Bathtime

Papa Hen and I have been doing loads of research about lice and mites on chickens.  We are not happy with the chemicals commonly used to treat these pests and have been looking for alternatives.  We do not want to use chemicals that are dangerous for the chickens and humans (us).

We discovered a number of online reports recommending  Neem Oil to treat lice and mites on chickens.  I was familiar with Neem Oil spray because I once used it when we had nasty gnats on some of our houseplants.  I found the spray I used on the houseplants and treated the roosts and perches in the chicken coop.  Last night we did a little shopping and I bought some pure Neem Oil.  Following the advice of Sustainable Scientist I gave the four birds baths of Neem Oil, warm water, and mild dish soap this morning.  It was quite the task and makes me feel like I am not at all on summer vacation! 

Some birds behaved better than others.  Mama Hen got wet.

BB was calm and serene and Lou would not pose for a photo in her straggly, wet, and involuntary bath situation. 

 Here are BB and Lou drying out in the sun.

Weezy was a bit jumpy but calmed down in the warm water.  She did not care for the hair dryer at all!

Bill was a bit more agitated than I thought she would be.  Boy, did the green tint in her feathers look beautiful when she was a wet mop!  (Not that you can tell in the photo)

Here she is getting dry.

I noticed lots of little black bits (bugs?  I hope) floating in the water when I was done.  The chickens groomed themselves in the sun for awhile and then I made a feast for them to entice them back into the coop. 

I will repeat the bath routine in a week and hopefully find that the bugs are gone.  *fingers crossed*