foxy
Active member
Bertie & The Chooks said:chrismahon said:Slugs and snails carry really bad worms and shouldn't be fed to chickens.
Wild birds have worm eggs in their poo which the hens can eat on the grass.
We use wood shavings as bedding or crushed aubiose where its windy. Hay in the nest boxes, but are aware that if it is damp it will cause respiratory problems and it also harbours mites and lice.
lungworm(aka gapeworm) is carried by slugs and snails and it can be passed on to your cats and dogs as well as your chickens.
which is a major risk, most of the worms in wildbirds are intestinal worms and in small numbers can be fought off by the chooks natural digestion. which is why it's good to worm a couple times a year to keep the numbers down.
Some information regarding gapeworm and other intestinal worms here on the website you might find useful:
http://poultrykeeper.com/poultry-diseases-and-disorders.html
Just to clarify, gapeworm is not a parasite you see so much today, rispiratory infections however, can be misdiagnosed as gapes as the symptoms are very similar. Gapworm also known as the "red worm" or "forked worm" used to be pretty common where game birds were raised. Indeed a worm to keep an eye out if poultry is housed near or where game has been traditional reared. Flubenvet wormer to my knowledge is the only effective wormer against gapeworm in poultry.
Whilst it is transmitted via earthworms, and slugs.. I was unaware it could be transmitted to cats and dogs?