Love/hate relationship with barn swallows.

[danacat]

At least 10 nesting pairs every year. I’ve had to get quite creative in putting up shields to prevent their poop and feathers from falling into water buckets and hay areas in my stalls.

The cuties always seem to build their nests right above the most important and places in my barn.

But this year I have an additional barn swallow issue: Bird mites! (at least I think that’s what they are) and these microscopic creepy crawlies are getting all over me! Driving me crazy! Lots of additional showers!

Anyone else have this problem from barn swallows? I’ve only noticed the mites this year. Not sure what to do, if anything.

[SugarCubes]

I was on a mission all spring to prevent them from trying to nest in my barn! This is my first summer with my horses at home. My trainer’s barn is full of swallows and I could never stand the poop and feathers all over the aisle, not to mention them trying to dive-bomb you when you walk near their nests! But, I’m not a bird fan - would never want them in my barn!

I enclosed the entire ceiling of my barn to eliminate rafters they could build nests on, and only had to put screens up in the wash stall where there was a small lip where they were trying to nest.

Your best bet is to be very proactive next spring when they are looking for a place to build nests, DON’T let them build in your barn!! They’ll come back every year, so the fact that they’ve been already living in your barn is going to make it even more of a challenge convincing them to build somewhere else!

[downen]

That sounds horrible, OP! Although I’m sort of on the other side… I miss my barn swallows! They disappeared after I got a little ninja kitty who promptly exterminated anything she could reach (and she could get to a lot of places I never expected!), and scared away the rest. But my situation wasn’t the same, I only had a few families every year, and they always built the nests over an aisle so no problem with poops in buckets unless one took a flier.

So I guess my takeaway is to find your own ninja kitty? :lol:

[Magicboy]

Our nests get raided by snakes. Very disconcerting to see them crawling on the rafters above your head! Very messy birds but they keep down insects, right?

[Mosey_2003]

I hate them.

Once they’re gone, use a fly spray with permethrin all up in their nests before you knock them down, it will kill the mites.

[Hilary]

I love mine - they eat a TON of bugs. But they also usually build nests in area that do not affect me daily - way high in the loft, and in the back of the barn. I would be torn if they were making a mess in the water and feed and even aisle every day.

[Chief2]

The tops and bottoms of delivery pizza boxes and some duct tape make good poop shields.

We take the nests down every year before they come back, so they have to rebuild new nests. Eliminates the mite problem.

[csaper58]

Had a horse get mites/lice at a barn infested with pigeons. They can’t reproduce on the horses but boy do they make them itch.

I think they have a treatment for bugs on race/show pigeons, and chickens. Maybe you could treat the nests?

[Hinderella]

I don’t find their mess an issue, but my barn owners don’t like them and knock down the nests (before there are eggs). My only problem is when they nest under the gooseneck of my trailer. I lost a month of trail riding last year while I waited for those little balls of fluff to fledge!

[DHCarrotfeeder]

[QUOTE=SugarCubes;8754011]
I was on a mission all spring to prevent them from trying to nest in my barn! This is my first summer with my horses at home. My trainer’s barn is full of swallows and I could never stand the poop and feathers all over the aisle, not to mention them trying to dive-bomb you when you walk near their nests! But, I’m not a bird fan - would never want them in my barn!

I enclosed the entire ceiling of my barn to eliminate rafters they could build nests on, and only had to put screens up in the wash stall where there was a small lip where they were trying to nest.

Your best bet is to be very proactive next spring when they are looking for a place to build nests, DON’T let them build in your barn!! They’ll come back every year, so the fact that they’ve been already living in your barn is going to make it even more of a challenge convincing them to build somewhere else![/QUOTE]

Perhaps nesting boxes and your approach will help them along.

Their survival instinct should be quite strong so if you don’t give them an “out” they might fight your efforts.

[danacat]

Great advice all ! I’ll treat the nests after they are gone. They do eat a ton of flying insects which is great! When I mow they come swooping out of the barn and dive bomb for bugs while I cut the pastures. Wow are they fast! And the babies are so cute, sitting on the fence watching their parents feed.

[fordtraktor]

I totally understand. I know I am supposed to love them but I hate the poop!!! I tolerate it, though, and just scrub buckets like crazy all summer.

[dotneko]

I have to say my barn has almost no flies or bugs. My barn swallows (with this first set of babies we now have almost 90 birds) do an awesome job. So worth the dirt.

[LilyandBaron]

Mine nest over the aisle, so just an area of poop on the mats. I talk to mine and they are pretty tame since they were presumably last year’s babies. I have one fan cord they perch on and I get within 2 ft of them with no issue. They are adorable and definitely earn a living. Way cuter than fly predators! Mine don’t dive bomb me or the horses, but will bomb the cats. My ninja cat had gotten one, but she disappeared, and my other two are not as talented, lol. Maybe try to provide nesting areas in better locations? There is old poetry about barn swallows and they are typically highly desired by farm owners.

[FEIwannabe]

The barn where I currently board has about 7 barn swallow nests near my horse’s stall. There is not a single fly or mosquito in the barn. This is the only barn I’ve boarded at where this has been the case. I’ll put up with the poop if it means my pony is more comfortable in his stall. Luckily none of the nests are over his water buckets or feed bucket. But if they were, I’d move the buckets.

[2DogsFarm]

I use a flyspray that is straight permethrin (10%) on my horses and as a premise spray.
If flies are especially annoying I’ll spray myself too, rinsing off once chores are done.
I have a couple resident swallows in the barn & lots more in the rafters of my attached indoor & have never had a problem with mites.

[Fred]

I love them. We have had this farm for 16 yrs and there were swallow nests in the barn aisle and in all the run-in sheds then.
Over the years, I wait for those beautiful creatures to return, love to watch them rebuild their condos, and watch anxiously as the little babies are born and take flight.
I love to stand outside in the barnyard as they swoop and swirl above my head in the early evening. For me, it is a time of peace and beauty.
Poop? I don’t care. I have a small shovel and scrape the floor when I do the stalls. That little bit of poop is a small price to pay for all the beauty and the hard work they do on flies and mosquitoes.

[cutter99]

I love ours. We have almost no flies or bugs in the barn. I love seeing them fly in and out.

The only issue I have is when the babies fall out of the nest and die. That makes me sad!

[Hulk]

Baby powder works as well for the mites and it is not toxic.

[vxf111]

I hate them. Every year they build a nest in the SAME LOCATION. Every year the babies fall out and die on the floor underneath. None survive. Every year all the babies die. The swallows come and do it again the following year. EVERY YEAR! Maybe it’s a bad location. Try somewhere ELSE!