Can I deworm again

[FloridaFlock]

When it rains, it pours! It's been 3 days past my initial deworming (did a 5 day course of 1ml of fenbendazole on approx. 5 lb girls) and I'm also three days into a 7 day course of coccidiosis treatment. Initially, I dewormed b/c one girl wasn't doing awesome (probable sour crop but vet dewormed her so I normally do the entire flock if one is done). On the 5th and final day of deworming two of my other girls started having pale combs with yellow poop. They weren't vaxed for coccidiosis so I started CoRid per a members suggestion. All the girls (except sour crop one) were ok until I dewormed so I'm wondering if I stirred a hornets nest internally. One is still laying but she's weak and not too strong on her feet. She ate and drank this morning but she's mostly standing around. The only local vet that will see chickens says they won't send a fecal unless they see her and then it's sourced out and takes 5-7 days to get back. At this rate I don't have 5-7 days. Would you give another 5 day round of fenbendazole? I ordered Garden and Poultry Dust but it arrives tomorrow so I can dust them all and the coop. She does scratch at her head more than the others and the other one had some pretty unkept feathers although I can not find any mites/lice/etc on them. I keep looking at night and can't find anything but I do see some type of bugs in their nesting coup. Looks like tiny red ant (literally ants not red mites) and some other type of bugs that don't look like mites to me. They have clear upper bodies with darker butts...maybe juvenile ants? IDK. Any suggestions on doing another dose of dewormer is greatly appreciated!!!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

It's been 3 days past my initial deworming (did a 5 day course of 1ml of fenbendazole on approx. 5 lb girls) and I'm also three days into a 7 day course of coccidiosis treatment. Initially, I dewormed b/c one girl wasn't doing awesome (probable sour crop but vet dewormed her so I normally do the entire flock if one is done). On the 5th and final day of deworming two of my other girls started having pale combs with yellow poop.

All the girls (except sour crop one) were ok until I dewormed so I'm wondering if I stirred a hornets nest internally. One is still laying but she's weak and not too strong on her feet. She ate and drank this morning but she's mostly standing around.

Would you give another 5 day round of fenbendazole? I ordered Garden and Poultry Dust but it arrives tomorrow so I can dust them all and the coop. She does scratch at her head more than the others and the other one had some pretty unkept feathers although I can not find any mites/lice/etc on them.

Looks like tiny red ant (literally ants not red mites) and some other type of bugs that don't look like mites to me. They have clear upper bodies with darker butts...maybe juvenile ants?

Looks like the EE has some swelling above her eye. Can you look to make sure the red ants aren't biting them?

Can you get some photos of the poop?

A photo of that clear bug with a darker butt if you can find one of them. I wonder if it's lice.

What are you feeding? Do you feed a lot of treats? See that they are drinking well. If you are using Corid in the water, that should be the only thing in the water, no extra vitamins or supplements given during the course of treatment. Corid Liquid is 2tsp and Corid Powder is 1 1/2 tsp per gallon of water.

Fenbendazole dose is 0.23ml per pound of weigh given orally once a day for 5 days, if you did that, then I would not retreat.
Do you have a photo of the bottle or tube of Safeguard you used?

Could they have eaten any moldy feed, something rotten, etc.?

Any issues prior to this, trouble laying, lethargy, have you added new birds, etc.?

 

[FloridaFlock]

