Gapeworm Diagnosis

[JoieD]

Thank you. This is the first I've heard of dosing 3 days in a row. I did buy some ivermectin but unless they look worse when I get home I wii wait for my Valbazen tomorrow When I heard gapeworm I heard death sentence but maybe they will survive. Just have to do a regular worming several times a year I guess.

 

[dawg53]

Thank you. This is the first I've heard of dosing 3 days in a row. I did buy some ivermectin but unless they look worse when I get home I wii wait for my Valbazen tomorrow When I heard gapeworm I heard death sentence but maybe they will survive. Just have to do a regular worming several times a year I guess.

Since you're dealing with confirmed case of gapeworms, I highly recommend that you worm your birds 5 days in a row with the valbazen since you have it on hand. Follow the directions in Eggcessive's post.

 

[JoieD]

Good Lord! So 1/2 ml for 5 days. Wait 10 days and on day 16 dose them again for 5 days. Is the withdrawal 10 or 14 days? And thank you so much.

 

[dawg53]

Good Lord! So 1/2 ml for 5 days. Wait 10 days and on day 16 dose them again for 5 days. Is the withdrawal 10 or 14 days? And thank you so much.

No. Just dose them 5 days in a row. Eggs should be safe to eat 14 days after the last dosing.
If they are over 6 pounds, increase valbazen dosage to 1cc orally undiluted, but administer 1/2cc at a time, dont squirt the full 1cc in the birds mouth as they may aspirate. You can pull the wattles down and the mouth will open, then squirt the 1/2cc liquid in the mouth and IMMEDIATELY let go of the wattles so the bird can swallow the liquid on her own. After she swallows the first 1/2cc, give her the second 1/2cc in the same manner. If you dont let go of the wattles right away, she could aspirate and then there would be problems.
For birds under 6 pounds, give them 3/4cc. Birds under 3 pounds...1/2cc orally.
Normally I'd recommend an initial worming, then a second worming 10 days later. But since gapeworms are involved, it's a different ballgame requiring higher dosages and frequent worming.
I recommend that you worm your birds frequently, every 3 months would be best.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would follow Dawg53's advice. He is an expert on worming here on BYC. Gapeworm, along with tapeworm, is difficult to get rid of. As you can see by reading some of the studies in previous posts, some wormers are used 3-5 days on the more serious worms.

 

[casportpony]

If I have read this correctly, ivermectin is *not* effective in treating them at the usual dose of .2mg/kg, but let me know if I missed something.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9269125

-Kathy

 

[JoieD]

Thank you both. I will be reviving this thread once I get a follow up fecal test. By the way when should I do that? A week or 2 maybe?

 

[dawg53]

Thank you both. I will be reviving this thread once I get a follow up fecal test. By the way when should I do that? A week or 2 maybe?

Two to three weeks should be fine.

 

[chickisoup]

Great info everyone and thanks to all for the clarification! This is going into my "must keep for future reference" notebook

Plz keep us posted on your fecal results, JoieD, and update on how your birds are doing.

 

[kvsuzy]

My girls won't let me feed them. I got them when they were 6 months old so they don't let me hold them. How can I give them the medicine for gapeworms???