Chickens are penned, do they need deworming

[Cyclingchix]

I have 8 week old chicks. They are kept in a pen and do not forage in the yard as we live in the city. Do chickens that are penned need deworming?

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

I have read that you don't want to worm chickens under 18 weeks of age unless necessary due to the organs still being developed.

Personally I wouldn't worm unless you have a problem. Some vets will do a fecal float for worms for a small fee (false negatives are possible). I kept chickens for a few years before I had a worm problem. I even found a worm inside an egg! Now that I have had a problem I worm every 6 months.

There are folks on byc who never worm their chickens and then there are some that worm several times a year, which saves the lives of their chickens. I have lost chickens to worms. Earthworms carry worms to chickens. So if they are eating earthworms that can be a cause (all chickens do, on soil).

There are no wormers on the market that are approved for egglayers (only poultry that aren't for egglaying). So you would be going off-label to worm egglayers. Wazine is the only poultry-approved wormer and it only kills large roundworms.

There are other worms that chickens get and so you will read lots of threads on off-label worming. Of course it is always best to involve a vet but you can buy the wormers without prescription and so do your research first. Toss eggs after worming off-label- see the threads if you do it. Some of the medications vets will prescribe are on this website:

http://www.healthybirds.umd.edu/disease/deworming birds.pdf

 

[Cyclingchix]

I have read that you don't want to worm chickens under 18 weeks of age unless necessary due to the organs still being developed.

Personally I wouldn't worm unless you have a problem. Some vets will do a fecal float for worms for a small fee (false negatives are possible). I kept chickens for a few years before I had a worm problem. I even found a worm inside an egg! Now that I have had a problem I worm every 6 months.

There are folks on byc who never worm their chickens and then there are some that worm several times a year, which saves the lives of their chickens. I have lost chickens to worms. Earthworms carry worms to chickens. So if they are eating earthworms that can be a cause (all chickens do, on soil).


There are no wormers on the market that are approved for egglayers (only poultry that aren't for egglaying). So you would be going off-label to worm egglayers. Wazine is the only poultry-approved wormer and it only kills large roundworms.


There are other worms that chickens get and so you will read lots of threads on off-label worming. Of course it is always best to involve a vet but you can buy the wormers without prescription and so do your research first. Toss eggs after worming off-label- see the threads if you do it. Some of the medications vets will prescribe are on this website:

http://www.healthybirds.umd.edu/disease/deworming birds.pdf

Ok thank you. I am just a worry wort. Trying to avert before it happens, but sometimes may cause another problem. I will wait to deworm them. Maybe next fall if needed.

 

[centrarchid]

Birds that are confined over same patch of dirt are a greater concern with respect to worms than those with freedom of movement or confined off ground. Once a bird is infected and begins to pass worm eggs, it is more likely for confined birds to re-infect themselves which can result in higher worm burdens (number of worms in gut). I do not regularly worm even adult birds and only do it with birds that will be culled since de-worming helps put weight on before bird gets eaten. Also I am not as consistent with appearance of worm eggs in feces to decide whether to worm or not, rather the bird must show obvious health issues before I step in. Birds, when wormed, I keep penned above ground in location where de-worming agent does not come into contact with worms I am not trying to kill. This entire process enables selection of worm resistant birds, minimzes use of de-wormers which are nasty chemical solutions, and slows development of worm populations that are resistant to de-wormers I have available.

 

[joesmania]

Edited ... erased by the poster

 

[centrarchid]

Hi cyclingchix,

Just wait till next year and save all the pumpkin seeds you can during Halloween. Ask family and friends to save them for you too .... Give the chickens the pumpkin seeds. The seeds are a natural de-wormer, filled with lots of good things for the chickens too. They have to be raw seeds though .... scooped directly out of the pumpkin and set aside. They can not be baked nor rinsed off or anything. The stuff that kills the worms in on the outside of the seed. The chickens love it and it is natural and good for them.

You can search it using something like "natural parasite cures". I would do nothing this year and then make this your yearly Halloween worming ritual.. For younger smaller chickens the seeds can be diced up so it is easier for them to handle.. Oh, and by the way they love the pumpkin meat too .....

Best of Luck,

Joe.

If a bird is severly impacted, then it will not survive to time when pumpkinseeds are applied. I am also dubious about effectiveness of pumpkinseeds as a worm control agent.

 

[joesmania]

Quote:

 

[centrarchid]

I have experience with worms and their management. Success was measured based on reduction of health impacts. I feel more confortable advising use of a management system I know that works and at this time I have not seen evidence pumkinseeds are effective. Your statement of pumpkinseed needs to be backed up somehow otherwise we risking advising someone to use an ineffective treatment for a potentially lethal condition. When a bird is having trouble with worms, time is of the essence and delay can cause mortality.

Backup statement concerning pumpkinseeds as a worm management tool. I will explore it more myself and pumpkinseeds can be acquired even this time of year. I also feed whole pumpkins to free-ranging birds but generally impacts of worms on them are minimal so I am unable to say for or against pumpkin or pumpkin products are effective againts worms. It is simply a lack of evidence.

 

[joesmania]

EDIT; Erased by the poster

 

[centrarchid]

Original studies are better to look at. They can explain methods better. Delaware study had two trials, first where chunks of seeds where given to goats and second seeds where applied as a drench. Only in second trial did they see desired results. For me, a reduction in FEC alone as in second trial is not enough to say a given treatment is effective. Rather it must reduce worm burden and restore animals vigor. Chickens should be easier to demonstrate this in than with goats. What is required to test is a group wormy birds where come can serve as controls and thus be put at greater risk of loss. I will try to round up some seeds for grinding but having a seriously wormy bird is not something one can count on.