To evaluate if these herbal "wormers" work, you really need to do fecals using the McMasters method.
I have had people tell me that is works great and that they have no worm issues because of the magical herbal wormer...Not realizing that having 4 goats, lots of wooded land, and being fed off the ground might have something to do with it.
Unfortunately many get swept in hearing "Natural Wormer" and don't research it, no looking at data, nothing. Glad to see you are looking around!
I can't tell you how many times I have seen goats severely anemic and on deaths door with owners not realizing something is wrong because the goat is "wormed" weekly. Others having kids dropping dead dropping dead like flies but still think their herbs work.
I DO think that SOME of these herbs do have good properties. But, they still aren't de-wormers.
Some may inhibit parasite reproduction and feeding. I feed lespedeza to my goats and I have personally seen a reduced parasite load via McMasters fecal test. But it is not a wormer. It coats the parasite- making it hard for the parasite to suck and reproduce. I also can't expect to see results when I only throw a handful to the goats when I think their is a problem. Just doesn't work like that. You just cannot expect to toss some herbs out and then you never will have parasites in your herd.
The hardest thing with these herbal "wormers" is that very little people will continue to run fecals and check for parasite reduction. Most don't know how they work. Honestly- with most people they just have a fantasy that is works but wont look at the facts (or poop, eyelids LOL).
I hear many folks mix up some miracle "wormer" and are sure its the best thing ever... When asked what reduction % they see, or
how it works, I never get an answer
Not trying to sound harsh, I am not anti-herbal at all! I just don't understand why nobody follows thru with the fecals. They are incredibly easy to run and the start-up costs are not bad. Even if you aren't doing an official study, wouldn't you want to see the affects it has on your herd?
If you decide to do this, I encourage you to do so but you still need to run fecals. Keep records, and see how it does in your herd. Just don't get swept away in it all
