As tends to happen when you have indoor/outdoor animals, we got invaded by fleas...They were pretty persistent on the dog, and it took a double dose of Advantage (2 weeks apart) and then finally the flea pill from the vet...
But in the meantime, the couch being the only soft furnishing in the living room, got infected (what does this have to do with the goat lice?...I am getting to that)...Well since we have a 3 yr old, I did not want to use harsh chemicals on the piece of furniture she loves to sleep on, so I started researching how to use Lavender on household furnishings to get rid of fleas...Well in my search I also discovered a method used to remove them from your dog...
Simply mix a few drops of lavender oil in a bottle or bowl of water...dip or spray the brush and deep groom you pet...It also mentioned it gets rid of ticks and lice...*light bulb moment*
Due to the winter break from Headstart, I was not able to use the store brought chemicals on the goats because I had a constant companion of our 3yr old, and hubby kept "forgetting" (don't even get me started on this last issue)
So today I brushed the goats with a brush wet down with Lavender Oil and water....Boots tolerated the brushing and his coat looks gorgeous this afternoon, Deenie was not quiet as co-operative, but I think I managed to brush most of her....I will brush them again tomorrow...and see how the lice look over the next few days...I really hope this is successful and I can take the nasty chemical treatment back to the store for a refund since it is still unopened.
Kelsie
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Here's a photo of that part.
Kelsie Aman said:
do you have photos Rachel??
Rachel Whetzel said:
My hubs and I made mine from an old entertainment stand and scrap wood.
Not seeing any huge difference yet, going to try a carrier oil with the lavender and then do 50/50 oil and water spray bottle. Plus I am going to buy a better brush tomorrow....If that fails then I will add tea tree to the mix.
I also seriously need to work on getting a milking stand or something, because that would make the brushing (and hoof trimming *wink*) so much easier.
Any suggestions where I could find a milk stand for a decent price?
I hope this works, please do let us know! I am seeing signs of lice in my herd as well. I have used ACV in a spray bottle and DE dustings, but lavendar would be more pleasant. It shouldn't hurt them if it is ingested, unless lavendar is a flower goats can't eat. People can eat lavendar with no problem.
Hi Kelsie-
Sorry to hear the lice are still troubling your goats. If the lavender doesn't work (though I hope to hear it does) you could try tea tree oil, and neem oil works very well. Neem is even supposed to kill the eggs. I don't know if lavender will kill the eggs, so if you see that it has gotten rid of the lice, you should re-treat them in about 7 days because the eggs that are left will hatch and re-infect them if you don't. By the time 7 days have passed, any eggs that were left should have hatched, but the newly hatched lice wouldn't have begun to lay eggs yet, so 7 days would be the best time to re-treat. Don't use neem on pregnant does, however. It has been shown to be perfectly safe for pets and livestock that are not pregnant, even for cats who lick their fur a lot. I really hope to hear that you've had success with the lavender. It surely smells better than either tea tree or neem! :)
I can already say that the guineas are noisy. Very noisy. Fortunately our neighbours are far, far away, and the guineas aren't noisy during the night. I also find their "clown make-up" appearance to be a little creepy. But we don't hate them yet. We'll see how the summer goes.
Our free range chickens took care of our tick problem. When we first moved here, they were so bad, you couldn't walk in any sort of grass without getting a tick on you... now we walk all over our property and never get them.
From what I hear, you either love guineas or you hate them. lol good luck!
Hej from Sweden,
Hummmm Guinea Fowl! Now that's another great idea. I want a couple of Guinea Fowl!!!
Kelsie Aman said:
We hope to add Guinea Fowl to our property for the same reason, and I also read they will reduce a snake population also...I would love to hear how they work out for you this yr.
Marin Waddell said:
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