Facebook Twitter Instagram
    • FREE Email Newsletters
    • About Us
    • Advertise
    • Contact Us
    • FREE Magazine Subscriptions
    •  
    Twitter LinkedIn
    Podcast
    Poultry News
    • Production
      • Broiler Production
      • Ducks
      • Egg Production
      • Game
      • Hatching
      • Housing
      • Turkeys
    • Processing
    • Business & Politics
      • Business
      • Economics
      • EU & Politics
      • Marketing
      • People
      • Training & Education
    • Welfare
      • Environment
      • Food Safety
      • Vet & Medication
      • Welfare
    • Feed
    • Genetics
    • New Products
    • Magazines
      1. May 2022
      2. April 2022
      3. February 2022
      4. January 2022
      5. December 2021
      6. November 2021
      Featured

      Protected: Poultry Business – April 2022

      By Chloe RyanApril 7, 2022
      Recent

      Protected: Poultry Business – May 2022

      May 6, 2022

      Protected: Poultry Business – April 2022

      April 7, 2022

      Protected: Poultry Business – March 2022

      March 8, 2022
    • Jobs
      • Browse Jobs
      • Post a Job
      • Manage Jobs
    • Events
      • National Egg and Poultry Awards
      • Poultry Fair
    Poultry News
    Health & Welfare

    Red alert: trying to solve the problem of red mites

    Chloe RyanBy Chloe RyanOctober 24, 20175 Mins Read
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
    A red mite
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email

    How do you solve a problem like red mites? These tiny creatures wreak havoc on layer farms, and around 80% of units have had them at some time or another. Indoor, free-range, organic  the infestation rate is similar across the board.

    In Edinburgh this September, vets from across the world gathered for the World Veterinary Poultry Association (WVPA) Congress, and red mites were one of the hot topics up for discussion.

    New treatments, ways to improve biosecurity measures, and alarming stories of farmers using unregulated products “including petrol to clean sheds“ were all shared among the experts attending.

    Among those there was Dr Olivier Sparagano, associate pro-vice-chancellor of research at Coventry University. His areas of research include animal health and agriculture. He is also president of a network on red mite action in Europe, funded by EU, which involves sharing knowledge between experts in all the member countries.

    Poultry red mites are a top five cause of economic loss in layer operations in Europe and in many other countries across the world. In fact, the total cost of red mite infestations in Europe alone is estimated at 360 million annually.

    Red mites are a nasty creature, and it’s notoriously difficult to treat infestations. Red mites suck the blood of poultry, mainly at night, but don’t live on the birds, instead retreating during the day to cracks or crevices in the shed. They also reproduce at an alarming speed, so by the time you see a few mites in a shed, within days there is likely to be an out of control infestation.

    Sparagano says there have been several studies recently looking into how to control the problem. One has focussed on using beetles to predate on the mites. This has had limited success. “The beetles were so big that usually they stayed on the floor rather than climbed up to the nest boxes. And another issue is that the beetles are predated by the chickens.”

    Some products on the market designed to kill mites have only limited effectiveness, says Sparagano, leading to farmers making sometimes dangerous choices. “Because of the lack of success of many products unfortunately we see a lot of farmers buying products on the black market, using products that are not licensed for birds, so there is a lot of desperation in the farming community.”

    The concern is whether like with the contaminated eggs scandal in the Netherlands involving unlicensed Fipronil  this kind of activity could pose a risk to health, and to businesses.

    “I have seen people using petrol for instance to wash their walls, or buying a product in north Africa that is unlicensed so the farmer does not know how to use it because it has not been created for that,” says Sparagano. “Then there is an issue of residues on the eggs, and for broilers, within the meat.”

    One new product to hit the market this year is a treatment administered through drinking water, called Exolt, from MSD. Bill Vaughn, from MSD Animal Health, was also at the Edinburgh congress, promoting the new veterinary treatment.

    “The product just got its European Medicines Agency approval on August 18,” says Vaughn. “We have been researching this product for about eight years. The active ingredient is a product called flurolana. It is currently used in a different form for dogs and cats called perfecto, but this is the first use of this product for livestock. It is extremely effective, it is easy on the chickens and easy on the workers, and there is a zero day egg withdrawal. It is administered in the drinking water, then repeated two days later,” he says.

    “We’ve done a lot of training with our producers and this is going to be a prescription product, only available through veterinarians,” adds Vaughn. “It is very good for bird welfare. Birds suffer, and people do too, because the mites get transferred to workers and we know they go to the doctor and have mite bites checked out.”

