THE POULTRY WORLD

Hawera Star, Volume LI, 20 February 1932, Page 11

THE POULTRY WORLD

RED MITE PARASITE MEANS OF ERADICATION f (By “Tight Feather.”) Perhaps of all parasites the red mite is the fowl’s worst enemy. Whitewashing may make a fowlhouse look nice and clean, but, like a coat of paint, it sometimes hides a multitude of sins. If the house has previously been infested with red mite, and not inhabited for many months, whitewashing will fail to exterminate this pest. To show how it comes to life in a most unexpected way: This writer once delivered some pullets which were put in a well-built and to all appearances clean house, all ready to receive tl\em. As a precaution I enquired if the new owner was sure the house, was free from lice. His answer was “Yes. There has been nothing in the house for months; it was whitewashed when the last birds went out and it is beautifully clean as you may see.’’ Still hesitating, with my penknife l peeled off a layer of whitewash. I asked him “What is that?” pointing to some moving matter scarcely discernible. The moving matter was the mite, which, .under cover of the whitewash, had kept alive all those months, only waiting for the fowls to roost in order to change the colour from a light grey to a bright red per medium of the fowls’ blood. Another instance which came under the writer’s notice one spring: An incubator load of chicks was placed under a metal brooder which had not been in use since the end of the previous season. These were healthy chicks hatched, from good eggs from healthy stock. At the end of a week the chicks began to droop; first one fell out and died and then another for no apparent reason. Searching for a reason, we traced hack to the ancestry of the parent stock and the conditions ruling when nutting the eggs to hatch without avail. The chicks had every appearance of being tormented by parasites, having pale faces, drooping wings and listless eyes. We could, however, see no reason for this as the brooder, which stood on legs. was lifted ui> every day and clean chaff supplied for bedding. Eventually the brooder was turned upside down, when before our eyes was the cause of the trouble. Hanging from the roof were clusters of red mite, 'flic brooder hat! at the end of the season been stowed away and not uncovered till required for use the following season. Even experienced poultry men fail to realise that such a thing could happen, but in the ease of red mite prevention is better than cure. Once they get a; hold it takes a lot of work to get rid of them.

For this means it is a good plan to paint under the perches with kerosene, filling all cracks and nail holes with it. Boiling water (scalding hot) is very effective, but it must be hot. T'se quickly or otherwise it will not he of much use. Very few fowl roosts do not show symptoms of red mite during tha hot summer days. Tire careful ponltrvman will see to it that it does not obtain a hold.