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Re: Bont tick and natural tickisides (fwd)

Saw this story and it was permaculture in Action.
Vic

Reply-to: craig@achrm5.icon.co.zw
CC: general@lists.holisticmanagement.org
Priority: normal
X-mailer: Pegasus Mail for Windows (v2.40)

Dear Norman
I got this message and think I may have an idea for you. My wife 
Paula and I manage the Africa Centre for Holistic Management Ranch at 
Matetsi in Zimbabwe. We have been running a small herd of cattle here 
for almost a year without dipping and so far have had no fatalities 
from tick borne disease. We have to kraal our cattle at night because 
of lion and hyaena and we have 25 laying hens which live in the kraal 
with the cattle. These hens are absolutely brilliant detickers and 
the cattle have learnt to stand still for the chickens to peck off 
the ticks on their bellies and groins, the hens even jump to get the 
higher ones. We also have a healthy population of ox-peckers but I 
would say that the hens do a better job with less stress on the 
cattle. A couple of the cows don't like the hens and have noticeably 
more ticks on them. We got the idea from some people who had seen a 
guy in South Africa do it with a big herd. What he did was he had a 
big flock of hens in moveable cages which he would put near whichever 
water point the cattle were using and they would then do their job 
while the cattle drank. We had a bad tick problem until we put the 
hens in the kraal. The hens are just ordinary layers and the only 
thing you have to do is make sure they have not been debeaked. Hope 
this helps.
P.S. We get great eggs off the chickens, ticks are obviously very 
nutritious.


> To:            general@lists.holisticmanagement.org (Recipients of chrm-general)
> Subject:       Bont tick and natural tickisides
> Date:          Wed, 29 Jul 98 10:43:53 GMT
> From:          drichdsn@iafrica.com
> Cc:            boomer@saon.com (Norman Neave)

> Dear all
> 
> I have a client who has a problem with the bont tick and the resulting 
> heartwater etc. They are also currently battling a lot with Nagana. This is a 
> disease spread by the tsetse fly which is reinfesting its natural habitat now 
> that it is immune to the DDT spread in huge tonnages there in earlier days.
> 
> Innoculations for heartwater etc are being quite effective but teat loss on the 
> cows from the ticks them selves remain a problem. They do dip still, 
> occasionally, strategically and when necessary but would like to stop using 
> chemicals for the sake of the dung beetles there. He has proper Zululand 
> dungbeetles which one sees so little of these days. They are about 2 inches 
> long and would knock you off your horse if you were going at speed.
> 
> So do you know of any natural remedies for these ticks and possibly for the 
> tsetse?
> 
> The blokes name is Norman Neave. He is from Boomerang Farms near Matubatuba in 
> Zululand, Natal South Africa. His e-mail address which I will put on a request 
> to have him attatched to this conference on another posting, is boomer@saon.com
> 
> Thanks Dick (Africa) 
> ----
> Dick and Judy Richardson
> Whole Concepts
> PO Box 10440
> Vorna Valley 1686
> South Africa
> Tel:27-11-3153027 
> Fax:27-11-8053962
> E-mail: drichdsn@iafrica.com
> 
> 
> 
>