Worming

[RWall]

There is probably an answer here somewhere but honestly I'm so upset right now I don't have it in me to look.

One of my chickens had been acting off lately and I suspected worms. I went to the feed store to look for a wormer and the bottle said that you can't eat the eggs after the chicken has been wormed so I was going to look for an alternative, but this morning when I went to check on them she was laying on her side with worms all over her butt (they were there a couple days ago). Gross would be a huge understatement. I called a friend that doesn't have a problem with killing things, I just couldn't do it even though it was for the best. Anyways, he came and did the deed for me but now I'm worried about the rest of the flock.

What do I do????? What is the safest non toxic way to treat the girls?

 

[Eggcessive]

Did your chicken have a maggot infestation on her vent? That is called fly strike, and flies will be attracted to wounds or vents caked with fecal material. They can kill chickens. Feathers and caked on droppings need to be pulled or trimmed off in warm months to prevent this. As for wormers, SafeGuard liquid goat wormer or equine paste, Panacur paste, and Valbazen are the better ones to use in chickens. 1/2 cc of any one of those, and repeat in 10 days. Valbazen would be better if you suspect tapeworms. The egg withdrawal time is 14 days from last dose.

 

[RWall]

Yep it was maggots. So awful!!! What about using apple cider vinegar? I've heard that is a good non toxic method.

 

[dawg53]

Yep it was maggots. So awful!!! What about using apple cider vinegar? I've heard that is a good non toxic method.

If you expect ACV to treat for worms, you're mistaken. See Eggcessive's post. Use scissors to trim back feathers and fluff on your birds so they'll have a clear "shot" to the ground.