A CHICKEN COOP TO BEAT RED MITE?
I’m a lucky chicken man. I’ve been keeping poultry over two decades (just writing that makes me feel extremely old) and until now I’ve never had to deal with red mite. Lice? Yes. Scaly mite? Yes. But that persistent little creature that creeps out at night to suck your chickens’ blood? Nope. Not until this summer. And now I’ve teamed up with Nestera to try and fight the battle with their easy clean, easily maintained recycled plastic coops (and if you’re interested, check them out and you’ll get 5% off by using this link).
Earlier this year, I’d go indoors after putting the animals to bed and feel itchy. Yes - gross - I had mites ON me and I'll tell you, trying to squish a tiny parasite as it weaves around on your hairy arms is quite hard! I actually thought they were coming from the pigs because the last thing I’d do was to feed Hyacinth, cuddle a piglet or two, and then finish up for the night. It wasn’t until one morning when I opened the chicken coop door and saw a cluster of something grey on the hinge that I discovered the true horror. Here, fat and plump from a night of blood-sucking, were hundreds of mites. Nestled together for the day whilst they waited for their next evening feast, these creeps sat and digested their meal. They’re very squishable when they're full of blood! I soon realised not only were they on the door frame, but also hiding beneath the food dishes. And they’re quick; when hungry they’re nothing but a small grey parasite that scurries around the coop (or your arm, shudder) looking for a warm chicken to gorge on.
One of the issues with red mite is that evolution has done them a few favours. They can go 9 months without a meal. They multiply quickly. They retreat during cold weather, and live in the cracks of your coop making them difficult to spot until there’s an outbreak. They also don’t live on the birds so inspecting your feathered friends won’t help unless you’re doing it at night when these vampires are about. And being this canny makes it difficult to get rid of them. Luckily with some advice from my vet I bought a rather expensive vial of Exolt; a liquid parasite killer that you put in the chickens’ water. You need to repeat it a week later. And due to the nature of these mites hiding, surviving for long periods without food and retreating when it’s cold, it’s impossible to know if you got all of them. But it’s better than lighting a match and burning everything, right?
That’s where Nestera steps in. Does the coop solve the problem? No. But it does make it far easier to maintain clean standards. If you get rid mite, or you suspect them to be there, you can completely take the coop apart and wash it down. Unlike some other plastic coops which are a manufactured one-piece unit that you can’t totally get into, Nestera coops (I got this one) are flat pack. You can take every single piece apart and clean, scrub and even power washer blast it down to eradicate the bugs. It has a quick slide and catch door, easy clips to make accessing the roof and nestbox a breeze, and my chickens learned to go to bed in it after only two nights.
I’ve only been using the new Nestera coop a short time but I can already see the huge benefits over wooden coops. It’s also easier to move; I wouldn’t say it’s ‘light’ but it’s certainly better than a heavy wooden shelter. And, fingers crossed, it will aid me to win the red mite battle over the coming months!