When do I start worming?

[Clucktown]

I have 4 bantams (3 Seabrights and one Silkie) that are almost 3 months old. When should I start worming? I was going to use Valbazen. Any suggestions on how to measure .2 ml per bird and be sure it got in them? Thanks!

 

[bobbi-j]

Have you seen signs of a heavy worm infestation? I wouldn't worm unless I actually saw them. I have never, ever wormed my chickens.

 

[Clucktown]

Negative, but most of the posts I have read suggest twice a year. I have wormed dogs and horses - it only makes sense to worm chickens as well, especially since my kids are constantly playing with them and getting pooped on.

 

[donrae]

Another vote for not worming, sorry. Had birds for 20 years, never wormed a chicken. Never wormed a dog, either, and have way backed off worming my horses. My kids have grown up with all these animals and never had worms.

Then again, I've never wormed the kids either!

 

[Mehjr10]

You can get a 1 ml syringe or a 3ml syringe, and get a .25 ml dose with them. You can wait until just before egg laying point so that you do not lose eggs if you decide to toss them.. I worm mine, they did not show signs but they did waste worms after treatment.

 

[bobbi-j]

Negative, but most of the posts I have read suggest twice a year. I have wormed dogs and horses - it only makes sense to worm chickens as well, especially since my kids are constantly playing with them and getting pooped on.

I've wormed my horses, never wormed a dog. Wormed cat once, but that was because he was an indoor cat, had a heavy infestation and was leaving bloody piles of them on the floor of my house. My chickens are not pets. I have them for eggs and meat, and I'd rather not have to worry about waiting however long before I can eat the eggs or meat after worming. My kids have grown up on the farm with all kinds of animals. They never got worms from them, either.

Another vote for not worming, sorry. Had birds for 20 years, never wormed a chicken. Never wormed a dog, either, and have way backed off worming my horses. My kids have grown up with all these animals and never had worms.

Then again, I've never wormed the kids either!

 

[Keggen]

You could use food grade diatomaceous earth in their food and water as a gentle, safe way to worm/de-bug and you don't have to worry about contaminating meat or eggs.

 

[Clucktown]

Thanks, mehjr10. I found the syringes while I was placing the order for the valbazen. Do you put the wormer on a piece of bread or try to get it in their mouths? So 6 months of age is old enough to worm? The seabrights are only supposed to get to around 20oz or so. Does .2 ml sound right? I checked with a vet and he felt that the concern was not so much overdosing as there is wide latitude in the amount, but a rapid death of worms could clog their system. He felt valbazen was safer because it killed them over several days as opposed to all at once.

 

[Mehjr10]

Hi Clucktown, I give mine a dose in the mouth, I usually have someone giving me a hand with all my birds keeping syringes full and taking them and putting them in the run until all are done.. I have wormed some of mine at an earlier age than 6 month.. I believe the dosage is .1ml per pound so a 5 lb bird would be .5ml. If your birds way less than the 20 oz now you could back it down to .1ml but getting them closer to the .2 should not be a detriment to them. You may want to weigh them to check.. The important thing is to do the follow up in 7 days !! to kill the new hatch worms.. If you have any other questions just ask..