    In addition to medicines, there are a number of products that aren’t regulated such natural nutritional therapies, says Vaughn. “Then there are other things like mechanical therapies where you can super-heat the house to 50 degrees centigrade to kill the mites, when the chickens are gone and before the next flock comes in. It is quite expensive to do that. So, there are a number of different therapies but there are negatives to each one of those such as the cost and ease of use.”

    One of the key things is to try and ensure biosecurity is as tight as possible. Then any treatment you use won’t immediately be made ineffective by repeat infestations.

    “Having a perimeter fence around the farm to make sure other people and animals don’t carry the mites in is important,” adds Vaughn, “as is straightforward cleanliness.”

    Remove manure as soon as you can, says Sparagano. “Remove all the rodents and the birds because they could be carrying mites. We also recommend gravel around the farm, to make it difficult for the mites to enter,” he says.

     

    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Email
    Previous ArticleBrexit issues raised in meeting with Gove and next generation of farmers
    Next Article The burden of fly-tipping on the countryside spiralling out of control
    Chloe Ryan

    Editor of Poultry Business, Chloe has spent the past decade writing about the food industry from farming, through manufacturing, retail and foodservice. When not working, dog walking and reading biographies are her favourite hobbies.

    Read Similar Stories

    Health & Welfare

    Second outbreak of avian influenza confirmed in Tedburn St Mary, Teignbridge

    April 13, 2022
    Health & Welfare

    The US considers vaccines to protect poultry from bird flu

    April 7, 2022
    Health & Welfare

    Chief Vet warns poultry keepers in Suffolk to take urgent action now or risk losing flocks to bird flu

    March 28, 2022
    Most Read

    Australia’s biggest chicken processors to fix unfair contracts with farmers after ACCC investigation

    May 26, 2022

    Egg prices could rise as much as 21% this year as Bird Flu hits the US

    May 26, 2022

    Highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) in the UK and Europe

    May 25, 2022
    © 2022 Lewis Business Media. All Rights Reserved.
    Lewis Business Media, Suite A, Arun House, Office Village, River Way, Uckfield, TN22 1SL

    Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | Terms & Conditions

    • AA Farmer
    • Farm Contractor
    • Pig World
    • OvertheCounter

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “ACCEPT ALL”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
    Cookie SettingsREJECT ALLAccept All
    Manage consent

    Privacy Overview

    This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
    Necessary
    Always Enabled
    Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
    CookieDurationDescription
    AWSALBCORS7 daysThis cookie is managed by Amazon Web Services and is used for load balancing.
    cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary1 yearSet by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin, this cookie is used to record the user consent for the cookies in the "Necessary" category .
    PHPSESSIDsessionThis cookie is native to PHP applications. The cookie is used to store and identify a users' unique session ID for the purpose of managing user session on the website. The cookie is a session cookies and is deleted when all the browser windows are closed.
    Others
    Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
    CookieDurationDescription
    AWSALB7 daysAWSALB is a cookie generated by the Application load balancer in the Amazon Web Services. It works slightly different from AWSELB.
    explat_test_aa_weekly_lohp_2021_week_4517 days 8 hoursNo description
    ppwp_wp_session30 minutesNo description
    tk_ai14 daysGathers information for WordPress by themselves, first party analytics tool about how WP services are used. A collection of internal metrics for user activity, used to improve user experience.
    tk_qssessionGathers information for WordPress by themselves, first party analytics tool about how WP services are used. A collection of internal metrics for user activity, used to improve user experience.
    Advertisement
    Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
    CookieDurationDescription
    OAGEOsessionOpenX sets this cookie to avoid the repeated display of the same ad.
    OAID1 yearThis cookie is set when an AdsWizz website visitor have opted out the collection of information by AdsWizz service or opted to disable the targeted ads by AdsWizz.
    Analytics
    Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
    CookieDurationDescription
    _ga2 yearsThe _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognize unique visitors.
    _gat_gtag_UA_31822138_71 minuteSet by Google to distinguish users.
    _gid1 dayInstalled by Google Analytics, _gid cookie stores information on how visitors use a website, while also creating an analytics report of the website's performance. Some of the data that are collected include the number of visitors, their source, and the pages they visit anonymously.
    tk_lr1 yearThe tk_lr is a referral cookie set by the JetPack plugin on sites using WooCommerce, which analyzes referrer behaviour for Jetpack.
    tk_or5 yearsThe tk_or is a referral cookie set by the JetPack plugin on sites using WooCommerce, which analyzes referrer behaviour for Jetpack.
    tk_r3d3 daysJetPack installs this cookie to collect internal metrics for user activity and in turn improve user experience.
    SAVE & ACCEPT
    Powered by CookieYes Logo