Help! Worms in chickens water bowl!

[BoggsFarmHomestead]

Hi there. My husband and I have had backyard chickens for about 4-5 years now, keeping up to 10 birds at a time. Up until a few days ago we've not had any sicknesses we have had to deal with (our biggest issues until now was with predator control). We have a golden comet that is 3-4 years old and she is quite feisty. My son stepped on her before Christmas injuring her leg. Due to this we have had her isolated in an enclosed pen/coop by herself. Due to her injury, i've also kept food and water on the ground that she could have easy access to. To my dismay, I found worms in her water bowl yesterday morning. I've never seen worms in any of my hen's droppings, but to date we have never used a dewormer on any of our girls. Could anyone help me identify if these are worms she could have regurgitated, or if these are maggots? Since Red has been isolated, everything has changed for her in the last month (being cooped up at all times, food and water on the ground, since she is injured she can't roost, etc). Thank you to anyone that can help!
.

 

[Yardfulla poopers]

They look like maggots to me, but no idea why they would be in the water bowl.

 

[coach723]

Those are maggots. I would check the bird(s) over that have access to that bowl just to make sure that no one has a case of flystrike. Those may have hatched nearby (under the bowl maybe, in droppings, etc) and made their way to water. Kind of depends on what insect they are the larvae of..... They are not an internal parasite from a chicken. Look around for any build up of droppings, wet feed on the ground, wet bedding, anything that is rotting or decomposing, that could be the source where they could have hatched.

 

[BoggsFarmHomestead]

Thank you guys for the responses!

 

[SulkyBantam]

Thank you guys for the responses!

what happened? Did you find out where they came from?

 

[swampfox440]

I agree with coach 723 and yardfull . I have seen some thing like that when I clean my blue bird houses out during the summer . Flies lay eggs in the bottom of the nest and the maggots look like similar to that . But not sure

 

[Vikkilayne]

I have found the same worms in the ground under both my chickens’ water bowls and food dishes. I have tried several things that are organic to get rid of them but with no luck. Are they harmful? And what should I do to get rid of them?

 

[coach723]

They are maggots, the larvae of some insect, probably some kind of fly. They like wet, damp, rotting material, things composting. Reducing the insect population can help, as well as keeping things as clean and dry as possible. Normally they are not harmful unless they are feeding on carrion that could be contaminated with botulism, which they can then pass to anything that eats them.

 

[Vikkilayne]

They are maggots, the larvae of some insect, probably some kind of fly. They like wet, damp, rotting material, things composting. Reducing the insect population can help, as well as keeping things as clean and dry as possible. Normally they are not harmful unless they are feeding on carrion that could be contaminated with botulism, which they can then pass to anything that eats them.

Ok
My chicken, Doolittle, is in a Tractor Supply chicken coop by herself. She has been blind since hatched. She has lived there since I released the hatching and realized that she was blind. I can move the food plate and water bowl, but I am not sure that she will be able to find them.

 

[coach723]

If you can raise the dishes up off the ground a little that may take care of the issue. They probably like the damp darkness under the bowls. Try using bricks or something. I would make very gradual changes since you are dealing with a blind bird, make small changes and let her adjust, so that she doesn't inadvertently go without food or water.