To worm or not to worm?

[wrenhen]

I have a large mixed flock of chickens, ducks, geese, and two turkeys.
I'm wondering if you guys worm regularly or if you only worm when you see symptoms. I don't see symptoms other than some poops I see are sometimes runny/yellow or slightly bloody, but nobody is acting sick (other than the female turkey, but thats a whole different issue) and I see these randomly all the time mixed with regular poop.

If you do worm regularly, how do you go about worming a large mixed flock? Especially with ducks. Would they overdo it if its in the water?

 

[nuthatched]

The best way is to dose individually by weight.
What is your climate?

 

[wrenhen]

The best way is to dose individually by weight.
What is your climate?

Hot and humid in the summer and frigid cold in the winter. Midwest USA

 

[nuthatched]

Hot and humid in the summer and frigid cold in the winter. Midwest USA

Ok, thanks.
The thing is, symptoms and worms only show themselves if there's a heavy infestation.
If it humidity and wet all the worm months, I'd do it atleast once a year.
I'd worm with fenbendazole for the chickens, I'm pretty sure it's also safe for ducks and turkeys.

 

[LaFleche]

In case all your birds roam together in the same premises I would deworm more often as blackhead disease (turkeys!) is easily transmitted to other bird species by infested earth worms.

https://www.pa.gov/agencies/pgc/wil...ome infected with both,a short period of time.

 

[wrenhen]

In case all your birds roam together in the same premises I would deworm more often as blackhead disease (turkeys!) is easily transmitted to other bird species by infested earth worms.

https://www.pa.gov/agencies/pgc/wildlife/wildlife-health/wildlife-diseases/blackhead.html#:~:text=Birds become infected with both,a short period of time.

Good to know, I actually started this train of thought because of the sick turkey hen...

 

[Ridgerunner]

I'm wondering if you guys worm regularly or if you only worm when you see symptoms.

I've raised turkeys a couple of times with my chickens but I basically have a chicken flock. I butcher chickens at regular intervals from June until November. Every time I butcher I split some intestines open looking for roundworms or tapeworms. I have never found either so I have never treated for worms. If I found worms I would treat but I don't.

If you are concerned I'd suggest calling a vet and see what it would take to get a fecal count. They can tell if you have worms or not.

I don't have much faith in going by the possible signs, like runny poop. Too many different things can cause those signs.

One time I found a roundworm about a half mile from my chickens. On a country road an animal had pooped, not sure what. It was kind of runny. I think if your chickens have a heavy roundworm infection you'd see worms in the poop. Not sure you would for tapeworms. I'm not a medical professional so this so just me guessing. That's why I suggested a fecal float.

 

[Loving my girls]

The above is interesting to me as I have never wormed my girls.
I get concerned as I check their poop everyday when I clean them out but have never seen anything wormlike, I think.
As I don’t really know what I’m looking for. Nothing that makes me go ‘agh’ so to speak. I give them verm-x liquid for three days a month in yogurt. Which they love but that’s it.
Can anyone tell me, or show me, what I should be looking for if not grown up squiggly worms.
Also if the hens seem happy and healthy is it really necessary? To me it seems not

 

[ChaosMom]

Eons ago, when I worked for a small animal vet (no poultry, alas), the rule of thumb with wormy dogs and cats was that roundworms looked like spaghetti in the stool and tapeworms like grains of rice, in the stool and sometimes around the animal's anus. But you didn't have to wait to see them to diagnose, because we used fecal floats, as mentioned above. For instance, I never saw a hookworm in stool. Whether you actually see worms, dead or alive, in chicken poop, I dunno.

Apologies for ruining everyone's appetite.