how do you know when your chickens have worms, and what kind w/out veterinarian opinions?

[kellyn]

I think my entire flock has worms... only 2 or 3 had pale brown chicken lice, and I dusted with Sevin Dust yesterday evening. I have nearly 40 hens of laying age, and I'm lucky if I get 2 eggs a day. I have 13 ducks that are laying age, and I'm lucky if I get one iddy bitty egg every other couple days. Like total wth?? A tropical storm just doused the whole state of Florida, and drug all the worms to the surface, so I think I have a hen with gapeworm.

Oh lovely joy. -_-' she has a chunk of revoltingly smelly yellow funk on the top of her beak, and she constantly her head scratches so her comb and beak are in a pitiful state. I noticed this morning, and she wasn't like this last night, so I isolated her in a cage on the ground. She a bit depressive. She will be 7 yrs next Febuary if she makes it. I poked it with a cotton swap and it started bleeding. Rather than poked, I prodded it with 4 of them.

Does anyone reccommend any dewormer I can use 2-4 times a year w/out a significant withdrawal period that kills most, if not all intestinal parasites? Maybe 2 different products I can alternate as to not build up worm immunity? I'm not worried about lice, since I dust every couple months anyways.

If anyone had used these products and has experience(positive results) and can recommend some, I thank you in advance! If not... then I guess you can't help me...

Products I have, if it's useful:

One tiny bottle of Tylan(Tylosin) 200.

an almost empty bottle of Wazine dewormer(useless stuff)

1 new bottle of Poultry Nutri-drech I got yesterday at TSC.

1 jug of DE. About 3 lbs.


My flock of chickens also has Mycoplasma, that causes them to sneeze and occasionally shake their heads. It does NOT excrete a disgusting odor like this.



Also, is there a way for me to check if my birds have worms?

 

[ChickenGirl22]

I buy Apple Cider Vinegar as a dewormer for my flock. They actually like it and I just squirt some into their waterer. Make sure you don't put any in a metal container though as it erodes the metal and contaminates the water which will poison the chickens. We've only used it for a short while but so far it is really helping.

 

[kellyn]

Yeah... but I have 3 large pools for the ducks an they're real mad when they can't swim. ^~^ I personally prefer the chemicals bc I want them gone and gone quick. Apple cider vinegar sounds good for birds in cages tho, which I'll keep in mind.

I have to worm evryone at once. I suppose I should use the last bit of my wazine and get Ivermectin Injectible first... I don't want to seriously overload them. I had cocci years ago and wazine saved my birds. I was loosing 5 or 6 coturnix quail a day. I haven't lost any birds in a few months now, I'm suprised.