Flies

[seminolewind]

Mine have gotten bad with all this rain.  I know at the barn my horse is at has these baggies with water hanging where we sit and it does work.  So I'll be putting a few up.  The stinky bags are great.  When full there's supposedly 10,000 flies in there.  I love seeing all the dead flies.  But I replace them before the smell gets too strong.  It takes a while to see a dip in population, but it does happen.  You have to think about each fly in that bag could have multiplied thousands of eggs , which would probably be 1 million flies less by the end of the summer or more.  


I am going to try home defense.  Other bugs die if they walk across it for up to a year.  I think flies would be good victims because they clean their feet.  

[chickenqueen]

The flies got bad here,too and it seems I got lice and have noticed an increase in rodent activity,so I reckon my Just One Bite Bars are no longer working.They are still being eaten but instead of dead rodents I'm seeing more activity.I made a batch of bait with Plaster of Paris and I'm waiting to see if it actually works,meanwhile,I ordered a new poison with a different active ingredient and I'm still waiting for it to be delivered.Of all the problems that crop up with keeping chickens,rodents are the worst ones for me.Since I got the geese,I don't see the feral cats in the yard like I use to and I think they really helped more than I gave them credit for.The other night,it sounded like the rats were having a party by the empty coop.Coops got sprayed yesterday and the chickens got it last night.WWIII has officially begun in my yard and I will take no prisoners or show any mercy.....

[seminolewind]

With the one bite bars I change brands here and there. Right now I'm using the yellow ones. I have used the green ones. The yellow ones seem to be more attractive. The important thing is to make sure they can't get any chicken food. You may have to cut down for a week or two to only what they finish and search for more (the chickens). I had to cut down on scratch to where they finished it in 10 minutes then spent the next hour looking for more.

Geese are messy with the grain.

[chickenqueen]

I knew I really needed to change baits but I had to buy a big box to get the Just One Bite yellow blocks and I didn't want to waste it or have a bunch of different poisons laying around.I keep their food in the front,so no feed at the main coop but I have 3 feeders in close proximity by the nursery.I can put the 2 chicken feeders up at night but the geese eat their food day and night.I've been thinking where else I could put it and I don't want to take it away at night just yet because the goslings still need Niacin for another month and I want them to eat as much as possible.It's always something...

[seminolewind]

I would not worry about the geese not eating at night.
I'm using the yellow bars right now. I was using the dark green Tomcat ones. The light greens don't work as well. The yellow ones work well right now, but the next shopping for it will be the dark greens again.

[maryellen]

Flies are horrible here. I have yellow fly traps up. Its insane. How do i get rid of the flies

[dawg53]

I use vanilla scented car air fresheners, the ones shaped like Christmas trees with string to hang on the rear view mirror. I buy a couple packs of them and hang them around the coop in the pen. They seem to work well and smell good for sure.

[maryellen]

I tried them and they didnt work. The coop smelled like vanilla but the flies didnt leave.

[seminolewind]

I have been trying out baggies with water and they do work somewhat. I hung one by each bowl of food that used to be covered with flies and now there are maybe 2-5 flies on their food , not 50 or more. So it does work somewhat. I will be adding a dime to each bag because I want to try that. But it does work but not 100%.

[Sylie]

I have a fly trap, it's a jar but it's the same thing as the bags you guys are talking about, I love it, it works great. The only problem I've seen with it is that the jar fills up but there are still tons of flies! I am pretty sure the neighbors are conspiring and sending their flies to my house.

[dawg53]

Those sticky fly strips work great. You have to hang them high enough so's the chickens wont jump or fly up and snatch one down for an easy 'fly snack.'
I've had chickens get wrapped up in those strips and they're not fun removing them from a screaming chicken.
I had one of my Barred Rocks get wrapped up in one earlier this year. She somehow managed to get it wrapped around one of her legs and in the fluff on her butt while dragging the rest of the strip on the ground behind her. It was kind of funny looking actually lol.

[maryellen]

I have the big yellow sticky fly boards, they work good but i still have alot of flues. Ill hang the air freshners in the run near the coop window. The flies are in the coop, not the run

[dawg53]

ME, why dont you add screen on the windows? A roll of the soft screen isnt expensive at all. I bought mine at Lowe's and have all coop vents screened under the hardware cloth. Also screen "strips" at the entrance to the coop. Chickens walk right through the strips. No skeeters or flies inside my coops, gnats neither.

[maryellen]

The top half door has wire for ventilation. I didnt want to cover it with screen as the coop bakes in the sun in the afternoon before the shade hits.

I keep the top open all spring, summer and fall and only close the top in winter.

I guess i could screen it but that will take away from the air flow

[dawg53]

If you think screen deters air flow, can you mount a fan above the top door on the inside and having the air blowing in or out? My fan blows air out and it's running 24/7 except in cooler temps.

[maryellen]

There are 3 windows. One to the right of the door, one on the left side of the coop, and one window facing the run plus 2 top vents. So how big of a fan ? I currently have a square normal window fan that is big. Or should i get a little round desk type fan? I could hook it up from the ceiling in front of the top door

[seminolewind]

I love those fly collection bags! They stink but certainly put a dent in the population. For being free and not needing replacements, those baggies with water sure keep a lot of flies away. I got to go hang more up.

[dawg53]

ME, I dont think it matters what size fan is used. Even a small fan will push air on low or medium setting. Keep in mind the main issue is ammonia fumes from feces and soiled bedding. Pushing air out the window will draw in fresh air from the other two windows. If I had your nice coop, I'd somehow screen all the windows even if jury-rigged. The darn flies would drive me nuts!

[maryellen]

Dawg all the windows are screened except the door one.
Here is the side window by the roosts and the other two windows, plus my fan . Do i close some windows to use the fan? And move the fan or leave it where it is and close the door ? Its facing out to the run but i dont use it as i had it blowing in from that window and everyone started sneezing. It points toward the ground and wall area

[dawg53]

I remember you stating that your birds started sneezing due to the fan. Can you mount the fan in a window? If you do, ensure all the other windows are open.
You can leave the door closed if you wish since the chickens have their own door. If the door were screened, you could leave it open.
ME, you dont want air blowing IN the window, it can make birds ill. Air should be blowing OUT the window. Indirect airflow will flow (not blow) in from the other windows and your chickens will be fine.
You can see in my pic that the stand up fan is directed to blow air OUT the vent window. Pay no attention to the box fan and the black fan. I had cleaned out the coop and sprayed liquid permethrin inside the coop and was using the fans to dry it quicker. But the stand up fan is permanent. I hope this helps.