid bugs swim around and laugh at me in the aforementioned above. Needless to day, I know what I'll turn to should I ever see another mite.