Poultry Shield

Sue

Sue

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Can anyone tell me how often I should thoroughly clean out my hen house (when I get it!)? I intend using Poultry Shield, but am not sure whether I should do a thorough clean out every week, or whether a general clean up and change of bedding should be done on a weekly basis and a thorough clean out using the Poultry Shield monthly. Perhaps you could give me some idea of your routines and what works best from the point of view of mites etc.
 
Hi Sue,

I will always have a big spring clean of my coops where everything gets removed and the hose comes out and the poultry shield is used.

I keep an eye on the coops for Red Mites, they always seem to appear first in the same places. If I spot signs of red mite then I will use poultryshield and diatom regularly - weekly or bi-weekly just to keep on top of things.

If I have a full on red mite infestation, I go to war :o and then I will use poultryshield every 6 days (to break the red mite cycle which is a week in optimum conditions) but the diatom gets rubbed into the perches and dusted around every 2nd day or so.

You can see how I do this on my blog: How to get rid of a serious red mite infestation

There is also a page on Poultry Shield here that has some advice.

Tim
 
I poo-pick daily (usually when I collect eggs) & top up bedding as necessary. In summer/warm weather I do a full clean out once a week (removing all bedding, spraying & scrubbing out with Poultry Shield, leaving it to air/dry, dust diatom everywhere, add clean bedding & dust that with diatom too, paint diatom paste in any corners, nooks & crannies). I don't go quite as mad in winter, but then it takes so much longer for the hen house to dry out - I suppose I do a big scrub out once every 3 weeks or so & a general clean out weekly (though still poo-pick, remove soiled/wet bedding daily & add clean bedding as needed). I sprinkle diatom just weekly in winter but 2-3 times a week in summer.
 
What's Diatom paste? I've got the powder, but haven't heard of the paste or do you make it yourself? Time for stupid questions again! How do I know when the hens are going to want access to their nestboxes to lay? If I'm in there cleaning the house out and shut them out until it's dry, what will they do? I'm sure this is a really silly question and will probably cause much amusement amongst all you experienced people out there!
 
They say (the manufacturers) that you can use poultryshield with the hens in the house. I wouldn't but once I've rinced the house out with water, the pop hole is opened.
 
With regard to timing of cleaning, you will get to know their routine fairly quickly, and you can time your cleaning accordingly. Its amazing how quickly you fall into a routine and how the girls realise and respond to it. It sounds corny but as you get to know your gals and build up your relaltionship with them then it all just sort of falls into place - honest!
 
Sue said:
What's Diatom paste? I've got the powder, but haven't heard of the paste or do you make it yourself? Time for stupid questions again! How do I know when the hens are going to want access to their nestboxes to lay? If I'm in there cleaning the house out and shut them out until it's dry, what will they do? I'm sure this is a really silly question and will probably cause much amusement amongst all you experienced people out there!
Click to expand...


You make the paste yourself - just a bit of diatom & add water a little at a time til you get a thick paste that won't just plop off a vertical surface (can be a bit hit & miss, but you can add a touch more diatom or water til you get the right consistancy).

When cleaning mine out I usually wait til mid-morning as they've all usually laid by then. Saying that though Cassie the Orpington (she's just come into lay) is most inconsiderate & won't lay til lunch-time :roll: :lol: so I hold off doing the nest boxes til she's done.
 
I use poultry shield once a week when i clean them right out.I always keep some in a hand held garden sprayer and spray the nooks and crannies regularly during the summer months and still carry on during the winter. Good for flys as well knocks them down instantly.
 
Hi jimred poultry shield is the stuff to use for red mite and other crawlies.good to spray nest boxes
In the summer when bugs are about, thing is hens won't lay too well if they've got red mite cause they probably itch like mad. You can tell if mites are a problem if you go out at night and look along perches with a torch you can normally see them. They live on the chooks and suck their blood.so poultry shields good at keeping them at bay, smells of ammonia but good stuff.
 
Poultry Shield is a detergent - which is why is it so safe compared to other chemicals.

There is no ammonia in it as far as I am aware...

Every mite has a waxy coat. Poultry Shield works by washing the waxy coat off the mite so the mite then dries up and dies.

It's not therefore a 'knock down' product that kills on contact but takes a little while to work.

Diatom that is often used after poultryshield has microscopically sharp edges that break the waxy coat of the mite and cause them to dry up and die in the same way...

Again, it takes time - 24 to 48 hours usually.
 
Thanks Tim you learn something new every day.Dont know why I smell ammonia in it each time I open it but all I know it works and I guess that's what really matters touch wood I never had no problems with crawlies last summer thanks again.
 
Thank for that, i use Poultry shield but didn't know how it worked, i also use Johnson poultry coop spray once a week.
 
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