Deworming your chickens

One thing I never really thought about when I got started with chickens was that they would need to be de-wormed. Since chickens scratch and peck all over the ground, often sharing space with other farm animals and even wild birds, they will inevitably come in contact with parasitic organisms that are in the manure of those other animals. Hence, the need for deworming.

As with every other topic we have discussed so far, there are many methods for deworming, naturally or medicinally, but I am going to discuss what I do and why I choose to do so. I always try natural, organic methods for everything I come across in raising animals, only resorting to medical solutions as a last resort (which is almost never.) The method I show you here is one that I personally use and know to be effective and support the overall health of my birds.

Here is what I use (ratios mixed per 40-50lb bag of food):

• 2 Cups organic cracked red pepper

• 2 Cups food grade Diatomaceous Earth

• 1 Cup Powdered garlic

I also add 8 drops of Oregano essential oil per gallon of water in their waterer.

At a minimum, this should be done quarterly to keep your birds healthy and parasite free. A heavy parasite load can not only stop your birds from laying, but could actually kill them. (Not to mention pass off some nasty critters to you. Gross.)

I personally do it on a monthly basis from late February through Summer, when parasites are more readily found in the environment.