Worms or something else?

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Sorry for what might possibly be a silly question but about 3/4 weeks ago i noticed in one of my 3 girls (ex battery hens) poos, these small white egg shaped things. Anyway thought they might be grit or seed so did not take much notice. On closer examination the other day I noticed one moving, well a tiny tube like thing was. Are these worm eggs?
I've bought some Flubenvet and started giving it to them today. Am I doing right?

Carolyn
 
It does sound like you spotted some worm eggs,and then a tiny worm.Worming with flubevet is sensible,if left un treated worms can cause serious ill health.
 
Thanks Lydia, the eggs are white, flat about the size of a small tomato seed. it only seems to be one chicken affected (not sure which one???) hopefully the Flubenvet will do the trick. I have been putting AVC in their water regularly and using Verm-x once a month but you can never be sure how much each one is getting. With the Flubenvet I found a tip on another forum about putting a pinch of it on half a grape so you know each hen has had it's dose.

Carolyn
 
Hi Carolynan,
although you've only spotted the eggs in one of your hens droppings,the others will most likely have them as well.Treating with flubevet will get rid of them though.Thanks for the tip about putting it onto half a grape, I will give that a go next time i'm worming mine with flubevet.
 
Yes, sounds like worms... Flubenvet is the only licensed wormer for chickens and is a good one too. It should sort them out fairly quickly.
 
Thanks for the replies.
It's day 3 of giving them the Flubenvet and there are still eggs in their poo and they are moving but hopefully by day 7 they should be clear.
On the instruction sheet that comes with the Flubenvet it says about retreating in 3 weeks time if birds are on the ground with known worm infestations. Not sure what that means can anyone enlighten me please?

Carolyn
 
Yes, as well as eggs being picked up from the ground by chickens feeding, the other way worms are passed from one bird to another is via an intermediate host - usually earthworms. Basically, chicken poo goes into the ground with the eggs and then gets eaten by earthworms that break it all down. The chickens then eat the earthworms and .... hey presto, more worms.

The idea of re-treating is to kill the worms that come from the eggs that are picked up - this breaks the life cycle. The life cycle (time from egg to worm and to laying eggs again) is 2 to 4 weeks depending on the type of worm so treating at 3 weeks is a good idea. Flubenvet kills worms and eggs - but obviously not those on the ground / carried by earth worms...

Hope this helps. I met the Janssen (who make Flubenvet) Pig and Poultry manager today at the National and he was saying that changes in legislation means you can only buy Flubenvet from Category 8 suppliers (they need to be certified to sell it now) so you can't get it from vets (well, most vets) but there are still some big companies selling it.
 
Thanks for that Tim. I bought my Flubenvet from an internet company who sell animal medication, I did ring them and they asked a few questions before prescribing it.
I will retreat my girls in 3 weeks once they've finished this dose,as they are allowed to roam around the garden .Saying that it's bucketing down here at the moment so I don't think they will be out until it stops raining!

Carolyn
 
Tim..... It's day 6 of the Flubenvet and there is still a lot of white eggs ( some move ) in one of the poos. How long does it take to work? In your last reply you did say worms are on a 2-4 week cycle, I was hoping the Flubenvet killed them quite quickly. All my girls seem healthy so am I worrying for no reason.

Carolyn
 
Sorry I meant to have also said I read somewhere that you cannot see the worms which is a bit odd as the eggs are very vivible and move. Could it be something else??

Carolyn
 
Most wormers kill adult worms,not the eggs which is why you repeat the treatment to get the freshly hatched adults.
The eggs shouldn't move though,unless actually hatching.If you have a vet (preferably a poultry vet) pop a sample with the visible white eggs in and ask them to confirm they are worm eggs.
 
If this helps I had something similar years ago - there were white larva things moving on the droppings, but I forget what they were, but I vaguely remember it was horsefly eggs, it could be that these flies lay their eggs on the droppings. :?
 
Hi Lydia and Jani,

Thanks for your replies. have decided to give it a few more days before doing anything. I spoke to the guy we bought the girls from and he said he had not heard of anything like it but would see if he could find anything out. Also to give the Flubenvet a few more days to work as it must be in their system so to speak.

If all else fails will try and find a poultry friendly vet to test the poo. Thankfully they all seem well so keeping my fingers crossed.

Carolyn
 
Hi Carolyn,

Hopefully it is some insect like a horsefly that has laid eggs onto their droppings,just feels a bit late in the year for that.Flubevet certainly wont do them any harm.
Really pleased they are all well,it's horrid when they're off-colour.
 
