My eco solution to rat problems

[chocchick]

I was wondering if anyone used Verm X and what they thought of it, would it still be effective if herbal?

I think my chickens are prone to worms being on the same ground and the monthly treatment therefore appeals.

Incidently does a gaping chicken always mean gapeworm, if just the occasional one?

 

Can Apple cider vinegar be bought cheaper than £3.50ish per litre online-can you buy it in shops? Are there different types/strengths, would the £3.50 horse one be the same?

I want to try it as it's suposed to help calcium absorption which may be better than constantly using shellstim.

[Sheilaz]

Choccy, I have a couple of answers for you! (Don't know how helpful though )

 

Apple Cider Vinegar is available in general supermarkets, cheaper than online, maybe £2.38 litre own brand.

Funnily enough, several years ago I was advised to give it to Esther (for arthritis) and, never having heard of it before, was pleased with myself discovering it for sale on a health food stall & dutifully lugged it home in my rucksack on several occasions.

Told my sister about my detective skills in tracking down the product, to be told "But they sell it in S........s supermarket!" Oh well. So, yes, look around for it cheaper than online!

 

Hadn't seen gapeworm before, but on Tuesday Biscuit was doing the stretching, yawning symptom. Now, I think if they just do that a couple of times, it may just be trying to get some food down. She did go off foraging again so I wondered if she went to get grit.

But, she had done so many yawns that I decided to play safe & start their worming week straight away (instead of waiting until end of month as I had planned) just in case. I suppose if the yawning persists beyond a short session, it's wise to consider gapeworm.

I don't have experience of VermeX but I am interested. I read up on another site a year or two ago and opinion was divided. Might be worth seeing what the latest discussions on Practical Poultry say, whether many people wholeheartedly recommend it or not.

I didn't get any as I'd just bought a tub of Flubenvet which at least seems to have kept them clear so far.

However, I do think you are wise to try & be a step ahead with worming esp. as you say with them being on the same ground which can keep a circle going, although freeranging can bring in new ones.

 

I'll be interested to see how all this goes, best wishes,

[Egluntyne]

I though it was he cloudy apple cider vinegar that was meant to be used, the type given to horses, not the culinary sort.

[Lesley]

We use the cloudy sort of ACV - and flubenvet

[Jools]

You won't find much consensus on the P P form about Verm-x (or anything else for that matter ) but it does have some supporters. Me for one, but I don't know if mine had worms to start with. I had a poo sample tested at the vets last year as I was worried about my youngsters (red bits in their droppings) and there was no problem with worm eggs then. I think it really is just a matter of choice - Flubenvent twice a year (or more often if necessary - every three months for some), or Verm-x monthly. Verm-x will work out much more expensive.

 

You could use Flubenvet and then add a glove of garlic to their drinking water for the rest of the time, as this is supposed to make the gut inhospitable to worms. I think that's the principle behind ACV too (definitely the cloudy stuff though as the "human" stuff has had all the good bits filtered out).

 

I can never remember if it's gape worm or tape worm that means you should double the Flubenvet dose though. And if you give more than the usual amount, there is a one week egg withdrawl time after the last dose.

 

Good luck and let us know how you get on!

[chocchick]

Thank you all for your help.

I will probably worm ASAP with Flubenvet, think about Verm X and order the horse ACV online.

 

I'm just paranoid about worms as

a) Susannah had a high worm count when we had tests done on her and we had been using Flubenvet under 3 months before

b) the runny poo has come back (Abbie?)

c) I've seen 3 chickens gape a few times but on separate days

d) Trinny is underweight and you can feel her keel bone and she is very greedy (any ideas how to feed her up correctly?)

 

I wormed in January with Flubenvet (I do every 3 months), and since then we've had crop problems, soft eggs which I put down to OH's hay and the weather, and the runny poo which went after several days of diatom/bokashi/garlic/grit added to pellets and mixed with water.

 

May go back to layers mash as they like that more, to see if that helps Trinny's weight as we changed from that in January. I now give the pellets dry as it sets hard when mixed with water and could have blocked Trinny's crop if it wasn't hay or grass [now removed]