Deworming experience from start to finish.

[ChickensAreSweet]

Have you come across a visual reference of what the various parasites look like in chicken poop? I'd really like to know what to keep my eye out for, and then be able to identify what I find if I find anything.

Is there a single medication that treats "all" worms? Chicken approved?

Do home remedies really work? ACV? Garlic? Pumpkin?

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

http://www.google.com/search?um=1&h...4.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0...0.0...1c.WYCMIl4Domc
here is a search result for google images "worms droppings poultry" GRAPHIC PHOTOS

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

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

http://www.google.com/search?um=1&h...4.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0...0.0...1c.WYCMIl4Domc
here is a search result for google images "worms droppings poultry" GRAPHIC PHOTOS

Thanks!


It seems like treating chickens for anything but round worms is both tricky and unauthorized.

 

[cafarmgirl]

Thanks!


It seems like treating chickens for anything but round worms is both tricky and unauthorized.

Not really and "authorization" is not needed. As dawg mentioned Valbazen is an excellent wormer for chickens, it gets everything a chicken can pick up. In the animal world, including poultry, it is not unusual at all for products to be used "off label" when needed if they are not specifically labeled for whatever purpose is needed at the moment for whatever animal is being treated. The products available that are specifically made and labeled for chickens are woefully inadequate, therefore off label use of appropriate products is the answer.

 

[tgooberbutt]

Have you come across a visual reference of what the various parasites look like in chicken poop? I'd really like to know what to keep my eye out for, and then be able to identify what I find if I find anything.

From a visual inspection, the only worm where you can see evidence of egg/oocysts with the naked eye is with tapeworms - those freaky segments that are linked to the video in post#1, and in the photo in post#18. There are few other of those picts floating on other threads on BYC. The tapeworm eggs are the only visible ones because they are in bundles/segments release by the worm - each of these segments/bundles (proglottids if you want to google other picts), contain hundreds to thousands of eggs, depending on the tapeworm species. If the poop is fresh, the proglottids are still moving because the eggs are surrounded by live cells from the worm itself.

No other worm eggs are visible to the human eye in the feces. Looking through the Foreyt book, all other common chicken parasite eggs are from 25 - 90 nanometers. You will only be able to see them under a (doesn't have to be too powerful) microscope...should be visible at ~100x-400x magnification.

 

[tgooberbutt]

I just finished worming quite a few of my birds today using the 20 mg/kg dose of albendazole.

Wow - 20mg/kg? Have you used that does before? If so, I'm assuming it worked out just fine?

 

[cowcreekgeek]

Albendazole seems to get absorbed and metabolized in chickens faster in chickens than in other animals. At a 10mg/kg dose, on average, the drug and its byproducts could not be found in the blood anymore after about 24hrs...Max concentration of the drug and byproducts were in the blood after ~3-4 hours.....

I just finished worming quite a few of my birds today using the 20 mg/kg dose of albendazole. It took all day, I wormed 50 birds at least. Catching them, weighing, calculating dosage, writing down the weights and dosage used with the bird's band number so I don't have to weigh again to redose in 10 days, giving them the dose... It was quite a job. Looking at the information above, even though that is for a 10 mg/kg dose, it sounds like you can eat the eggs again after a very short period of time after dosing--maybe 4 days? What is the recommendation for this, anybody know?

In regard to the portion of your post highlighted in this color, I've gotta say, "Bravo, for taking such efforts to provide the minimum amount req'd, so as to accomplish the desired result." That is, of course, provided that tapeworms weren't among your flock's current enemies.

Efficacy of Albendazole Against Experimental Raillietina tetraqona Infection in Chickens
​

The primary reason benzimidazole compounds are metabolized so much more quickly w/in chickens than w/in ruminents can be seen w/in the definition (Mammals of the suborder Ruminantia usually have a stomach divided into four compartments, called the rumen, reticulum, omasum, and abomasum ~'-).

