The Natural Chicken Keeping thread - OTs welcome!

[Mumsy]

so I wonder if the kerosene upset the normal healthy balance of worms? Or if they had an overload? Doesn't sound like the later from your description. Interesting none the less

Good question. I really don't know. I didn't breed or raise any of these five chickens on my property but got them all after they were six months old. The round worm life cycle is in eggs deposited in soil from manure. Can be from dogs, cats, wild birds, rats,....The very small larvae crawl up a blade of grass and that grass is in turn eaten by chickens, dogs, cats, horses, ect. They are every where animals are.

I'm not one of those poop watchers. You know what I mean? I don't pay much attention but I do generally watch where I'm stepping. This is the first round worm I've seen from one of my flock. I find it interesting to find one dead one the morning after treating the water with kerosene. One teaspoon makes a film on the water. I can't even smell it. Maybe it was all a coincidence? I just don't know. But I have been adding garlic and pumpkin to their ff regularly since three months ago.
One worm isn't a big deal but it is making me pay much closer attention.

 

[Pullet Surprise]

I probably shouldn't even be mulling this around in my head....but...over at other places it was mentioned that Shakley's soap was used as a de-wormer for all farm animals. The plus side was that it was an all natural soap. Then I remembered the good ol' Neutrogena soap bars that you could even use to brush your teeth with. They have it in liquid now days as well. It claims to be glycerin rich, no harsh detergents and oil free. Now if kerosene is oily....is that the part that makes it work as a de-wormer or is it another chemical part of the kerosene that makes it work. The reason I'm even wondering about this is that soap would NOT be oily, in fact just the opposite. In other words, just what is the principle behind these things working and what else might fit in the same catagory that might also work. We need a chemist on here??!!! Why are these products similar and why are they different? Natural soap & kerosene would seem to be different from eachother, but both can be used to clean. Sorry, it's just the way my mind works (or doesn't). Mumsy, please keep us updated!

 

[delisha]

Busy busy day today everyone. It took me a while to get threw all the pages..
My grandparents used kerosene too. I never have. I have never used dish soap either.
I have never used coconut oil for treatments either.
Learn something new every day.
I do not know if I have chicks or not. I have not seen them. She sure looks like she has a few under her. I did not spend much time out today. It was -7 and my cold hinnny went with DH for the day. It is stilll so cold I shut up the coop already. They might not be happy but I don't want to be out in the cold stuff more than I have to be.

 

[Leahs Mom]

I probably shouldn't even be mulling this around in my head....but...over at other places it was mentioned that Shakley's soap was used as a de-wormer for all farm animals. The plus side was that it was an all natural soap. Then I remembered the good ol' Neutrogena soap bars that you could even use to brush your teeth with. They have it in liquid now days as well. It claims to be glycerin rich, no harsh detergents and oil free. Now if kerosene is oily....is that the part that makes it work as a de-wormer or is it another chemical part of the kerosene that makes it work. The reason I'm even wondering about this is that soap would NOT be oily, in fact just the opposite. In other words, just what is the principle behind these things working and what else might fit in the same catagory that might also work. We need a chemist on here??!!! Why are these products similar and why are they different? Natural soap & kerosene would seem to be different from eachother, but both can be used to clean. Sorry, it's just the way my mind works (or doesn't). Mumsy, please keep us updated!

I actually purchased some of the Shakley's to have on hand but haven't used it yet. I first read about it in Joel Salatin's books. They use it for the cattle.

 

[Pullet Surprise]

O.K., I just had the de-worming discussion with my DH...and he said it might be that the petroleum in the kerosene kills the worm and that dish soap might prevent them from attaching. And then he said 'I wonder what "Dr. Bronner's" might do and low and behold we have a BIG bottle of it....so I just might give it a try. I had completely forgotten about Bronner's

 

[Mumsy]

Busy busy day today everyone. It took me a while to get threw all the pages..
My grandparents used kerosene too. I never have. I have never used dish soap either.
I have never used coconut oil for treatments either.
Learn something new every day.
I do not know if I have chicks or not. I have not seen them. She sure looks like she has a few under her. I did not spend much time out today. It was -7 and my cold hinnny went with DH for the day. It is stilll so cold I shut up the coop already. They might not be happy but I don't want to be out in the cold stuff more than I have to be.

*Yeesh!* -7? You probably don't want to know about my sunny day and planting apple trees?

I was thinking about your chicks today. So excited to see them when they come.

I heard about using keosene with chickens for all kinds of things from a antique book called, "The Practical Stock Doctor" published in 1904. For Round Worms this book reccomends mixing turpentine with Castor oil and giving it to chickens that have had feed with held for eighteen hours. For Gapeworm it reccomends mixing turpentine with vaseline and massaging the throat of chicks! I am not going to experiment with turpentine!

Kerosene was often used by my dad and other farmers near us. I just wanted to know if it would work with one use. It did.

 

[Leahs Mom]

O.K., I just had the de-worming discussion with my DH...and he said it might be that the petroleum in the kerosene kills the worm and that dish soap might prevent them from attaching. And then he said 'I wonder what "Dr. Bronner's" might do and low and behold we have a BIG bottle of it....so I just might give it a try. I had completely forgotten about Bronner's

From what I understand, he's right on the Shakley's. It's supposed to keep them from being able to attach to the intestinal wall.

 

[Pullet Surprise]

So ..... it just MIGHT be that the kerosene is good for a once in awhile, "get rid of 'em" dosage....and that the whatever natural soap usage might be something that would be used on a regular preventative type basis. ?

 

[Bulldogma]

O.K., I just had the de-worming discussion with my DH...and he said it might be that the petroleum in the kerosene kills the worm and that dish soap might prevent them from attaching. And then he said 'I wonder what "Dr. Bronner's" might do and low and behold we have a BIG bottle of it....so I just might give it a try. I had completely forgotten about Bronner's

OK - so to my understanding, dish soap and Shaklees soap works because it destroys the worm's slime coat - a protective coating all internal parasites have to protect the organism from being digested... so the soap takes it off and allows the worm to succumb to the digestive acids. You'll be less likely to see worms in the stool with this method because they've been digested in most cases.

The kerosene... well... would it be toxic to the worms? That would be my guess.

 

[Pullet Surprise]

BDM...That makes a whole lot of sense to me now.