Do they have worms?

[latherunner]

I have 10 chickens in the coop and I discovered this yesterday. No one is acting or looking sick. I think it's probably worms but I'm not sure. If they are, what kind? I've done a Google search on different types of worms and couldn't find anything that looked like this. Oh, by the way, don't search Google for parasitic worms after lunch

Thanks for any help!

 

[Dar]

yes that looks like worms... i dont know what kind tho

 

[davidb]

Time to worm

 

[rcentner]

Absolutely time to deworm the chooks, it looks like a roundworm of sorts (they get more than 1 kind) and there are a lot of posts on here about what to use for dewormer. Be careful... a lot of people reccomend things that may not work. I found this heplful, written by Threehorses on this site (I saved it for futher reference in my email, but it's on here somewhere) Thanks Threehorses!

OK first I determine whether or not a bird needs the wazine worming first, what I nicknamed the "wazine pre-worming". Here are the qualifications. If "yes" to any of these, I do the wazine first:

Bird is over six months old, never wormed, and has been on dirt - not wire.
Bird has an unknown worming history.
Bird has shed any worms in the feces at all.
Bird hasn't been wormed in over 9 months.


If the bird meets those qualifications, I use Wazine 17 (or equivalent piperazine 17%) as labeled in their water for 1 day. I don't eat eggs for two weeks. I *like* to do this when the bird is molting/not laying if possible, but worm killing > egg eating.
If you do the "wazine pre-worming", then in 2 or more weeks later (no more than 2 months) I will do the following worming which I do to all birds twice a year - fall and spring.

I gather the birds being wormed into one area where they don't usually live. Each bird gets picked up and thoroughly examined. Skin, inside mouth, feathers, breathing, keel score, comb/wattles, vent, etc etc. I doctor anything that needs doctoring. Then I worm them (see below) and place them in the pen where they usually stay. Then i get the next bird, rinse and repeat. It helps to have a little portable folding table on which to work, a jacket or big men's shirt, and gloves. Keep a bucket near by with scissors and meds in case you have to clean and treat any little things.

The wormers:
Ivermectin (pour-on, injectable given orally, or paste). aka Ivomec though I recommend generic, not "ivomec" brand because it's all "ivermectin". Horse paste wormers for a 1200 lbs horse labeled as "ivermectin" will work. I don't use the other -ectins, although I know some use eprinectin (eprinex). Personally my preference is pour-on, generic. Broad spectrum, kills more than just intestinal worms, kills adults AND larvae in many species, kills external parasites that take blood, and gapeworm. High safety margin. See dosage below.

Fenbendazole aka Safe-Guard. Panacur. Paste. Another good broad spectrum wormer with a high safety margin. Kills roundworms (adults), cecal worms, capillary worms, and gape worms. You can make a bb-sized piece of it and put into the beak. MSU says that you can use as follows:
-----http://msucares.com/poultry/diseases/solutions.html-------

1 oz Safeguard or Panacur per 15-20 lb feed

Dissolve the fenbendazole product in one cup of water. Mix this solution well into the feed and give to the birds as their only feed source for one day. When completely consumed, untreated feed can be given. Be sure that the commercial medication contains 10% fenbendazole.
------------------

Levamisole: Kills capillary worms, cecal worms, roundworms (adults).
Dosage at: http://msucares.com/poultry/diseases/solutions.html

-------------------
IVERMECTIN:

Personally, I use pour-on ivermectin for cattle. It's a blue solution. 250ml generic costs about $14 and will last you ages! It's best to have a helper, but can be done on your own with a table. You will want to fill a syringe with a needle with a little ivomec. I use a 3cc syringe and 25g needle. You will NOT inject it - I use the needle to make one drop at a time of a uniform sized drop. (I'm not able to do that with a regular dropper while holding a chicken.) I hold the syringe pointing towards its side, not down at the bird, in case she jumps so I don't poke her.

I find a spot on the bird, about 1/2" wide, that has no feathering and no down. The best area is low on the back of the neck, or between the shoulders. Once I find that spot, I dispense 1 to 8 drops on the skin. If you get it on the down, it absorbs and you don't know whether or not the bird will get it - so make sure it's on the skin.

The dosage is as follows:

1 drop for a small or OEGB sized bantam.
2 drops for a large OEGB, small but not "micro" bantam.
3 drops for a regular bantam hen.
4 drops for an average hen or smaller large fowl rooster.
5 drops for the average large fowl
6 drops for a larger large fowl
7 drops for giant breed

Here's a post on ivermectin that explains using injectable, etc:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=185989

 

[latherunner]

Thank you sooo much rcentner! I did a lot of searching yesterday on here and was having the problem that everyone contradicts each other. I'll be making a trip to the feed store in the morning and getting them treated!

I have three Khaki ducks in with them, I would assume they need to be treated, too?

 

[rcentner]

Quote:
hmmmm, I dont know the answer to that one! I would make the same assumption and my dewormer isn't labeled for chickens so I couldn't tell. The vet drug handbook has dosing under "Birds" and mention specifically that it does not work on psittacines (I think that those are little house birds, but i could be wrong, again) But is labeled for raptors, poultry, parakeets and canaries. Check it out in the duck section of byc?

 

[PandoraTaylor]

psittacines=Parrots~!