Chicken worm in poo- HELP! need advice :)

[Julie1977]

Hi, I am new to chickens and I noticed some little white things moving in a pile of poo. Should I worm everyone or maybe just put vinegar in their water. And also are the eggs ok to eat regardless of worms? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks all

 

[BantamLover21]

I would definitely get a real wormer and dose your chickens with it. Valbazen and Safeguard are good choices since they get rid of most/all worms. Wazine and Ivermectin are less preferable, since Wazine only kills roundworms and many worms have become resistant to Ivermectin. I'm not sure on the dosages for either Valbazen or Safeguard, but I'm sure another BYCer will come along and know.

Vinegar does not act as a wormer. I've heard of some people using it is a preventative, but it does not kill worms and is not very effective at preventing them, either.

 

[Julie1977]

Hi and thanks for responding so quickly I will be looking into some of our feed stores for what kinds of wormer medications they carry. Thank you so much! I have 19 chickens and don't know who's dropping this is.

 

[Amykins]

If one chicky has worms, it's likely that others have 'em, too. I've heard that feeding them diatomaceous earth can help rid parasites from the GI tract, but nothing will beat legit anti-worm medication.

 

[dawg53]

If one chicky has worms, it's likely that others have 'em, too. I've heard that feeding them diatomaceous earth can help rid parasites from the GI tract, but nothing will beat legit anti-worm medication.

DE is ineffective against worms, it wont prevent nor treat them. You're correct; if one birds has worms, most likely the others have them as well and wormer meds will be needed to get rid of them.

 

[dawg53]

Hi, I am new to chickens and I noticed some little white things moving in a pile of poo. Should I worm everyone or maybe just put vinegar in their water. And also are the eggs ok to eat regardless of worms? Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Thanks all

"Little white things moving in a pile of poo." You might be dealing with tapeworms and will require special treatment as they are tough to get rid of. I've dealt with them. Take a look at this pic. Is this what you're seeing?

 

[Julie1977]

Hello Dawg53, Will safeguard work? and will free ranging be ok as my dog does tend to eat their poo here and there. I just don't want to make him sick from their dewormer. Any advice would be welcomed Thank you, Julie

 

[dawg53]

Hello Dawg53, Will safeguard work? and will free ranging be ok as my dog does tend to eat their poo here and there. I just don't want to make him sick from their dewormer. Any advice would be welcomed Thank you, Julie

Safeguard is ineffective against tapeworms. You'll need to purchase Zimectrin Gold equine paste at a feed store. It is a paste; give a "pea" size amount of the paste orally to each chicken, then repeat dosing again in 10 days. Make sure you withhold their feed 24 hours prior to giving your birds the z-gold.
As far as your dog is concerned, taenia species of tapeworm can be zoonotic. I recommend you take a fecal sample from your dog to a vet and have it looked at under a microscope for worm oocycts. You can purchase droncit/drontal tablets at a feed store without a prescription to worm your dog for tapeworms if necessary. The wormer residue in the chicken feces wont affect your dog.

 

[Julie1977]

Hi Dawg and thanks for all your advice! Just one more question, can the worms get into the eggs? should we not eat them until they have been dewormed? I thank you so very much, Julie

 

[dawg53]

Hi Dawg and thanks for all your advice! Just one more question, can the worms get into the eggs? should we not eat them until they have been dewormed? I thank you so very much, Julie

Worms can get into eggs, but it's rare. It's best to toss eggs in the garbage for 24 days (start to finish.)