Thank u for your reply @Wyorp Rock. No new birds. I feel like maybe the sour crop issue started b/c I was using a rain barrel with recovered water. I think some squirrels (I suspect) ate layer feed over the opening b/c I found crumbs so I’m assuming the water became contaminated. I also found a baby possum in their feed. I disposed of all of it but I think he may have been a frequent flyer looking back. Found him twice. Second time I stopped feeding in that feeder and stopped watering out of the barrel when the crop issues became apparent. I’ve moved the sick birds into separate areas so they are no longer in the coop. The sick Red was out pecking around this evening although she sat in the shade most of the day. The EE had a large poop with a massive amount of grass in it this morning in her hospital cage but she wasn’t interested in going outside (although I did put her outside for a most of the day but she sat under a few bushes after eating and drinking and only occasionally walked around). She looked a little unsteady on her feet. She does have bumble foot we’ve been battling forever. Vet refused to surgically remove it. I’ve taken the core out at least once. She has a follow up Monday (scheduled before all this) but she was seen last year for the same reason and vet won’t do much other than steroid. Was going to see if he would do something more this time. She does limp occasionally. She’s still laying. She’s always laid eggs with heavy calcium deposits (see pic). I chalked it up to a wonky gland b/c no one else does it and I’ve messed with calcium intake without resolving the issue. She’s done it since she began laying. Prior to all this someone was laying a soft egg. I suspect the Buff looking back b/c it was definitely a brown layer. Last image is an older pic of the EE for reference. I did give vitamins today so I won’t do that again until the Corid is complete. I’ve been doing 2 tsp per gallon and making it fresh daily for all girls. My healthy girls are definitely drinking more but the others are still drinking just not a much. I have them all on separate water stations to maybe prevent cross contamination. I’ve looked and looked them over for days on end, even my healthy ones, and I can’t find any pest. I’ve even looked at night several times. The Buff is kind of touch and go but her comb/waddle are bright red. Today she was out foraging most of the day. She refuses anything I try to feed her. All the sick ones refused liver today which I thought was odd. They love an apple core I chopped up thought. In terms of feed. I use a mixture of grains that Garden Betty recommended and also offered 16% durmor layer feed (usually organic but they were out so I bought non-gmo mini pellets this time). When I went straight layer feed after my Buff got sick (b/c she was so light but I couldn’t tell until picking her up b/c she looked so puffy and her feathers were the best in the flock) thinking I was causing malnourishment b/c using the homemade feed. The girls were not happy about it. I had to moisten all their feed just to get them to eat and even then they don’t like the layer so I caved just to get calories in the sick ones. Also gave a little cucumbers (which they refused) and watermelon today since it was 88°. I tossed any moist unused feed each day and initially I thought the high corn content was what caused their poop to be so yellow but then when the pale combs appeared I got worried it was coccidiosis. I have notice several girls (in particular my sick Red), have unkept feathers. She’s always looked a little ragged. The ones that look nice are the ones that molted this past Fall. My Reds didn’t molt (or not that I could tell). My healthy EE didn’t molt either and her feathers aren’t as nice as the dark sick EE. I attributed the rough looking feathers to worn out feathers vs fresh ones. My boys do love giving the girls meal worms and I’ve taken those away mostly. Only a few here and there now. They’re not made in US so I was worried they might be causing issues. Not sure that’s a valid concern but it was a thought.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I would see if the poop clears up with the Corid, but if you are going to be seeing the vet, then get them to run a fecal float and gram stain. I understand it may take a few days to get results, but finding out if you need to re-treat for worms or if there's infection is always a good idea.

For now, I would stick with a nutritionally balanced poultry feed, keep treats to a minimum.

 

[FloridaFlock]

I would see if the poop clears up with the Corid, but if you are going to be seeing the vet, then get them to run a fecal float and gram stain. I understand it may take a few days to get results, but finding out if you need to re-treat for worms or if there's infection is always a good idea.

For now, I would stick with a nutritionally balanced poultry feed, keep treats to a minimum.

@Wyorp Rock You were right! I checked on one of my girls while she was nesting & noticed her eye was watering then I saw several ants on her head and neck! I took everything out of the coop/nesting box, vacuumed it and then dusted it with Garden and Poultry Dust. I don’t really know what I’m doing dusting my chickens and can’t find any threads explaining how to properly do it so I didn’t dust them yet. I read on the bottle not to get in their eyes and don’t let them inhale it but other than that do I just sprinkle it on them and fluff it in? I also noticed she had so many ant bites on her legs that were red and angry and she wouldn’t stand so I gave her a warm epsom bath. She fully sat in it while I held her under her chin. She even took a little nap. I followed with a blow out and applied oil to her legs. She stood for the entirety of the blow out. As I was drying her I saw her chest was plucked leaving a bald spot. I still haven’t seen any lice or mites and haven’t seen a ton of feathers anywhere. Do u think now that I’ve dusted the coop and nesting boxes as well as changed out all the material, I should still dust all the girls? After I washed her I couldn’t find any ants but given my other girls issues, I’m concerned by the ants and wonder if they could cause all the issues we’ve been having (pale comb, bald chest, etc) or if it’s just another issue. I haven’t heard of ants causing anemia. I’d love to hear guys thoughts!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Poor girl!

