DE as wormer -- how much & how often?

[Sunny Side Up]

I would like to add the Food Grade DE to my chickens' feed to prevent/treat any worm infestations. Right now they all seem generally healthy, are laying well, and nothing in their poops seems alarming. Still, in SE Florida it's always so warm & wet that I know there are all sorts of parasites lurking unseen.

I would like to know the minimum effective amount of DE to add to their food, and how often to include it, in order to treat/prevent worms. The frustrating thing I find in the DE suppliers' information is their recommendation that "you cannot use too much, but using too little will not achieve your desired results". Well, if I were selling DE I'd tell my customers the same thing. But I find it too expensive to waste by using too much, even more so to use too little.

Some suppliers recommend for chicken feed 2% by weight, others 5%. How much is that by volume? How much does a cup of DE weigh?

I know DE is recommended for many other applications, but I'm primarily interested in using it as a wormer.

If you use DE for worming please let me know how much you use and how often you use it in order to get effective results. Thank you!

 

[Lunachick]

From the info gathered here, I do this: I have a metal can that can hold 25 lbs pounds of layer mash, I put in 1 cup of DE and mix well. I also add a cup of flax seed from the health food store, and mix that in. My chickens are fine, no worms.

The DE can be dusty when dumping it in your bin. You might not want to breathe it in, just be careful and turn your head, or just avoid the dust.