Bird Parasite Control

This is the bird parasite control section: nine products from Vetafarm and Mavlab covering internal worming and external mite and lice treatments for cage birds, aviaries and pigeon lofts. Parasite products are label-driven — the pack states the species it is intended for, the concentration and the method, and that label is the instruction to follow. Nothing on this page is dosing advice, and a bird showing signs of illness should be seen by an avian vet.

Internal or external?

The two halves of this collection solve different problems. Worming products deal with intestinal parasites and are given to the bird: Vetafarm Wormout Gel is prepared as a liquid, Vetafarm Pigeon and Bantam Wormout Tablets and Mavlab Avitrol Plus Bird Wormer Tablets are given per bird, and Avitrol Plus also comes as a syrup, which is easier when you are treating a group. Mite and lice products deal with parasites on the bird or living in the cage and are applied as sprays — Mavlab Avitrol Bird Mite & Lice Spray and Vetafarm Avian Insect Liquidator. Vetafarm Coccivet and Avimec complete the avian range here. If you are not sure which half of the collection your problem sits in, that is the question to take to a vet rather than guess at, because treating for the wrong parasite wastes a treatment window.

Concentrate or ready to use

Avian Insect Liquidator is listed in both a Ready To Use bottle and a Concentrate. Ready to use is the simpler option for one or two cages; the concentrate is diluted and goes further across a full aviary or a repeated treatment schedule, but it has to be measured accurately. Tablets give you a per-bird dose and suit a small flock you can catch and handle individually, while liquids and gels prepared in water suit birds that are difficult to restrain. Whichever you choose, check the pack names your species — pigeon and bantam products are labelled separately from cage bird products for good reason. Cleaning the cage and replacing perches at the same time gives an external treatment a much better chance of holding.

Brands in this collection

Vetafarm supplies six of the nine products: Wormout Gel, Pigeon and Bantam Wormout Tablets, Avian Insect Liquidator in both concentrate and ready to use, Coccivet and Avimec. Mavlab supplies the Avitrol Plus wormer in tablet and syrup form, plus the Avitrol Bird Mite & Lice Spray.

• Bird supplements and general health
• Cage cleaners and bird hygiene
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