I put the dust in an old sock, tie the end, then pat or tap the sock onto the bird's feathers working the fine dust down into the feathers to the skin. For the head, usually there's enough fine dust on the hands from the sick, that I work it around their head, just go slow.
And yes, I would dust the hens even though you treated the coop. The dust on the hens may help deter and/or kill any ants that get on them.

Is she standing ok after the bath? Are the bites really bad? I would keep watch on them. You could put a bit of oil, vaseline or thin layer of anti-inflammatory cream on the legs to help sooth them.

I don't know if the ants are the cause of all the symptoms you have described, but with them gone, I 'm sure the hens will be more comfortable with them gone.

Ants can be a pain to get rid of, so keep checking to see if they come back around, hopefully not.

 

[Kiki]

When it rains, it pours! It's been 3 days past my initial deworming (did a 5 day course of 1ml of fenbendazole on approx. 5 lb girls) and I'm also three days into a 7 day course of coccidiosis treatment. Initially, I dewormed b/c one girl wasn't doing awesome (probable sour crop but vet dewormed her so I normally do the entire flock if one is done). On the 5th and final day of deworming two of my other girls started having pale combs with yellow poop. They weren't vaxed for coccidiosis so I started CoRid per a members suggestion. All the girls (except sour crop one) were ok until I dewormed so I'm wondering if I stirred a hornets nest internally. One is still laying but she's weak and not too strong on her feet. She ate and drank this morning but she's mostly standing around. The only local vet that will see chickens says they won't send a fecal unless they see her and then it's sourced out and takes 5-7 days to get back. At this rate I don't have 5-7 days. Would you give another 5 day round of fenbendazole? I ordered Garden and Poultry Dust but it arrives tomorrow so I can dust them all and the coop. She does scratch at her head more than the others and the other one had some pretty unkept feathers although I can not find any mites/lice/etc on them. I keep looking at night and can't find anything but I do see some type of bugs in their nesting coup. Looks like tiny red ant (literally ants not red mites) and some other type of bugs that don't look like mites to me. They have clear upper bodies with darker butts...maybe juvenile ants? IDK. Any suggestions on doing another dose of dewormer is greatly appreciated!!!

The plate in front of the bird...what do you call what's on the plate?
Is that what you feed your birds or is that a treat?

 

[Kiki]

The ants aren't causing that poop. You are not doing your birds any favors by mixing all the stuff your are feeding. It is highly likely that the bird that pooped the poop in the picture above has an infection brewing in her lady parts.

When birds are not fed a balanced diet and get too many treats they are much more susceptible to serious reproductive illnesses.

 

[FloridaFlock]

The plate in front of the bird...what do you call what's on the plate?
Is that what you feed your birds or is that a treat?

It’s whole grain feed and store bought layer feed. The cucumbers were to hopefully help cool them since it was 88° here in Florida but they didn’t like them so I tossed them.

 

[FloridaFlock]

Poor girl!

I put the dust in an old sock, tie the end, then pat or tap the sock onto the bird's feathers working the fine dust down into the feathers to the skin. For the head, usually there's enough fine dust on the hands from the sick, that I work it around their head, just go slow.
And yes, I would dust the hens even though you treated the coop. The dust on the hens may help deter and/or kill any ants that get on them.

Is she standing ok after the bath? Are the bites really bad? I would keep watch on them. You could put a bit of oil, vaseline or thin layer of anti-inflammatory cream on the legs to help sooth them.

I don't know if the ants are the cause of all the symptoms you have described, but with them gone, I 'm sure the hens will be more comfortable with them gone.

Ants can be a pain to get rid of, so keep checking to see if they come back around, hopefully not.

Thank you! I’ll be sure to do that today. Really appreciate your help and advice.