Tapeworms in chickens

[redbugs13]

I had an elderly bunny who passed this morning (RIP Thumper

). I am thinking because of her age she did not react with a tapeworm well and I did not catch it until it was to late. Anyway, I have been in contact with my Vet and I want to do a preventative deworm on my household (dog, cats, other bunny, and my chickens and ducks)

For my poultry, I have been doing some research on the forum about what I should do and would like some opinions. Should I actually deworm the flock, or just dust them with DE (Ive never actually done either) At this point I don't know if they have worms or not, I just am doing this all as a precaution. Any advice would be great. It's been a pretty rough morning.

 

[MattalynsBarn]

I am so sorry about your bunny!

 

[Dar]

I mix DE in with my feed and give them garlic as a preventive wormer

 

[dawg53]

Sorry for your loss redbugs13. You can give your chickens food grade DE in their feed as well as cayenne pepper,crushed garlic cloves as preventatives. If your chickens are eating,drinking and acting like a chicken should...I see no reason to worm them. However, if they start to act lethargic, reduced or stopped laying eggs, not eating or drinking much and generally not acting like a chicken should....then it's safe to say they might have worms, then is when you want to deworm them. Check their poop often, if there's an infestation, there's a good possibility you'll see them in their poop. Keep in mind you'll be introducing poisons in your animals when you worm them.....I wouldnt worm them with chemicals just as a preventative, that's what the preventatives are for. Also worms can become resistant to wormers over time if used often,that's why we rotate wormers. Keep an eye on your chickens, you'll be able to identify the signs if they need worming. I'll be glad to help you when the time comes.

 

[redbugs13]

Thank you for you kind posts. I will get some DE tonight. So do I just put it in their food or powder their backs? Is it good for ducks too? How often should I dust? Are the eggs safe to eat post dust?
My main concern is that I cleaned out the rabbit cage not realizing the worm situation and put it all in the compost, which the chickens and ducks mill around it, Im not sure how the long the worm eggs stay alive without being in a host. Thank you again.

 

[dawg53]

Just add it to their food, there's no need to put it on their bodies. If you visually inspect your chickens for lice/mites and dont see any,dont worry about it. If they did have lice or mites, I wouldnt mess around with DE. I use the 'big guns,' sevin dust to kill them immediately. I strongly recommend you fence off your compost pile to prevent worm infestation in your chickens and ducks. Make sure that the DE you purchase is food grade, anything else will kill your chickens. Sorry, I cant speak for ducks...I dont know much about them and I wouldnt want to give you bad advice, what might be good for a chicken...might not be good for a duck.