As to withdrawal times, since it's an extra-label usage, they don't really provide that information. However, there's a few very important factors to consider, which should absolutely make you (and anybody else that finds this post) much more comfortable w/ the use of this anthelmintic:

​

Now, most folks suggest fourteen days, which provides a considerable margin for error. And, I do understand why nobody wants to ingest chemical compounds w/ long names that aren't found w/in nature. But, albendazole's been used w/in humans for the same reasons, and has been studied considerably as to what potential harm it may have upon us if we inadvertently ingest it.

My favorite points to cite, by far, come from the discussion of Maximum Residue Limits done by European Medicines Agency, from which I'll provide relevant quotes:

Experience from use of albendazole in human medicine shows that oral doses of albendazole are not well absorbed from the human gut: about 1% is absorbed. Thus oral exposure to albendazole would be expected to be less toxic to humans than to laboratory animals or farm animals.
Albendazole has been adequately tested in carcinogenicity bioassays, giving no evidence of neoplasia in either rats or mice.
No irritancy studies on albendazole have been seen, but albendazole sulphoxide was found to be non-irritant to the skin or eyes of rabbits.
No sensitisation tests on albendazole have been seen, but a positive result in a guinea-pig maximisation test showed albendazole sulphoxide to be a potential skin sensitizer.
In human field trials of albendazole 17 women in the first trimester of pregnancy were inadvertently given a single oral dose of 400 mg/person without any adverse effects on mother or child being apparent.
Four dairy cows in different stages of lactation were given a single oral dose of 15 mg/kg bw 14C-albendazole. Within 24 hours of treatment, mean total residues in milk were around 3416 μg/kg albendazole-equivalents and depleted to 227 μg/kg by 2 days after treatment and 19 μg/kg by 3 days after treatment. Within the first 2 days of treatment, around 2 to 3% of the total residues were present as albendazole. During the first 24 hours after treatment, the marker residue (albendazole sulphoxide + albendazole sulphone + the 2-amino-sulphone metabolite) accounted for around 82% of the total residues. Two to three days after treatment, the marker residue accounted for around 50% of the total residues.

Between now and the day you choose to provide the second dosage? I'd collect all eggs, and feed 'em back to the chickens, as there's absolutely no reason not to, and it spares waste.

I'm certainly unqualified to determine any safe number of days, but I'd personally feel entirely comfortable scrambling up anything they'd produce after about 72 hours, because 19 μg/kg is 1 μg less than the amount of aflatoxin allowed in baby food.

Maybe a week, or ten days (just to be on the ridiculously paranoid side ~'-)

 

[cowcreekgeek]

Wow - 20mg/kg? Have you used that does before? If so, I'm assuming it worked out just fine?

That'd be the amount I previously suggested folks use, as that is what is the minimum amount req'd so as to eliminate enough tapeworms as to be considered effective (although I've seen no no study in which a single dosage of albendazole has proven effective at eliminating all tapeworms).

:: edit ::
Albendazole at the rate of 25 mg/kg for three consecutive days has been proven to be 100% effective against R. tetragona.
:: /edit ::

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

Not really and "authorization" is not needed. As dawg mentioned Valbazen is an excellent wormer for chickens, it gets everything a chicken can pick up. In the animal world, including poultry, it is not unusual at all for products to be used "off label" when needed if they are not specifically labeled for whatever purpose is needed at the moment for whatever animal is being treated. The products available that are specifically made and labeled for chickens are woefully inadequate, therefore off label use of appropriate products is the answer.

Does one have any trouble obtaining "off label" products. I was asking for general information at the feed store, saying I'd heard various things were "good" for chickens, and they said they "couldn't" sell me anything not labeled for use on chickens if I came in asking specifically about chickens. If I didn't ask ... or I lied ... then I could get whatever.

This really disturbs me.

I know in other kinds of crops there are procedures for getting permission to use things off label.

 

[gg706]

I would find a new store or order off the internet...that is silly!

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Quote:
How odd!

Maybe they are worried about liability?