I have extremely picky girls that only eat grapes for treats! What are some treats y'all feed picky

[mamahenjess]

Haha I'll have to try spaghetti then! I didn't realize the DE was a natural de wormer, thank you so much! I ordered Rooster Booster multi wormer but it's not organic

 

[pdirt]

Haha I'll have to try spaghetti then! I didn't realize the DE was a natural de wormer, thank you so much! I ordered Rooster Booster multi wormer but it's not organic

From my understanding of DE, it works by getting into the cracks/joints of an insect's or worm's body, causing them to pry open and dehydrate out. But DE only works when dry, which would not be the case if ingested. That said, I have not tried DE for worming, so perhaps is works in a way I don't yet understand.

I've come to understand that having worms (chickens in this case) is not a problem except for some types of worms or if their population gets out of control. Using a pharmaceutical wormer drug, if is the right drug for the worm(s) involved, are quite effective. But some folks (like myself) like going the natural route whenever possible and rather than trying to get rid of the worms, simply keep their populations at reasonable levels. Therein, you will find all sorts of "natural wormers", which aren't really wormers at all, but can perhaps reduce the populations or more likely keep them from getting out of hand in the first place. Garlic, cinnamon, hot peppers are some common ones.

Why would you not want get rid of ALL the worms? Worms are bad, right? Some people believe that many animals, including humans have developed symbiotic relations with some types of worms. Meaning, the worms either eat some of the person's food or suck their blood and in return give them beneficial antibodies. There's even a name for this type of therapy, Helminthic Therapy, in which one intentionally infects themself with worms. Here is a famous story on the matter: https://www.ksl.com/?nid=968&sid=20838871

It supposedly has helped many people with autoimmune conditions.

After hearing this story, I decided that I wasn't going to do anything about our chicken's worms (no chemical wormers) unless I saw signs of worm overload. I do give them crushed red pepper in the spring and fall, as a worm deterrent. They eat it up like candy.