Basic H as a de-wormer?

[Amaggio]

Hi all, does anyone use Basic H as a de-wormer? I ran across some information today that talked about how you can use it for sheep and cows, even dogs, as a de-wormer. They said 1.5t to a gallon of water every few months. Does anyone know if you can use this for other ruminants like goats or even chickens, I would assume so? Has anyone had success with this cleaner?

I heard you have to buy the original so not the 'Basic H2' or any other hybrid it has to be the original Basic H in the 5 gallon bucket. The picture below is (I believe) an example. According to the website I found the formula for Basic H was made in 1960, can be safely used on any surface as a cleaner, and is (among other things) bio-degradable.

It was my first time hearing about this product. I use castile soap on my plants to help with the bug population but have never heard of Basic H. Any thoughts?

 

[Baymule]

@Beekissed has used it before.

 

[Beekissed]

I've used it before. Sheep don't particularly like the taste of it in their water....not many animals do, as it's concentrated and very bitter. How do I know that? Because I tried it on myself first before I gave it to any of the animals.

I didn't use it for long, so can't report long term results of it. It works on worms due to being a surfactant, which any soap will do....Basic H is just considered a more naturally made soap, though the formula is proprietary. Supposedly made from soy proteins.

 

[messybun]

We use Molly’s herbals first a dewormer, it’s totally natural and easier than mixing our own up lol. Pumpkin seeds are amazing for minor deworming. Garlic, fennel, wormwood, cinnamon, and a few other herbs can also work really well but be careful with wormwood in your pregger and nursing does. I have no clue about basic H though, so not exactly your original question, yet if you just want a natural wormer these might give you a start. Free feed salt has also been known to give marked differences in worm and disease reduction in cows but I don’t know if it works the same in sheep.

 

[Nanasande]

Hi all, does anyone use Basic H as a de-wormer? I ran across some information today that talked about how you can use it for sheep and cows, even dogs, as a de-wormer. They said 1.5t to a gallon of water every few months. Does anyone know if you can use this for other ruminants like goats or even chickens, I would assume so? Has anyone had success with this cleaner?

I heard you have to buy the original so not the 'Basic H2' or any other hybrid it has to be the original Basic H in the 5 gallon bucket. The picture below is (I believe) an example. According to the website I found the formula for Basic H was made in 1960, can be safely used on any surface as a cleaner, and is (among other things) bio-degradable.

View attachment 73540

It was my first time hearing about this product. I use castile soap on my plants to help with the bug population but have never heard of Basic H. Any thoughts?

I have used Basic H Classic with my goats for the past 2 years with excellent results. It has been very effective. However, there are two things you need to keep in mind:
1. All goats need the eye membrane checked weekly. (See Famacha Score testing). This gives you a clear picture of the health of each goat. A healthy goat will have a coloring of healthy pink to bright red, meaning the worm load is under control and the hemoglobin level is good.
2. Animals must consume the water into which the Basic H is added. If you have torrential rains that last for weeks on end, animals will consume far less water from a trough because their water needs are met by the water on the plants in the pasture. Also, the worms in the field will be consumed by the grazers more readily because the motility of the worms increases as the plants stay wet. Worms are much more available to grazers during wet weather. Therefore, be sure to monitor the worm load in your herd by checking the Famacha Score on your individuals weekly.

In order to use the Basic H Classic as a wormer, you must give access to water in closed containers for 7 days each month. Tanks or ponds cannot be effectively treated with BHC. Therefore, animals must be in a pasture with access only to enclosed tubs for the treatment days.
Goats have a very fast digestive system. Therefore, I allow 7 days access to treated water only, followed by 21-24 days untreated water. This is what it looks like on my farm:

