Not Going to Vaccinate

[itsthelaw37801]

I "FINALLY" found a vet for the chickens. All God's people said "Amen." She was amazing. She grew up on a farm that raised poultry. She does not vaccinate her own chickens. She said in my area (East Tennessee) there was a little Mareks, but not enough to worry about. She said the main thing here was respiratory problems. She also assured me that if we had that problem, we could bring the chicken in to her. That makes me feel better.

She said her main concern was worming and protection. There are a lot of coyotes and racoons in this area. I described my coop to her. She seemed satisfied. She was very happy when she found out we had guineas. She thinks they are amazing and a great alarm system if an opposum or coyote travel down.

So given I was totally overwhelmed for the past three months not knowing what I was doing - amazingly enough, we are doing okay. We started on the Wazine yesterday. (we only have one laying hen so losing eggs wasn't a factor). Going to retreat in 10 days. Then we are going to try the harder wormer. I was told that Wazine was a good starter. Because if they had worms and I started on the strong stuff, it could obstruct them.

*taking a deep breath.

Feeling good today. Going back to making chicken coop signs.

Amy

 

[speckledhen]

Wonderful to hear! That must be a huge relief for you, to have a vet who "gets it".

Most of us do our own vet work, other than major surgeries.

I rarely worm my own flocks as mine free range and they need worming far less than a penned flock. The most common worms are definitely roundworms, which is all Wazine will kill, so I've never used that. I go straight for the invermectin, a broad spectrum wormer, when I do worm, which is less than once a year.

If you want a great broad spectrum wormer that won't clog the system, use Valbazen, which starves them out over a several day period so works differently than other wormers. It's more expensive, though.





ETA: I don't vaccinate for anything either-I'm about 12 miles from the TN line myself, in Fannin Co., GA. so you're only a couple of hours from me.

 

[itsthelaw37801]

Why do you use invermectin? I ask because I heard I needed to use the Wazine before I went to the Valbezen.

We got a bird that was sick. I researched it to death. We had info overload. We finally had to cull him after nothing worked. It broke my heart. I assumed a vaccine would have prevented it. To learn that she thought it was unnecessary took a load of guilt off of me.

We did the vinegar in their water. They don't like yougart. I've seen photos on here of other people's bird going crazy of the yougart. I couldn't get mine interested. Mine are cooped until around 5 or 6 p.m. I let them free range until dark. I try to stay outside with them, but find if I stay within ear range - my rooster will sound the alarm. lol

 

[speckledhen]

I use invermectin mainly because it is cost-effective and easy to use and kills most worms. I get the generic type of pour on you put on the skin.

Valbazen works differently than some other wormers. It starves out worms over a protracted period so they never clog the system. Long time breeders I know (and I mean breeding for over 50 years, so they know their stuff) use Valbazen for this reason. And it kills every worm a chicken can get.

I've never used Wazine because I figured if I was going to use a chemical wormer, might as well use one that kills more than one type of worm. If you suspected there was a HUGE worm load in your flock, maybe then, sure. There's nothing wrong with using Wazine first, of course-I just never have done so, though I've raised my own chickens for almost 7 years and I may have wormed the main flock 4-5 times, tops.

What were you using the vinegar or yogurt for? Those do not kill worms. They are healthful, sure, good for balanced gut and crop pH, but will not kill worms. They have their place, but you should never expect them to do something they just cannot do.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/216407/de-worming-and-wazine-concern/30

 

[itsthelaw37801]

I was using them because we had brown runny poop. The flock had been given anti-biotics. The brown runny poop was getting better. They refused the yougart. So we tried the vinegar. We dusted them and the coop for mites too. I didn't see any on them, but I was constantly getting bit when I went out there.

Today I got them out for their grazing. (I do one group at a time as not to cause a west side story scene lol) As my girls were having a ball over the grass, my rooster came and sat down beside me on the bench. He watched them with me. It was really comical.

My last question and I'll leave you alone is: Does your wormer work immediate? You mentioned the other starved out the worms. Just curious and trying to make a "worm" decision.

