Grow Your Own Magazine

anyone got the easiest solution ?Iv'e noticed that one of my new bantams has scales on her feet that are irritating her.This problem has been dealt with before i'm sure,but looking through other threads i can see no information.Please help!

as i had no one with a solution to my problem, i contacted omlet,the place where i bought my eglu.I got a very quick reply which said that the bird has scaley leg which is a mite which burrows under the skin .she gave several remedies for the problem.The one which i shall try first is .You buy surgical spirit from the chemist,put into a jamjar and dunk the birds legs in as far as you can once a week for five weeks.If you have other birds these must be dunked as well as its likely they'll have them too.Hope this will help any one else who may have same problem in the future.

That sounds like a fun task! Hope it works for you Jilly.

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Happy Gardening,
Shirley

http://www.honeyjukes.co.uk

Hi Jilly,

Didn't get a chance to reply to your question yesterday as I wasn't online, but my hens have unfortunately been plagued by scaley mite. Surgical spirit will kill the mites but not the eggs, which is why you need to repeat the treatment every week for a few weeks. To help the scales soften and regrow, you could smother the legs with vaseline which also smother the mites too and helps keep the infestation at bay. Some people use Frontline spray (not licensed for poultry and you can only get it on prescription from a vet, who will make you sign a disclaimer!!) which gets rid of lice as well as mites and works for 30 days.

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Dwell simply ~ love richly

thanks shirlthegirl i'll let you know how it goes tonight!Birdie wife,you sound like you know what yourtalking about,been birding for long?Wheres the cheapest place to get a very big pot of vaseline cos i'll try that as well 'thanks.

Dunked the bantams legs in the surgical spirit last evening.I was surprised at how calmly they took it.I was dreading the whole thing ,thinking of my skin being torn off my arms etc.!Fiesty Romany struggled briefly,but after getting her leg down a few times she cooperated.The other two were as good as gold and Harriets legs seem much more comfortable this morning,shes happier too ,very noticable actually. I will also apply vaseline when i can.Am really enjoying keeping them ,they are very funny to watch!