Eeewwww! Worms!

[Patoot]

So the girls are in the habit of coming on the porch and pooping all over the place. I'm going to put up a fence to stop this as I'm sick of rinsing it off every night. Anyway, this morning I saw one of them poop and then thought I saw something moving. Eeewww, eeewww, eeewww...I got closer and there were tons of worms! Ugh. Gag me. I have washed my hands like 80 times this morning even though I didn't touch it in anyway. Blech. So...

How did they get them?
What wormer do I get? How do I worm them? How often?
Do I now have to test my dog's poop since she walks in the backyard and I have seen her eat some poop?
Dumb question, but do I need to be tested for anything? I always wash my hands after I feed them or anything.
Do I need to be extra careful (i.e. gloves) when I'm touching anything chicken (i.e. picking up their food sigh, opening/closing their door, etc)?
Should I completely clean out their coop?

I am sooo grossed out. Did I do something wrong which made them get worms? I feed them Start and Grow. For treats they have tomatoes, grapes, watermelon, oatmeal. BOSS, mealworms (once), and that's about it. They eat A LOT of bugs! They are allowed in my flower garden, but not veggie garden. They are on a grass yard, but also have an open run area which is all mulch/bark and dirt. There are 4 of them (~17wk RIR).

I'm so grossed out. They look liked teeny tiny earthworms, but lighter in color. Nasty. I actually saw a girl eat an earthworm this morning and I didn't even know I had any in my yard.

Thanks for any help.

Bree

 

[dsqard]

They can pick up worms from anywhere to include wild birds so there is no real way to keep this from happening. I would suggest getting Wazine 17. I am not sure of the dosage but if you search for Wazine in the posts I am sure you can find it. You will not be able to eat the eggs for two weeks after treatment and I would treat all of your birds at the same time. Good luck!

ETA - I am pretty sure that worms that chickens get are not transferable to humans. Also you should clean out their coop once you have wormed all of them.

 

[BWKatz]

What she said. Good luck

 

[Cavendish Chickens]

Just like kittens and puppies, chickens are born with worms and can be wormed at 4-6 weeks of age. We also used Wazine. You can pick it up at your local farming store. I wouldn't worry about you getting the worms since you're keeping clean, but I may worm the dog just once to be on the safe side since it was eating the poop. (Dogs eat the darndest things, don't they? lol) So, just go to the farm store and buy Wazine, 2 tbsp per 1 gallon of water. Worm the dog as well, and done.

 

[mrsbos]

Oh man! That sounds disgusting! I hope that doesn't happen to my chicks (5 wks old). They've been outside in the garden and yard alot, eating grass/bugs/worms you name it. I may have to inspect their poo a bit more closely. I too hate it when they poop on my patio! They have a HUGE grassy/barky/gravelly area to roam in, and they wait to get to my patio steps to drop their load LOL! At least they haven't pooped on me while roosting on my shoulder yet--though I'm always very paranoid about it and don't let them stand on me for too long

 

[Patoot]

Thanks for the info. I'll pick some up and give it to them. How quickly does it work?

As for pooping on the patio...I just decided to fence it off tonight. I am sick of hosing it down every night and they LOVE to be at the back door. I get rushed every time I open the door and then they always follow me to the door. I'll be watching TV and the 4 of them will be pecking on the actual door like, "Hello there...can I come in?" My backyard is getting uglier because of the fencing, but oh well. We'll see how this goes. My poor dog couldn't lay on the porch because there was poop everywhere.

Thanks.

Bree

 

[Cavendish Chickens]

Just let them drink the water for the day, or until it's gone. The water I treated them with lasted two days. Day three they were back to their vitamin enriched water. I also read that it's good to worm them twice. The page I read said at 6 weeks, and again at 12 weeks. So mine are being wormed again at this moment. Just so you're not lost when you're looking for the wormer, it's a liquid. I happened to find it. No one told me about it, or that chickens had worms like kittens and puppies. I was in the store for the vitamins, food, and feeders and stumbled across it. Then I asked the clerk about it, and she informed me about how they are born with them. I'm not sure if I will ever understand how these animals are born with worms when the parents don't even have them. It makes no sense to me. But I will do everything I can to keep them healthy.

 

[JROOSTER]

Any chicken can get worms from the dirt in the yard dont matter where it is. No not every single bit of dirt has worms but if you free range your chickens they can get worms. They also can get worms if kept in a coop that wild birds can get into. I have never heard they are born with worms so I would ask a trusted vet about that or research it some on the internet. Worms is part of life you may want to plan to worm your chickens once or twice a year. Just to stay ahead of the game.

 

[Patoot]

I went to the feed store and she said she doesn't carry Wazine. She said she uses DE for worms. I got some because I was planning to use some in the coop anyway.

Should I order some dewormer online or just use the DE? Should I be giving the girls vitamins and stuff (regardless of worms)? How about apple cider vinegar?

Thanks for the additional help.

Bree

 

[Pine Grove]

Quote:
I'ts impossible for chicks to be born with worms..infection can only occur by ingesting embryonated eggs.