To get rid of chicken parasites, use veterinary-approved dewormers (like Flubendazole or Piperazine/Levamisole products) for active infestations, administered in water or feed, and combine with excellent biosecurity like rotating runs, keeping grass short, ensuring good drainage, and frequent coop cleaning to prevent reinfection. Natural aids like Diatomaceous Earth (DE) in feed and Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV) in water can help prevent infestations, but chemical treatments are usually needed for serious cases.
Fenbendazole is the only product that is currently approved for treatment and control of roundworms (Ascaridia spp.) and cecal worms (Heterakis spp.) in chickens and turkeys in the United States.
1. How can I tell if my chicken has worms? You can tell if your chicken has worms by looking for signs like pale combs and wattles, lethargy, weight loss, ruffled feathers, and watery or discolored droppings. You may also see worms in the droppings directly, while gapeworms cause coughing and gaping.
7 Natural Ways to Deworm Your Chickens 🌿 Garlic: Crush fresh garlic and mix into their water--it's a natural parasite buster. 🎃 Pumpkin Seeds: Raw, unsalted seeds contain cucurbitacin, a natural dewormer. 🍎 Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV): Add a tablespoon of unfiltered ACV to a gallon of water to disrupt worms.
Apple Cider Vinegar helps with gut health BUT will not worm/ deworm poultry.
Crush a couple of garlic cloves, skin and all, per bird and put them into a sock. Hang this in the water bucket and add a generous splosh of apple cider vinegar (proper live stuff with the mother). The garlic is for the worms, and the ACV for healthy guts. Its great to combine the two treatments together.
A general guideline you can follow is: 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar per gallon of water. You don't need to give it every day. Offering vinegar water a few days each week, especially during stress, molting, or introducing new birds, is enough to support your flock without over-acidifying their system.
Pumpkin Seeds
Pumpkin seeds are an extremely effective deworming agent because they contain an amino acid called cucurbitacin. This paralyzes the worms making them easily eliminated from the intestine.
There are a few main types of internal worms that can affect chickens; roundworms, gapeworms, threadworms and tapeworms being the most common. A heavy load of worms can interfere with a hen's ability to absorb nutrients and therefore affect her health and egg production.
Cinnamon contains very active compounds, including essential oils (EOs) and phenolics, which possess potent anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, and antioxidant activities that act as defensive agents against oxidative damage in the chicken intestinal tract.
The most common causes of death in chickens vary but often include heart failure/sudden death syndrome, tumors (especially from Marek's disease), bacterial infections (like colibacillosis), and parasites, with predators also being a significant factor, especially in backyard flocks; causes can range from diet and genetics to environmental issues and specific poultry diseases like Ascites in broilers or fatty liver syndrome in layers.
Chickens can get worms from other birds, contaminated feed and water, insects, rodents or even from the soil. The only way to completely protect your chickens from worms is to keep them in a coop at all times, where they don't have access to any soil, and to keep the coop scrupulously clean of droppings.
Most often, the infection is caused by eating food or drinking water that is tainted with roundworm eggs. Ascariasis can cause symptoms such as stomach pain, vomiting, fever and cough. Serious health issues called complications can happen if many worms grow inside the body.
Regular coop cleaning is essential to keep your chickens healthy. Damp litter creates conditions that are perfect for parasites, viruses and bacteria to thrive. Cleaning the chicken coop can be a quick process if done regularly.
Roundworms and tapeworms are the most common internal parasites of poultry and generally the results of soil contamination and poor management. A fecal exam should be performed to assess the level of infection and to also monitor treatment.
Bloody Poop
If blood is found in a chickens feces, this can be an indication that a chicken has coccidiosis. This is a serious intestinal infection that can spread to your entire flock, and can unfortunately result in death if not attended to properly (and can result in death if not attended to properly).
Infested chickens will become lethargic, and will eventually stop eating, so you need to keep an eye on the situation, and intervene with worming drugs if the outbreak is causing health problems. Chickens can directly or indirectly ingest worm eggs. Direct ingestion means they will eat the worm egg.
WormStop Natural Dewormer for Chickens by Buff Clucks harnesses the power of nature to keep your backyard flock healthy, vibrant, and egg-laying strong. Natural and gentle yet effective herbal blend supports gut health - herbal blend of garlic, wormwood, pumpkin seed, black walnut hull, oregano, thyme, and fennel seed.
It is completely safe to eat eggs from chickens that have worms. I would crack eggs open before eating them to make sure that the inside of the egg is worm-free. There is a very, very small chance that worms can get into the oviducts of chickens. The oviduct is where the egg develops.
Common parasitic drugs include:
Treatment to get rid of worms
If you have worms, a GP will prescribe medicine to kill them. You take this for 1 to 3 days. The people you live with may also need to be treated. Any worms in your gut will eventually pass out in your poo.
I mix up a quart of warm water with one tablespoon raw honey, one tablespoon apple cider vinegar, and a small pinch of sea salt. Offer it fresh for the first two days after hatch, then switch back to plain water. My chicks bounce back quick and I have not lost any since I started doing this.
If used inappropriately, it can irritate or even damage the mucous membranes of the chickens' digestive tract, leading to discomfort or damage. Overuse Can Lead to Nutritional Deficits: Chickens consuming too much ACV might feel fuller faster, potentially leading to reduced food intake and nutritional shortages.
You might also consider adding electrolytes during especially hot weather or times of stress to help keep your chickens hydrated and feeling their best. Just remember, fresh, clean water should always be the main event, anything you add is just a little bonus for your feathered friends.