Pale(r) combs and faces, less laying - WHY?

[GranmaEm]

Thanks, they are being treated with a natural wormer right now ( paste of Cayenne, ACV, and raw garlic ) I only treat with chemicals when absolutely necessary.

I spoke with a Vet (and others will weigh in) who confirmed that naturals can prevent worms but not treat an existing infection.

I use Ivermectin pour on: -works really well.

 

[Suzie]

GranmaEm...

I agree... an infestation needs radical treatment... DE will have no good effect in dealing with an existing problem, Permethryn or a Frontline treatment will deal with the ongoing problem.

 

[salt and pepper]

GranmaEm...

I agree... an infestation needs radical treatment... DE will have no good effect in dealing with an existing problem, Permethryn or a Frontline treatment will deal with the ongoing problem.

That's the thing, I don't know if they have worms, nothing in their droppings, so if I don't know, then why would I treat with harsh chemicals?

 

[GranmaEm]

That's the thing, I don't know if they have worms, nothing in their droppings, so if I don't know, then why would I treat with harsh chemicals?

These aren't harsh though and very specific for worms only. There are some good threads on here about necropsy results of chickens treated with natural medications only.

 

[Suzie]

I do understand the reasoning you explain as to why use a product if you do not see an existing problem..... if and ever you do see evidence of worms in their poop... they have a serious problem... sadly you will not know if they have a worm problem until you see evidence in their poop and it may then be too late to treat them... worm infestations can be and are fatal to chickens... any chicken that free-ranges is likely to have worms... that is a fact,

Prevention is better than cure.

 

[salt and pepper]

I do understand the reasoning you explain as to why use a product if you do not see an existing problem..... if and ever you do see evidence of worms in their poop... they have a serious problem... sadly you will not know if they have a worm problem until you see evidence in their poop and it may then be too late to treat them... worm infestations can be and are fatal to chickens... any chicken that free-ranges is likely to have worms... that is a fact,

Prevention is better than cure.

Hmmm, I had a chicken ( not mine, got it as an adult ) That's droppings were infested With worms, treated with wazine, and she recovered fine. I guess I could treat with wazine again. What I find interesting is that in MY experience chickens that are confined 24/7 have more worm problems than chickens who free range... Maybe it's just where you live. I will continue with my natural treatment, and if I don't see improvement, I will treat with chemicals

 

[salt and pepper]

These aren't harsh though and very specific for worms only. There are some good threads on here about necropsy results of chickens treated with natural medications only.

And what were the necropsy results?

 

[Suzie]

Hmmm, I had a chicken ( not mine, got it as an adult ) That's droppings were infested With worms, treated with wazine, and she recovered fine. I guess I could treat with wazine again. What I find interesting is that in MY experience chickens that are confined 24/7 have more worm problems than chickens who free range... Maybe it's just where you live. I will continue with my natural treatment, and if I don't see improvement, I will treat with chemicals

I would be the first person to apologise if what I wrote was in any way incorrect... having read advice from people here who write about worm infestations I was under the impression that any chicken that free-ranges is more than likely to have worms... your comments about chickens that have never free-ranged and have had worms is something I have never considered before!

I am now confused as to the way forward for my flock.. I do not wish to use chemicals if they are not necessary for the future health of my flock... experts..... please comment........

 

[salt and pepper]

I would be the first person to apologise if what I wrote was in any way incorrect... having read advice from people here who write about worm infestations I was under the impression that any chicken that free-ranges is more than likely to have worms... your comments about chickens that have never free-ranged and have had worms is something I have never considered before!

I am now confused as to the way forward for my flock.. I do not wish to use chemicals if they are not necessary for the future health of my flock... experts..... please comment........

Haha, I'm not correcting you, And thanks for the advice, I just hate using any chemicals, so try to do the most natural route. The bird that had the bad worm infestation, was inside of her run 24/7 and never got to free range. These birds had worms, lice, leg mites, and were in bad condition. Even though they were sheltered. While ( in my experience ) Mites and lice can come anytime, I've never had worms in my flock except for her. I'm hoping my birds are just a little stressed with 90+ degrees, rain every day, and a gnat infestation, that and they're in a half molt... That could do it, hahaha. As for the worms, I would see it more likely in most cases for them to get worms if they are confined, because there is more droppings in a confined area, and it can get muddy really fast, while if they free range, they can get to higher ground, and the droppings spread out, just my opinion. I can also see though, that if the land they free range on has been over used by other animals, that it will be in the soil, so there's no way to prevent it. I think it's just a preference.

 

[GranmaEm]

And what were the necropsy results?

That these chickens had very heavy worm loads that weakened their immunity so that they got severe bacterial infections.