How often do people worm?

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Not all products need a follow up.  Cydectin (moxidectin) for instance works for 14 days on one variety of round worms, 28 days for two other varieties of round worms and up to 42 days for lung worm in cattle.  Remember Cydectin is an off label for chickens (moxidectin is not off lable in Australia for birds, particularly pigeons, not sure about here.), but many of the products are.

Here is what Ivomec says (to lazy to type it out):

drugs.com wrote:IVOMEC Pour-On has been proved to effectively control infections and to protect cattle from re-infection with: Oesophagostomum radiatum and Dictyocaulus viviparus for 28 days after treatment; Cooperia punctata and Trichostrongylus axei for 21 days after treatment; Ostertagia ostertagi, Haemonchus placei, Cooperia oncophora and Cooperia surnabada for 14 days after treatment; Damalinia bovis for 56 days after treatment.

So it depends what you use to what type of follow up you need to do. Research what fits best for you and use that. I like the pour ons because they are available to me, I don't need much, I go in at dark with my flash light and a small syringe full and dose everyone on the back of their neck against their skin. I just find it easy and I know who gets what, not guessing. Just keep in mind they are off label for the most part and you do at your own risk.

Magdelan wrote: I'd want to be sure before giving  -  can a chook die from too much wormer?

Yes. You can kill an animal with too much dewormer.

However, *most* dewormers have a large margin of safety. In horses, Ivermectin-based products are generally very safe to a fairly high degree. In testing dewormers like StrongidP (Pyrantel Pamoate) or SafeGuard (Fenbendazole), researchers had problems even finding a level of the medication that would cause illness in horses. I would assume that would hold true across most species, though I don't know that for sure - best to check with your vet.

The exception is moxidectin (a product called Quest, for horses), which has a very low margin of safety. You need to have an accurate weight on the animal before using this product. I prefer to not have to place every animal on a scale before deworming it, so I don't use it.

Like coopslave, I prefer to deworm my animals individually rather than relying on mixing it into their feed or water. When I drop the product onto the skin of the chicken and then move on to the next one in line, I know without a doubt that they have been dewormed.

authenticfarm wrote:

Like coopslave, I prefer to deworm my animals individually rather than relying on mixing it into their feed or water. When I drop the product onto the skin of the chicken and then move on to the next one in line, I know without a doubt that they have been dewormed.

thanks Authentic.  I would prefer to treat each bird individually too, whilst I did have a little concern I might overdose the chooks my main worry was that each bird individually wouldn't get enough.  I believe the worm host was one that I had acquired separately to the main flock and probably/possibly, it was not something I had here before.  This sucks but I don't know for sure that they didn't already exist here.  The vet told me that the eggs of roundworm can survive for up to 9 months in the soil  and each worm can lay 1000's of eggs.  A site on the net says wild birds can bring them into the coop area and spread that way too so who knows.  We will forever have to take preventative worming measures.  Not just one with a followup.   Makes me think of Rathiggins' post on showing birds.  Guess need to take super careful precautions when buying and introducing new fowl to the flock for all kinds of opportunistic creepy crawlies  (not just viruses etc.)  "I did not know" about these issues before I got the birdies.  Next to having babies, this is one of the steepest learning curves I've had.  Well  -  it ranks up there.    My next mission is to learn how to do a fecal float test.  yum-yuck!  good to know about, want to know what the enemy is.  Think I am brave enough for that now

Well, if you've already had babies, you're used to dealing with feces. Heehee!

authenticfarm wrote:Well, if you've already had babies, you're used to dealing with feces. Heehee!

too right Authenticfarm. but somehow ever since I was a kid who had to feed the chooks (never wore shoes as a kid, ever) I remember and have logged chook-poo as quite possibly my least favorite type. perhaps if I had worn boots it would be a different memory  

call ducks wrote:Never? I have not wormed. My birds are just fine. I don't see any need for it right now. I mean chickens have had worms for hundreds or thousands of years. Why vaccinate  

Well, I think the question would be, why treat, as I think few people give chickens wormer with a syringe and needle. A vaccination refers to a disease you can be inoculated against.

So let me rephrase the question. I don't worm, my birds are fine even though they carry worms like chickens have had for thousands of years. Why worm?

Yes, your chickens will live with worms and external parasites. They will be fine. They may even show outer signs of being healthy even with parasites. They are probably carrying a low parasite load. But somehow or another they will get parasites. The only way you will know for sure about worms is to examine the feces microscopically as Tara showed in that graphic post of hers.

So why should you be concerned?

Well, parasites compete with the chicken for their nutrition. You will be feeding chickens and parasites. At the least you are paying a good dollar to raise parasites on your farm. At the worst, you are supporting parasites at the expense of the nutrition of your chicken.

