Ok so my little guy is 4 weeks old and he is itching terribly. The other day I seen some bugs on him that were a light color so I know they weren't fleas. So I am assuming it is lice. Well after doing some research ppl say to use seven dust on them and it will get rid of all the bugs on him. Well I have some that I got to put on my plants in my garden, so how do I put it on him? Does anyone else do this? To me it seems like it would be dangerous. Any advice would be helpful!
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LOL, Margaret. Usually Teddy bears get stuffed. However, wondering is what many do; one of my middle son's friends who helped him deliver some compost was in my back yard; he said to my son, "Your mom is eclectic, isn't she?" I told him that was a kind way of calling Mom weird. <g> (This was *before* I had honey bees or goats.)
Yes, I did mean hens' nest boxes. Another thing for laying boxes is rosemary needles. And, yes, D.E. is for ants as well, in fact all insects. Because I have honey bees, it is prudent for me to not leave it where they might go. (I found one in the baking soda in the goat stall tonight and took it out and put it on the barrel; don't know if the little gal will survive or not but at least she has a chance now. She was coated pretty good with the baking soda.) In fact, I first got D.E. for an ant problem. For hens, it might even be good to put them a "dusting box" with a good portion of D.E. to help them be rid of mites/lice as well. Don't know if you know but birds will lay on an ant hill to rid themselves of pests; it is known as "anting" - the ants eat the little insects. When you see a bird/hen with its wings stretched out resting, it is sunning them to get rid of mites. I was not aware that ants can kill chicks but then the ones in my yard are the tiny ones. Thank God that I have not had any "regular" size ants or big ones. But even the little ones can ruin a honey bee hive however.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diatomaceous_earth
That sounds perfect, like you got it down to a real science. I am beginning to wonder about you a little. I am not so sure WHAT you might stuff. You are beginning to sound a bit suspicious there. LOL!
I gotta tell you I love the laying box idea. I assume you mean a hen nestbox. I think that sounds like a cool idea. I also assume this would be like under the hay to help keep bugs out of the hens nest and I like the sound of that, even though I know they would eat most bugs, what bothers me is the way ants will get in there and attack new hatchlings. They can kill some new chicks before they even get a chance to leave the nest. I don't know if DE kills ants too but if it does that would be really helpful.
Actually, I used the foot end of support weight pantyhose about two feet long and tied it shut. It molds beautifully to the shape of my hand and to the shape of the goat, also easy to "curve" around the little goat legs. I figure that when that D.E. is gone, I can put it with the last traces of D.E. in a laying box and utilize that last little bit. The hose mesh allows it through without letting a lot through, minimal flying dust.
Pantyhose pieces are wonderful for all sorts of straining as well as tying up plants, even bits of firewood kindling (cut off before burning); definitely a multi-purpose re-use item. Unfortunately (or fortunately) I have beaucoup as I saved many for stuffing animals (sewn type, not real) and/or quilts. (Have I done that? Don't ask.<g>)
I'll be using the same "dusting" method on my cat and suggest it to friends for their pets.
If the stocking weave allows to much through just try a sock with a rubber band or hair tie to close it and that should save some DE waste & money and still allow for a good bonding and dusting at once. You can just pretend you are a fairy dusting them with your fairydust. Heehee!
Thank you ever so much for the stocking suggestion! I've been trying to think of a way to dust the girls with D.E. without so much dust. To date, I have sprinkled it on their backs and rubbed it in as best I could but that does not get it underneath or on their legs. By using the stocking, it can be a bonding time which makes it even better, like grooming.
We had lice and used sevin dust in an old stocking. We put a handful in the toe of the stocking and then tied the end. We then rubbed the goats with it, avoiding the head and udder. We didn't coat them with a heavy layer but got enough on them to kill the lice. I don't like using sevin but it definitely worked in a pinch. They were miserable until the lice were gone. It took about 24 hours and they were done, then you could give them a bath to remove the rest of the sevin.
Just my two cents.
DE definitely works well in the garden. It's great for tomato horn worms! Unfortunately I've not had great luck using DE for lice. Sorry I'm not familiar with Adams.
could you use DE instead?
All I can say is I used it that once and it did not hurt my goat, that I could tell anyway. It did get rid of the lice but that was many, many years ago too and I know how sometimes formulas can change on products over the years. I personally would probably try it but I can not say for sure it would be safe. As I said if you did use it. you would want to make sure you see where it says lice on the label. They make some that does not say lice and it will not kill the type of lice humans get. One thing that you might try if you don't mind the mess is smothering them with oil or mayo rubbed on him like some people do for head lice. It really does smother them but it would be messy. You would have to wash it off later.
Well the guy that I got the goat told me to use the adams flea spray for cats/dogs. I didn't buy any today cuz I wanted some advice first.
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