I need to know what the indications are if a chicken needs worming? What kind of wormers do you reccomend. I have never wormed chickens before.
Worming
I used a horse wormer paste - Zimecterin - it is Ivermectin 1.55% with praziquantel 7.75% on two Welsummers and six 17 week old hatchery pullets that I just bought. You have to throw away the eggs for 2 weeks. Within a week of worming they all gained weight. All are still living in the garage for a while until it's safe to move them to the coop. I'm afraid my Girls are going to be horrified with the new comers.
What was the dose per chicken?
I'll be waiting for that info also. Thanks.
They are 17 week old pullets.
"Big Sized Pea" were the directions for dosing I was given. I used more (good margin of safety) since it was very hard to get the paste from my finger into their debeaked mouthes and a lot was wasted. 2 of the new girls had gape worms, (did the q-tip in the throat test when I saw them stretching their necks) all of them were pooping worms too. It was a pretty scary sight for 24 hours after deworming. Must have cleaned the pen every hour on the hour. They all got a good dusting with poultry powder too. Their bio-hazzard introduction to my house was pretty hard on them for the first day but I really felt there was no other choice. Poor babies.
I gave them yogurt w/oatmeal the next day but they wouldn't eat it - a bowl in their pen freaked them out - so I bought the capsules of probiotics (the kind that have to be kept in the fridge) at the health food store, opened them up and dumped it on their feed and they ate it. Yesterday they actually pecked at a tomato and some grass I put in there but mostly they only want their feed. I'm keeping them away from my other Girls for quite a while.
Also, if I should slip, would someone please remind me that I've sworn not to buy any more chickens - especially if they aren't Day Old Chicks!!! Thank you!
I bought the Wazine today. I'll let you know how it goes.
So Annie, you don't recommend buying the older pulletts? Is that because your babies that you raised yourself all love you and view you as the big chicken momma LOL? Myself, I am looking at just about all options I can find. One more question. If they were hatchery birds don't they always come debeaked?
I bought older pullets from an independent breeder and they were healthy and friendly. They had clearly had good care and handling. Retired hatchery hens would be quite different.
I agree with Porkpa, buying pullets from an independent breeder would be much better than buying from a Hatchery. Hatchery pullets don't get the hands on treatment, are often too crowded and develope odd behaviors due to stress.
I gave my six 17 week old Hatchery pullets away after three weeks. I wormed & dusted them for lice, made sure they were well fed and they gained weight, and spent a lot of time talking to and handling them. They lacked the personality my own Girl's have. Not their fault. It took a while but I found a great home for them. The lady had only one 6 year old hen left, the other two had died at age 7 and 7 1/2 yrs old. She wanted a "project" and let me tell you, she sure got one! We e-mail daily and she is thrilled to have them and is working hard to make them friendly.
The Hatchery pullets were debeaked, didn't know what treats were, and were very flighty and had some really weird behaviors. I didn't feel like it was a good idea to introduce them to my Girl's. So yeah, I wouldn't recommend Hatchery pullets LOL
And yes, my Girl's think I am the Mommy Chicken! Edna, Claudia, Lois and Connie all want to be the very first one I pick up. As soon as I open the gate they all start jumping to be held and if I'm not quick enough to sit down so they can sit on my lap, they will all try to fly up on my arms and shoulders. Being loved by a pet chicken, you have to experience it to believe it LOL
I don't know anything about chicken behaviour but I do know from keeping animals my entire life that they will definately learn from each other. And both the good and the bad. So , it was wize of you to find them a new home. And they lucked out in life. Even though you didn't end up keeping them you still got them a great home.
Don't know about finding them from a breeder. I was only considering them because I knew they were there from the hatcheries and knew were to find them. I guess if I get chicks or hatching eggs I will end up being mommy chicken here myself. I never really thought about it much before.
There are people on this list that can point you in the right direction if you choose chicks or older. They're the best resouce there is. You'll love being Mommy Chicken too! Nothing like being greeted by chickens and having them want to sit on your lap, talk, and eat from your hand!
I really had never thought of chickens as being sweet and affectionate. I mean I figgured I didn't want to get anything mean. But just thought of them as being useful for getting eggs,
And chicken help around the coop is invaluable. Just think how much more efficient you will be at refilling feeders and cleaning waterers with an affectionate mob of hens swarming around your ankles...Mine are a reliable asset at chore time. They readily forgive me for occasionally stepping on their feet - anything to get to participate.
LOL :-))
Annie - do you know if chickens raised in a backyard would have worms? What do you look for? We've raised our girls from day old chicks so hopefully won't have the problems you had with your Welsummers, but I'd like to make sure.
Thanks!
I would think any animal can get worms. Growing up on a farm my Dad used to say Don't Feed The Worms! Our cattle, horses, pigs, all - were on a deworming schedule. Animals eat stuff from the ground, even worms and bugs can carry parasites. All of my animals (house dogs & cats, and now the chickens) are on a deworming schedule even if the fecal sample is negative they get dewormed twice a year, fecal exams done every other month or so just in case. Parasites can still be there, just not laying eggs at the time of the exam. My so called program is probably over kill, but I get huge discounts ($1.00 total for a fecal exam) from my Vet for all the Wellness check ups they have done.
I should have added - the Welsummers didn't come from a dirty place. The feeders & waterers were spotless, they lived in a hoop house coop with a large fenced area to free range. I thought they might be thin from running around all the time but have since discovered that even chubby chickens can have parasites too LOL