Parasites also bring secondary health and illness issues to your flock. Other diseases are sometimes associated with parasites, not to mention that a run down chicken is susceptible to any other disease that crosses its path.

North Americans have quite the intolerance for parasites. The sight or even the thought of parasites gives us the willies. Ew, worms!Other cultures have a less disgusted view of them. Even AR people don't run around begging others to save the parasites, or to "say no to worming"!

Yes, chickens can live quite happily with them, but they will live happier without!

Schipperkesue wrote:

 Even AR people don't run around begging others to save the parasites, or to "say no to worming"!

I'm sure I'll fee like a complete fool when you tell me but what are AR people?? I only just worked out what an SOP is  . Coopslave did tell me but it went over my head. Where does one get an SOP btw?

Magdelan wrote:

Schipperkesue wrote:

 Even AR people don't run around begging others to save the parasites, or to "say no to worming"!

I'm sure I'll fee like a complete fool when you tell me but what are AR people??  I only just worked out what an SOP is  .  Coopslave did tell me but it went over my head.  Where does one get an SOP btw?

AR = Animal Rights. It was my attempt at a funny. Unsuccessful!

We should start a new thread on where to get the SOP. They are always expensive but worth discussing. Having said that I can't remember where i got mine....

Schipperkesue wrote:
AR = Animal Rights.  It was my attempt at a funny.  Unsuccessful!

no, not unsuccessful, just I'm a techno-pleb who makes my kids laugh all the time cause I'm so not up to speed with text speak and all that stuff, I don't really care that much but I try sometimes just for kicks - and to make them laugh. If I had been reading correctly I probably would have gotten it. Bit distracted, culled the sweetest natured chicken just now and not really that comfortable with it. I'll have a glass of wine with the others and get over myself. Being a good steward is not a lot of fun some times.  

heda gobbler wrote:We should start a new thread on where to get the SOP.  They are always expensive but worth discussing.  Having said that I can't remember where i got mine....

Got mine directly from the APA on their website. I believe you can also get it from Clay Botkin.

Magdelan wrote: Bit distracted, culled the sweetest natured chicken just now and not really that comfortable with it.  I'll have a glass of wine with the others and get over myself.  Being a good steward is not a lot of fun some times.   

I am sorry to hear this Magdelan. It is not an easy thing to do, but I know it had to be done if that was your choice. Deep down we always know what is right, doesn't always make the doing of it all that much easier thou.
Will go get a glass of Oyster Bay NZ Sav Blanc and enjoy a toast to your sweet chook.

coopslave wrote:

Magdelan wrote: Bit distracted, culled the sweetest natured chicken just now and not really that comfortable with it.  I'll have a glass of wine with the others and get over myself.  Being a good steward is not a lot of fun some times.   

I am sorry to hear this Magdelan.  It is not an easy thing to do, but I know it had to be done if that was your choice.  Deep down we always know what is right, doesn't always make the doing of it all that much easier thou.
Will go get a glass of Oyster Bay NZ Sav Blanc and enjoy a toast to your sweet chook.

nice of you Coopslave  . It was Keitepai (in Maori it sort of means "all right" or "good" and unfortunately she wasn't). A little bantam mille de fleur de ucle - know I got that all the wrong way around. Sweetest wee thing. She might have been the original bringer of the snot I had way back and found her again today looking off key, bubbly eye and sneezing a bit, all the others in her coop were out in the new run I'd made and she was inside with this bubbly eye thing. Rotten sinking feeling. A nice death, blessings to her. I really noticed the comments that came up recently about culling. First time treat (I did) and second time it is not a good candidate for the coop. Oh crap. Better off though. Really, so quickly after treating she got sick again - figured it was a must do. Now got to watch the others in her coop. They seem much more vigorous than she was so I think they are in good form. Sort of not surprising in a way, had just shuffled the whole bunch so only three coops instead of three and a chicken tractor plonked right in the middle of the barn! Better go put the roosters into their coop, they need carrying individually cause no pop door to their pen! what a palava. next year . . .

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HigginsRAT wrote:

Glad some info is working for you...my take is not the only take, but lots on here share their info and we come outta it better rounded poultry persons for it.  

Yes, thank you Tara.  All good info and I find myself agreeing with your logic on most things.  Will take some time to digest the fecal float thing over the next week or so, really curious to find out what we might have out there now.   I look forward to the photographs actually, think I'm a visual + doing type learner.   Like the images and the hands on for learning.  No not too much info but I sometimes take my time digesting stuff  -  like the genetic stuff.  I will get back on that later on in the winter no doubt, as I sift through the breed possibilities and what crosses I might want to make.  


I realise now I need to give a heads up about photos on posts for folkies like you who have to pay for data heavy things.  Didn't click until now :-).  I like to put photos up too.

Got to run, pick kid up from bus.  Thanks again, excellent input.