Is this a parasite?

[calicountrychik]

Hi all. When replacing the water for my chickens today, I found this in the bottom of a waterer:




What is it? Is it a parasite? Do I need to be concerned? Should I worm the chickens? I currently have the waterer soaking in bleach :-x

 

[centrarchid]

It is a parasite of some sort. I am not as familiar with appearance of adult parasites of chickens as I would like, but if it is not from a chicken, then a subadult horsehair worm coming a grasshopper or cricket is your guy. The horsehair worm when ready to come out directs host to water, kills it then emerges and gets into water where it stays until next spring to produce young that infect next years crickets and grasshoppers.

 

[calicountrychik]

That is exactly what it is! Thank you so much! In looking it up and looking at pictures I was able to even identify it as a male worm... I found they aren't parasitic to chickens or dogs so I won't freak out about it any more. We really are over run with crickets so I am surprised I haven't seen one before now.

 

[centrarchid]

You can still freak out. The are one of the few things that get me squeamish. I used to collect grasshoppers to feed fish and the parasitized grasshoppers were far from rare. The fish I had would not eat such worms when they came out.