Hi Lydia,
I'm pretty sure it's not horsefly eggs as I've actually stood and watched Willow do her poo and the eggs and larvae are there already. Some of the eggs fall onto the grass others move about. I try and clear everything up but obviously I'm going to miss bits especially when they scatch about in the garden.

I've checked Maple and Hazel and there poo is fine, hubby reckons as Willow has had this for about a month perhaps the others are immune. They are definetly a different breed of bird from Willow - may have come from two different battery farms. Must check with Chicubes who we bought them from. I know at the time of ordering they said they had 2 lots coming from different parts of the country.

It's a bit of a mystery as no one seems to know what it is.
I did ring 4 vets in the area , no luck there either. One of them said they could do a lab test for £43+ vat!!!!!
Thought I would try her on 3 days of double dose Vermex, as I cannot use the Flubenvet for another 3 weeks.

Carolyn
 
Hi Carolyn,
poor Willow,it does sound unusual that sh'e affected yet Maple and Hazel aren't.I'd assume that Willow had these before you got them,and,Hazel and Maple will to,but not in large enough numbers to be passed out yet.
Something else that is good for getting rid of worms is garlic,it's what 3rd world countries use to worm their livestock.You probably already add garlic to their water but if not,add garlic as well.
Certainly dose with verm-x again,but I wouldn't double the dose with out a vet approval,it is herbal but in too high a dose could still be harmfull.
Where abouts do you live?Have you checked the list of poultry vets on here to see if one is closer to you.
Also,when I'm sending poo samples to a vet,I post them,so you can post to any poultry vet in the country for the same postage cost.
I go to my doctors,and get a urine sample bottle from them(no charge)and put the poo inside and post it off.
Best of luck,and I do hope it is sorted soon.
 
Thanks for that Lydia. I live in Essex . Funny you should mention about posting samples to a vet as I was laying in bed this morning thinking the same thing. Any recommendations and any idea how much it costs?

On the Vermex pot it does say you can double the dose but will bear in mind what you said. Also may try the garlic. Do you give it to them whole , I know you can put a whole clove in their water. I tend to use AVC.

If it wasn't for signs in Willow's poo you would not know there was anything wrong with her.

Carolyn
 
I'm glad that she doesn't have any other symptoms,but,it must be very frustrating.I didn't realise that on the packaging for verm-x it says about doubling the dose.In that case it must be safe to do so,they wouldn't suggest it otherwise.
I do add a whole clove of garlic daily to my hens water,I crush it the same as I would do for cooking,mine do enjoy pecking at the crushed garlic,you could crush or chop it and mix it with their food,I add it to the water so that all get the benefit from it.I think if I added it to their food some would eat all of it and some wouldn't get any.
With regards to posting poo,I haven't posted a sample of chicken poo yet,it is something I have done before with snake poo.
I suggest you have a look at the list of poultry vets,and,ring them first to check they will do this for you,you can also check what they charge and send the payment with the sample.That is the arrangement I have with the vet's I use,I enclose a cheque with the sample(last time it was £4.56)and they rang me with the results.
 
Flubenvet should kill all of the common internal parasites, it has a very good track record. I -think- you will see the eggs coming out but can't say I've seen this before.

You can send a sample to Minster Vets - details in the poultry vets database.

The cost of a Worm egg count (worm eggs and coccidia) in a faeces sample is £12.26 (this is including VAT). They perform them in their lab on a daily basis for commercial, small private producers and small backyard flocks.

Don't pay your local vet £40 or so - he is probably just sending it off to the lab like this... You can place a sheet of brown paper under the perch at night to collect droppings.

For heavy infestations you do need to repeat treatment - the whole environment will be contaminated with worm eggs and the birds will get re-infected. The best bet is to find out the type of worm from the test, then you can repeat treatment at the best moment so they can't reproduce and lay more eggs. It is difficult to break the cycle and this is the best way.

Worm eggs do remain infectious for months but they cannot mature at temperatures below 10 degrees and are destroyed by hard frost or sunlight.

I will add some more information later about treatment period once you know what type of worm it is.

Good Luck.
 
Hi Lydia and Tim,

Not sure if you will be able to access a picture I have attached of the offending worms???. I've rung round and found a hen friendly vet. It will cost me £10 + vat but if they cannot identify them it will have to be sent off to a lab which will cost more. I said I will take it over tomorrow. I'd already rung them before reading your email Tim.

Will let you know the outcome

Carolyn
 

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