Oldhawkins
In the Brooder
- Jun 6, 2015
- 41
- 3
- 24
Ok, been reading up on the dreaded Blackhead disease. I raise chickens but added turkeys to my flock recently. (All raised together from chicks.) While researching info on turkeys, i stumbled across blackhead disease and how NOT to raise turkeys with chickens,or at least house them together which is exactly what im doing. I cant afford to build another coop just for the turkeys so i basically read everything i could on how to prevent blackhead. So far my flock is fine together as the birds were all started from chicks and on new ground.My flock is allowed to free range my 2.5 acres. So here's how im going to approach this.
From what ive read,blackhead is a protozoa carried by the caecal worm. The caecal worm is carried by all poultry but passed between chickens to turkeys primarily thru cloacal drinking,consumption of earthworms,and consumption of infected water or feed by fecal contamination.
To interrupt this cycle ive developed a plan.
1st. Dust all roosts where birds sit at night with Diatomaceous earth. It dries out the poop,dries out any caecal worms or protozoa and can minimize transmission from bird to bird. I sprinkled all roosts and nest boxes even the floor of the coop to accomplish this. I plan on doing this weekly. Diatomaceous earth can be bought online,at feed stores, or at hardware stores.
2nd. Worm all poultry on a tri monthly basis or so to shed caecal worms. I found a product called Strike 3 by Durvet. It comes in a 1lb bag with a measure scoop. Directions say to mix 1 lb into 50 lbs of feed but can also be portioned smaller as per directions with measurer provided. The active ingredient is Hygromicin b. I found this at my local Tractor Supply store. I also ordered a product called Rooster Booster online which basically will do the same thing.
My thinking is to minimize and control Caecal worm incubation and transmission in my birds thru regular worming schedule. With the Strike 3 medication, birds can be slaughtered after they have gone off the wormer 3 days and likewise egg collection can resume after 3 days.
3rd. I watch and interact with my birds daily. Since turkeys are especially susceptible, they are observed for change in behavior and routine fecal observation as blackhead often causes noticeable stool discoloration. If a bird is suspect, i found a product called General Cure by API. It contains the drug Metronidazole which kills the protozoa that causes blackhead. It comes in 10 pouches of 250 mg powder and can be mixed in food or water but i will use specifically to treat the sick bird if it happens. One packet (250 mg) to treat one bird bi weekly. I found this product at Petsmart in the fish care isle.
Also i have added to all my scratch feed ground Chile peppers. I bought a bag of dried chile peppers at Wal-Mart and grind them into particles about seed size in my blender and mix it into all my scratch grains which i feed my birds a daily. This also is supposed to help with control of caecal worms/blackhead protozoa.
If i have any issues with blackhead or the treatment for i will post updates here as well.
I hope this helps anyone...
From what ive read,blackhead is a protozoa carried by the caecal worm. The caecal worm is carried by all poultry but passed between chickens to turkeys primarily thru cloacal drinking,consumption of earthworms,and consumption of infected water or feed by fecal contamination.
To interrupt this cycle ive developed a plan.
1st. Dust all roosts where birds sit at night with Diatomaceous earth. It dries out the poop,dries out any caecal worms or protozoa and can minimize transmission from bird to bird. I sprinkled all roosts and nest boxes even the floor of the coop to accomplish this. I plan on doing this weekly. Diatomaceous earth can be bought online,at feed stores, or at hardware stores.
2nd. Worm all poultry on a tri monthly basis or so to shed caecal worms. I found a product called Strike 3 by Durvet. It comes in a 1lb bag with a measure scoop. Directions say to mix 1 lb into 50 lbs of feed but can also be portioned smaller as per directions with measurer provided. The active ingredient is Hygromicin b. I found this at my local Tractor Supply store. I also ordered a product called Rooster Booster online which basically will do the same thing.
My thinking is to minimize and control Caecal worm incubation and transmission in my birds thru regular worming schedule. With the Strike 3 medication, birds can be slaughtered after they have gone off the wormer 3 days and likewise egg collection can resume after 3 days.
3rd. I watch and interact with my birds daily. Since turkeys are especially susceptible, they are observed for change in behavior and routine fecal observation as blackhead often causes noticeable stool discoloration. If a bird is suspect, i found a product called General Cure by API. It contains the drug Metronidazole which kills the protozoa that causes blackhead. It comes in 10 pouches of 250 mg powder and can be mixed in food or water but i will use specifically to treat the sick bird if it happens. One packet (250 mg) to treat one bird bi weekly. I found this product at Petsmart in the fish care isle.
Also i have added to all my scratch feed ground Chile peppers. I bought a bag of dried chile peppers at Wal-Mart and grind them into particles about seed size in my blender and mix it into all my scratch grains which i feed my birds a daily. This also is supposed to help with control of caecal worms/blackhead protozoa.
If i have any issues with blackhead or the treatment for i will post updates here as well.
I hope this helps anyone...
