Worming pullets

[Liv4birds]

Hi,
I have 6 pullets (all 11 weeks old). They free-range in my urban backyard during the day. Recently, I was reading about the dangers of worms--especially gapeworm.

I am confused about worming--if I should start now or wait until the Fall. Some people say have fecal samples tested to determine if they have worms so you know exactly which worms you need to kill. Others say use Verm-x as a preventative then others say no; some say use Ivectrin plus a lot of other wormers. Symptoms or no symptoms to determine worming. I am confused!

Should I plan on worming my chickens in the Fall even if they don't show symptoms?
Should I wait for symptoms?
Should I bring a fecal sample in routinely in the fall and spring?
Which wormers should I use?

Help!

 

[Eggcessive]

If your vet will do a fecal float on your chickens, get an early morning sample to take in. Chickens can get a variety of worms, some routine, and others can be very harmful and need extra treatment.Ivermectin used to be a good wormer, but is no longer useful. Fenbendazole (SafeGuard Liquid goat wormer, Panacur) and Valbazen are very good wormers. 1/2 ml of either, and repeat in 10 days for most worms. Valbazen gets tapeworm and SafeGuard does not, but tapeworms are not common. For certain other dangerous worms a lager dose may be required for more days. Dawg53 is a great source here on BYC for worming if you have questions.

 

[Liv4birds]

Thank you for your very helpful reply. I t sounds like the way to proceed would be 1. fecal test 2. Worm according to results.

Question: should I worm before they start laying or late fall before the snow starts? And how long before you can resume eating eggs? Also, should you worm after molting?

 

[dawg53]

Hi,
I have 6 pullets (all 11 weeks old). They free-range in my urban backyard during the day. Recently, I was reading about the dangers of worms--especially gapeworm.

I am confused about worming--if I should start now or wait until the Fall. Some people say have fecal samples tested to determine if they have worms so you know exactly which worms you need to kill. Others say use Verm-x as a preventative then others say no; some say use Ivectrin plus a lot of other wormers. Symptoms or no symptoms to determine worming. I am confused!

Should I plan on worming my chickens in the Fall even if they don't show symptoms?
Should I wait for symptoms?
Should I bring a fecal sample in routinely in the fall and spring?
Which wormers should I use?

Help!

Don't worry about gapeworm, they are rare in chickens. You should be more concerned about large roundworms. You can worm your pullets now with safeguard or valbazen and reworm them again in 10 days. Do not use safeguard when birds are in molt. I don't recommend worming at all during molt. Verm-x is useless. Ivermectin is ineffective as a wormer in poultry. Take fecal samples to a vet for verification of worm oocysts. Safeguard or valbazen are your best wormers and will take care of all types of worms. Safeguard wont get rid of tapeworms. There's normally a 24 day withdrawal period from start to finish when worming.
Your soil conditions dictate how often and when you should worm.