Tapeworms in my turkeys - what do I do?

[BlueMoon]

When cleaning out the coop yesterday, I think those were tapeworms in the droppings. Yuck.
How do I treat them?
Thanks

 

[19Dawn76]

i wonder if the apple cider vinager will treat tape worms?
there was a thread onhere a while back. You might do a search.

Good Luck!

 

[ivan3]

I know that equimax for horses (ivermectin - broad spectrum wormer & Praziquantel - specific against tapeworms) is available in paste form and pretty cheap.

You might post your question over in emergencies section and/or PM threehorses to see if she knows how much of paste to use.

Another, more expensive med is Valbazen. This is available from First State Vet supply (will post page that has their vet's directions for use in poultry) : http://www.firststatevetsupply.com/poultry-articles/looking-for-color.html

 

[wilds of pa]

Use valbazen or a form of Albendazole, this is the only type that will kill tapeworm in poultry..

ivermectin drench or injectable will do nothing but kill other worms.. cider vinegar will do nothing but fatten the tape worms up..

In the mid-1980's, ivermectin was introduced as probably the most broad-spectrum anti-parasite medication ever. It is effective against most common intestinal worms (except tapeworms), most mites, and some lice. It is not effective against fleas, ticks, flies, or flukes. It is effective against larval heartworms (the "microfilariae" that circulate in the blood) but not against adult heartworms (that live in the heart and pulmonary
arteries).

Here's a new one Ive been meaning to try..which i have goldenseal Plants growing wild here..
will be investigating more on this herb and remedy..
Goldenseal contains a compound called berberine, which has been shown to kill many of the bacteria that cause diarrhea. Berberine has also been shown to kill germs that cause yeast infections and parasites such as tapeworms,,

It does not kill chickens according to this study, this study was not for tapeworm but weight and growth..
Berberis vulgaris (Zereshk in Persian) is a member of therapeutic plants in herbal medicine. There is evidence that its root contains components, such as berberine, berbamine, culumbamine and berberubine, with a relatively wide spectrum of antimicrobial activity. The aim of the present study was to examine if the plant root has any effect on the growth of broiler chickens. The plant was collected from Shiraz area in sufficient quantity and the roots were dried at room temperature and then ground into powder. One day old broiler chickens were randomly divided into seven groups (twenty chickens each) and were reared under similar conditions. The chickens received either normal diet not containing the root powder or were fed a diet containing one or two percents root powder. Chickens were weighed every five days until the age of fifty. Statistical comparison of average body weights in each group showed that chickens in group two (fed the diet containing 1% root powder from day one) were significantly (P < 0.05) heavier than the birds in the control group. It is suggested that the effect of active ingredients of the plant be examined in this respect in the future work.

 

[ivan3]

"Praziquantel (5-10mg/kg) is effective against a wide range of immature and mature cestodes in poultry, waterbirds, and gamebirds."
Encyclopedia of Parasitology Vol. 2 pg.235

Reason I mentioned the paste is that I think threehorses commented on it in a post. I'd just buy 10gm. of the powder (koi ponds) and measure it out on the digital scale.

Interesting info on the Goldenseal, thanks!​

 

[chickenlittleton]

I HIGHLY recommend using diatomaceous earth for treating ALL sorts of worms, parasites, bacteria, fleas, lice, mites flys etc. and it's all-natural and safe. Great for your pets and YOURSELF too! I use it for my hens, dogs, cats, turkey, and take it myself daily.

 

[wilds of pa]

food grade diatomaceous earth will not kill the tape worms in infested birds, it is used mainly as preventive..

best to worm with proper wormer to be sure you rid your birds of the worms and use diatomaceous after the worming to "possibly" prevent re infestation,

but i personally don't rely on food grade diatomaceous alone.

One thing, if you want try an experiment, if you know or think your birds have worms, collect some droppings for one to three days, and then have the vet perform the fecal parasite examination on those stools, then after having that done and it is shown that your birds do in fact have worms.

Then try diatomaceous earth and after at least 14 days of the birds ingesting it(diatomaceous earth), take another batch of stool samples back to the vet and see if worms are still present, you will be surprised to more than likely still find that your birds still have worms..

Goldenseal may work if you know how to use it, but I'm unsure of how to make a tonic or what exact amount to use. still looking for more information on goldenseal and its proper use for poultry..

Anthelmintics: Introduction
http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/191500.htm

Drugs Acting on Adult Tapeworm Infections in Birds
In the poultry industry the meat production has increased continuously worldwide (cf. Coccidiocidal Drugs/Economic Importance). In 1994, the annual meat production amounted to ~13 million tons in the USA, ~6.1 million tons in China, and 628.000 tons in Germany. In birds, losses due to moderate and seldom heavier tapeworm infections may be diarrhea (enteritis), weight depression, emaciation, and rarely mortality. Free-range birds, e.g., those in backyard flocks, and cage birds in aviaries with earthen floors are often hosts to many species of tapeworms (e.g., Davainea proglottina, Raillietina spp., Cotugnia spp., Amoebotaenia cuneata, Choanotaenia infundibulum, Hymenolepis spp., Fimbriaria spp., and other cestodes). Their life cycles require the development of cysticercoids (larval stages) in a large number of intermediate hosts such as various copepods, snails and insects. Modern husbandry methods may largely prevent access to the various intermediate hosts, thus preventing tapeworm infections in commercial poultry. Consequently, only little information is available about adequately tested compounds in birds. Niclosamide (250 mg/kg, per os) seems to be effective and safe in most cases (can be toxic to geese). Praziquantel (5–10 mg/kg) is effective against a wide range of immature and mature cestodes in poultry, waterbirds (ducks, geese) and game birds (pheasant, partridge). However, an economic return to its use seems to be questionable. Benzimidazole carbamates (fenbendazole, mebendazole, other compounds, Nematocidal Drugs, Animals), exhibit variable actions on avian cestodes. Fenbendazole is somewhat erratically effective against Davainea proglottina, and the activity of mebendazole is limited to Raillietina and Hymenolepis.

Old Remedies and Modern Compounds with „Cestocidal Activity
There are many old remedies showing more or less activity against adult tapeworms. Thus pumpkinseeds, powdered areca (fruits of betel palm, Areca catechu), kousso (flowers of an Abyssinian tree, Hagenia abyssinica), turpentine (oily mixture of exsudates from coniferous trees, especially longleaf pine), pomegranate root bark (tropical Asian and African tree, Punica granatum), and male fern (Dryopteris filix-mas) were used as anticestodal remedies. These and other plant products had been gradually replaced by arecoline (alkaloid obtained from seeds of betel palm), organic tin compounds, lead arsenate or dichlorophen(e) during the first half of this century. Since 1921, arecoline has been used in veterinary medicine for many years against Echinococcus granulosus and Taenia spp. in dogs. Because of its relative low efficacy and its severe side effects, it is no longer recommended as a therapeutic drug in dogs and cats. However, its strong parasympathomimetic action causes purging and thus partial removal of paralyzed worms from the intestine. This action makes arecoline a useful diagnostic agent, which may give valuable information on whether a group of dogs on a farm is infected with Taenia spp. or Echinococcus spp. or not.

 

[BlueMoon]

Thank you so much everyone, esp. Wilds of PA. Invaluable info.

With the Albendazole, is it prudent to use something like Wazine or Piperzine first? We lost a goat recently, presumably because we wormed full dose when he'd not been wormed in a year and presumably the worms clogged on their way out.

Lots of Barberry around here. I love the excuse to dig it all up, but not crazy about having to grind up the roots.