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DE vs deep litter

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2016 10:18 pm
by Satellite
Hello all

after a winter and spring with deep litter doing well to now find scaly leg mites. ....which I have read can be treated with Diatomaceous Earth for the coop I am torn....if I use the DE, it can't be deep litter as the good bacteria won't break down.


Any thoughts/findings from more experienced folks? I like the deep litter due to my laziness but treated for scaly leg mites is cancelling out the lack of work on the deep litter part.

DE vs deep litter

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2016 10:29 pm
by ross
I free range & have deep litter pens etc & put DE in a dust bath container for free use . No problems that I see . Luck

DE vs deep litter

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2016 10:30 pm
by thegawd
if I remember correctly... scaley leg mites spend there entire life cycle on the birds legs so you dont have to worry about the mites living in the bedding. as for treating the scaley leg mites im not entirely sure as iv not delt with them either.

de is not necessarily ment for treating anything but rather a preventive measure. i run deep litter in most of my coops and all my birds have access to de.

DE vs deep litter

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2016 10:34 pm
by Ontario Chick
DE is a preventative, but scaly leg mites will need to be treated individually for all the birds affected.
Vaseline rubbed on the legs works well, it suffocates the mites and cleans up the residue under the scales.
Posted at the same time as Al, :iagree:

DE vs deep litter

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 7:06 am
by Satellite
Thanks so replying

DE vs deep litter

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 7:57 am
by Robbie
IMO diatomaceous earth is over- rated and I never use it.

DE vs deep litter

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 8:42 am
by Maximus

DE vs deep litter

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 8:50 am
by Doug The Chickenman
Scaly leg mite is easily fixed.
Scrub the legs with a toothbrush and soapy water, get under the scales. what is lifting the scales is the fecal mater of the mites so you want to remove that. after you have scrubbed them you want to kill the mites the easiest way is either with Vaseline or Vegetable oil which will suffocate them. do this routine every other day until there is no evidence and the scales have settled back down on the leg.

DE vs deep litter

Posted: Wed Jul 13, 2016 9:14 am
by Jaye
I had to treat a few of my chickens for scaly leg mites last year. I treated with Ivermectin, and I cleaned their legs off with warm water and Epsom salts using a soft toothbrush, rinsed, patted dry and used Vet RX on legs. VetRX contains two different oils, one of which is oregano oil, which has antiseptic properties.