The first Sunday of the month, I clean all water tubs on my farm, refill, and add 1 Tablespoon Basic H Classic per 5 gallons water to each one. (My tubs hold 10 gallons water, so I measure 2 Tablespoons- 6 teaspoons-per tub. (Add the BHC AFTER filling, as it will foam.) For refills in following days, I note the percentage of water consumed (half a tub, quarter tub, etc.) and add BHC accordingly. A Tablespoon is 3 teaspoons, so my tubs take 6 teaspoons. If 1/3 of water is consumed, I add 2 teaspoons BHC. You have to do a bit of math, but it makes sense when you do it for a week.) I have found that many pump bottles for shampoo dispense 1 teaspoon. I get an empty pump bottle, fill it with water, and experiment to find one that dispenses a teaspoon measurement at a time. I can then empty that bottle and fill it with BHC, dispensing the correct amount into my tubs much more easily.

I make sure to keep treated water in every accessible tub for 7 days ( including barn tubs). Following the treatment week, I leave the remaining treated water in the tubs and simply add plain water for the rest of the month

The amount of BHC per 5 gallons of water stays the same, regardless of the size of your container.( I did not know the volume of my containers originally, so I emptied my containers and added 5 gallons water until each was filled).
5 gallon tub, add 1 Tablespoon BHC
10 gallon tub, add 2 Tablespoons BHC
25 gallon tub, add 5 Tablespoons BHC
50 gallon tub, add 10 Tablespoons BHC
100 gallon container, add 1 1/4 cups BHC

Basic H Classic is only available through the Shaklee company. The cost of the 5 gallon tub is about $220 with tax and shipping. You can submit your tax exempt status through your distributor. I have found that my worming costs plummeted after using the BHC, but I also found that during times of intense, extended rains, my membrane checks (Famacha Scores) indicated that a chemical wormer was needed when treated water was not consumed.

 

[Baymule]

That is good information @Nanasande Thank you for posting that. Welcome to the forum! I can see you are going to be a valued member with lots to share with others.

 

[Beekissed]

I agree with Bay!!! GREAT answer!!!

I've used Basic H in the past for cows and sheep, with good effect, though I don't know if the sheep got as good a dose of it as the cow....they tend to drink WAY less water when on good pasture. Now, if I confined them to eating hay, they drank water...but they seriously don't like the taste of Basic H. Neither did I (I test all things on myself first before giving it to the animals....that's just the way I am...so, yes, I've tasted dewormers of various kinds, Nustock and Bag Balm on my skin, etc.)....Basic H is a very bitter flavor, much like any detergent.

The cows weren't so picky but I could still tell they didn't like the flavor of it.

 

[Baymule]

Why not just drench the sheep and get it over with? Then they can go get a drink of good tasting water.

 

[Mini Horses]

I'm with you, Bay! Animals will limit intake from taste. But, not sure a drench would work as it seems a constant light dose for several days is needed. It's about making the environment to be non- hospitable. The spices do that and seem more palatable, so eaten. My take on it. We will always be dealing with worms. Keeping loads lower is best hope. Some areas have less issues due to weather, ground, graze conditions. Always open to help. And I've tasted a lot of crap, too!! Testing.

 

[Beekissed]

I'm with you, Bay! Animals will limit intake from taste. But, not sure a drench would work as it seems a constant light dose for several days is needed. It's about making the environment to be non- hospitable. The spices do that and seem more palatable, so eaten. My take on it. We will always be dealing with worms. Keeping loads lower is best hope. Some areas have less issues due to weather, ground, graze conditions. Always open to help. And I've tasted a lot of crap, too!! Testing.

Actually, I think a drench would do it....the Basic H is a soap, which is just a surfactant and acts on the worms by removing the protective coating of oils on the surface of their skin, thus allowing the gastric juices to destroy them. I'd say a dose or two of the soap would contact all the worms and any eggs they may produce and that are still in the intestines. In a concentrated dose, even more of the detergent would be introduced, thus completely stripping those worms in one go.

My grandma used to give her pigs her dishwater every now and again, said it "kept them healthy"....the pigs drank it because it had food particles in it and the rest of their slop. Grandma didn't know just WHY lye soap kept her pigs healthy, but it did, so she gave them the soapy dishwater.