Worming Question

[carladababe]

My chickens are starting to molt, egg laying is slowing down, can I still worm them?

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

That is what I do, but make sure you give them lots of protein. So I'd not give too much scratch, I increase protein as well. You can offer some unmedicated chick starter or Flock Raiser pellets (20% protein) to up the protein so they can make feathers (with oyster shell on the side too). You can keep them on layer feed just fine, too.

So the wormers are VERY hard on them...they can even kill a weak hen. Molting is hard on them too. So be aware and baby them. You can give them nice things to eat and some probiotics or vitamin pack as well if needed. Or scrambled eggs from the store as a treat.

 

[carladababe]

Thank you for the response and information. I'd normally wait until after molt but the last molt lasted for several months. It's been a good summer though, they look good, eat well and get lots of free range time. I'm not sure about worming once the weather turns cold, is it worth worming if it adds more stress?

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Thank you for the response and information. I'd normally wait until after molt but the last molt lasted for several months. It's been a good summer though, they look good, eat well and get lots of free range time. I'm not sure about worming once the weather turns cold, is it worth worming if it adds more stress?

I have to deworm, since I once found a worm in an egg, and I have promised my family that they will be worm-free (so no worries anymore)!

I deworm twice a year and treat for mites every 4 months or so to keep them away too. Just routine around here!

There are many people who have never wormed their flock and have no troubles.

One thing you can do is to take a poo sample to a vet (call first to see how much it costs) and have them do a fecal float test for worms- false negatives are possible.