 

[speckledhen]

Invermectin works as soon as it gets into the system and kllls all live worms at once. If you suspect a huge infestation, I would advise you should use Valbazen, which will not clog the system with dead worms because of the way it works slowly starving them over a more protracted period.

The thing is, folks always say use Wazine first, but if it kills only roundworms, but all roundworms, and the birds are loaded with roundworms, then why would it not clog the system with dead worms just like another wormer? I've always wanted to ask the question. You see what I'm saying.

If the birds have three types of worms in there and you use Wazine, it will kill only the roundworms, then you would have to get another wormer for the others, of course. If you've had a fecal test and it's found that the bird has roundworms and tapeworms and some other type, then using the Wazine first may make some sense but if you add the cost of Wazine to the cost of a second wormer, it might be just as good to start with the Valbazen.

 

[itsthelaw37801]

That makes sense. I don't see any worms in their poop, but all of them came from individuals. Just making sure since the poop is so runny. Do you order on-line or from the store? (I said one more question, and I just keep them coming don't I? I assume at this point you wished you hadn't commented. Sorry)

 

[speckledhen]

I buy at the local feed store. Every one here has it.

 

[itsthelaw37801]

Someone should have filmed me: I went and bought the valbazen. It was expensive. $73 with tax. They carried a smaller size but was out. She called around and no one else had the smaller size. Oh well, I'll have plenty to do them for awhile. My husband works 12 hour shifts so I knew I was going to have to tackle this one on my own. I took the wormer, paper towels, syringe and small patio table to the coop. I have a padded stool that I hang from a hook in there when I want to play with the chickens. (I think it is meant for fishing) I set up my medical practice and had everything ready. We have one coop that is divided into two coops. We got a hen box and roost from a tractor show that has 10 nest. My husband had divided it between the two coops. Then each coop has a 5 x 10 run. I started with my older birds. I grabbed the first one before they realized what was about to happen. After that, they started running from me. So I played tag with chickens for over thirty minutes. When I would get done with them, I'd throw them out of the run to free range. By the third one, my rooster became distressed. He was having a fit. He jumped up on my table and turned my container of valbazen over......all over the table, my face, the ground, etc. Then he started crowing. (I assume he was cussing) When it got down to the last two, they ran into the coop. I had to crawl in through the little hole (the door is on the outside and we were in the run) and start playing grab/tag. When it came down to him and me, I looked like I had been in a car wreck. He was so mad at me that when I went to the other run to do the other chickens, he was still cussing me. It is now 12:32 p.m. (I started at 10:00 a.m.), and I'm going to eat breakfast, take a deep breath and maybe a bath. lol

 

[galanie]

Someone should have filmed me: I went and bought the valbazen. It was expensive. $73 with tax. They carried a smaller size but was out. She called around and no one else had the smaller size. Oh well, I'll have plenty to do them for awhile. My husband works 12 hour shifts so I knew I was going to have to tackle this one on my own. I took the wormer, paper towels, syringe and small patio table to the coop. I have a padded stool that I hang from a hook in there when I want to play with the chickens. (I think it is meant for fishing) I set up my medical practice and had everything ready. We have one coop that is divided into two coops. We got a hen box and roost from a tractor show that has 10 nest. My husband had divided it between the two coops. Then each coop has a 5 x 10 run. I started with my older birds. I grabbed the first one before they realized what was about to happen. After that, they started running from me. So I played tag with chickens for over thirty minutes. When I would get done with them, I'd throw them out of the run to free range. By the third one, my rooster became distressed. He was having a fit. He jumped up on my table and turned my container of valbazen over......all over the table, my face, the ground, etc. Then he started crowing. (I assume he was cussing) When it got down to the last two, they ran into the coop. I had to crawl in through the little hole (the door is on the outside and we were in the run) and start playing grab/tag. When it came down to him and me, I looked like I had been in a car wreck. He was so mad at me that when I went to the other run to do the other chickens, he was still cussing me. It is now 12:32 p.m. (I started at 10:00 a.m.), and I'm going to eat breakfast, take a deep breath and maybe a bath. lol

But hey, you're done!