Gapeworm - Safeguard Equine dewormer, 25 gram Paste 10% - Newbie help

[lavamom]

Hello,

I have a 6 year old barred rock hen, about 5-6 lbs, who is sick. I have been reading all the wonderful information available on this site, and it convinced me to join.

Dharma moves her throat (trachea) and crop back and forth like she has something stuck. She doesn't gape. She sounds gurgly when she breathes. She stopped eating and drinking about three days ago. She will accept a few bites of favorite foods fed by hand, but then she stops and shakes her head and clicks her beak. I saw from many posts that people use Safeguard (fenbendazole) for treating gapeworm. I have seen that people suggest using a pea size drop. Can someone who has done this please verify for me that what I have is the same as what you have used, and that a pea size drop is safe and effective?

I have:

Safeguard (Fenbendazole)
Equine Dewormer
25 gram Paste 10%
(100 mg/g)

It sounds like people have had success either putting it on a piece of bread. Does the paste dissolve in water?

And for how many days do I do this? Does it need to be repeated after a waiting interval?

Thank you so much to anyone who replies.

 

[dawg53]

Quote:
Gapeworm clogs the trachea preventing the bird from breathing, literally choking the bird to death. The bird would be gasping to breathe, not being able to swallow anything. It sounds more like a respiratory problem. Either way, I'd seperate her from the others til after the safeguard treatment. Then if it continues, I'd highly suspect a respiratory issue.
However since you suspect gapeworm, I've used the safeguard paste you mentioned. Dont put the paste in water. You have to either put the "pea" sized amount in her mouth or on a small piece of bread. I always have put it on a small piece of bread, they gobble it right up. You will have to dose her every 10th day after the initial dosing, probably 2-4 more times. Gapeworm are tough to get rid of. Here's a pic of what gapes look like in the trachea. Also, here's a link to respiratory diseases: Take a look at infectious coryza and mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG.)
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps044

 

[lavamom]

Thank you Dawg53, for taking the time to write and sharing what you know. I was hoping you would reply, as I have read a lot of your posts. I wanted to be sure that the product I got was the same strength as you had used - as the saying goes, "apples to apples." ANd I was hoping it might help someone else in the future with the same uncertainty.

Yesterday I was able to get some Panacur powder. An acquaintance gave it to me, three small plastic bags with about 1/4 teaspoon of powder in each, and said to dose for three days. I mixed with a little water and squirted down her throat. I will wait and see how that goes, and then maybe move to the Safeguard in about 10 days and then dose as you described.

I looked at the respiratory disease page, thank you for the link. Her symptoms don't fit, the main one being that there is no discharge at all, and her eyes remain clear.

I will wait and see, and if no improvement maybe I will post a fuller description here using the "Symptom" stickie on the site.

Thanks again!