# Molly's Herbal wormer?



## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

I admit, I've never considered using herbal wormers before. But I am really curious now.

Who uses the herbal wormer? What kind of results have you had? How long have you been using it & when you do find a worm load, what kind of worm are you usually dealing with?

Planning to thin our little herd down soon, just keep a few adults, and the kids 4-H wethers, and baby does. If I can get it down enough I'd really like to consider a herbal wormer or something different & healthy for them. 

My understanding is you dose them 1x a week? What if you accidentally forget a dose? 

I'm considering either ordering this, or ordering a microscope to do my own fecals lol 

BTW, we do usually deal with something like strongyle, can't remember what the vet called it, but he said to treat it like a strongyle. Also round worms, especially in the summer.


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## mjgh06 (Sep 4, 2012)

I have used Molly's and did not like it. I used it for a little over a year. It was not strong enough to keep worms at bay. So I went back to using my fecal testing and treating chemically for the worms found. I much prefer it that way. I can monitor my herd and know when to treat and what to treat with and they don't have to be on meds when not needed. Barberpole was the most common worm for us here in the south. 

Now a little science - roundworms are the Phylum Nematoda not just one worm. It covers over a million worm species. Strongyles is basically the suborder Strongylida of the Nematoda Phylum which infects the gastrointestinal tracts of ruminants, horses, swine. There's really so many worms/parasites, they are always referred to by their class, order, or phylum in general. So when you say you have a roundworm, it's really just that a round worm or Nematoda, same with strongyles - just a worm parasite in the intestinal tract.

ADDED: I now use copper and have for the past 5 years as a worm prevention in their diet and after the first year getting it regulated, I never had to treat for worms anymore to date.


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## xymenah (Jul 1, 2011)

I use Molly's and it works wonderfully. I have not had a worm problem since I started using it. When I was using chemical wormers I just couldn't keep up. Nothing would work very long, either the worms would just never leave or they would get a resistance. Now my goats have nearly no worms and I feel good because I don't have to worry anymore. I started using it in Mississippi. Worms there are absolutely horrible. Now I'm in Arizona and the only difference is now I don't have to use it as often because its so dry the worms don't seem to last long in the soil. I don't use it as directed either. I just use the wormwood mix(formula #1) not the weekly tonic(formula #2). If you want to use the weekly tonic and forget or do it a few days late its not the end of the world and doesn't effect it too much. I'm sure the tonic works great and really helps but I'm such a forgetful person I could never remember. Plus my goats hate it and I couldn't dress their food with it and drenching every week is not only a pain but my goats started to run and hide from me so I gave up.


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## TwistedKat (Dec 28, 2012)

I've been using Molly's for a year and a half and my goats are clean as a whistle. I live in the Pacific Northwest and just started learning to do my own fecal testing. If I were to ever find that herbs didn't cut it I am not opposed to using chemicals. So far, so good.


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## IrishRoots (Jan 7, 2013)

I love Molly's!! I use it on my dogs, goats, horses, and chickens!!!


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

I used Molly's but ended up with terrible worm problems even after increasing frequency and amount. I use Fir Meadow herbal dewormers and that has worked well for me.


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## Straw_Hat_Kikos (Feb 27, 2013)

I know I will step on some toes here and I try to avoid this kind of thing but really do the research. Herbal worming DOES NOT work. I run my own fecals and pay very close attention my my goats as well as other's goats. No herbal wormer works. For those of us that run our own fecals and have a deep understanding of goat internal parasites we know it does not work. Mot of the time what it is doing is just coating the worms and doesn't do much to them. Sometimes it keeps them from latching on for a time being but they still overcome it. Most of the time it just does not work. Every single person I have ever seen that claimed they work do not know about internal parasites and do not do their own fecals.

Trust me, they don't work. Really do your research before you jump into it. You may think it's working but it's just a matter of time before they get real sick or die.


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## TwistedKat (Dec 28, 2012)

I was under the impression it that Molly's herbal supplemental were not a treatment so to speak but a preventative or an overall health booster to support their immune system. I don't use her herbal wormer as a "wormer", I test my goats and if if they ever pop positive I'll have them wormed for a specific worm. They have just never tested positive.


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## Texas.girl (Dec 20, 2011)

On facebook there is a group, "TotallyNaturalGoat" and those folks use it a lot and love it. I have not personally used it but then every time I have taken a goat to the vet they always test negative.


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## ThreeHavens (Oct 20, 2011)

I use Molly's Herbals, but am considering switching to Fir Meadow. Herbal worming can and does work if done properly (and of course the need of each herd differs drastically). The herbs, IMO, are a good "maintaining" wormer. If the does are already in good shape, I have found if you stay on top of the herbal worming, they will stay in good shape. With Molly's herbals there are two kinds of wormers. 1# is stronger and used every 8 weeks (except for pregnant does) for threee days in a row. If you find yourself with a wormload due to wet weather, you can give them a round of this any time (as long as they are not pregnant). #2 is the once a week wormer.

I have been very happy with it, it's what works for our farm, but it may not work for everyone's :thumb: Cheers!


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## PearcePastures (Oct 6, 2012)

The key here is to make sure you are testing before and after a treatment. 

While some herbs do have chemical agents that can keep some parasites at bay, if a treatment is administered without knowing what parasite needs to be treated, and the chemical agent in the herbal dewormer has not been shown to impact that parasite, it is not going to do any good. 

After a treatment, testing again is also important to see if the parasite load was impacted. If it was, great but if not, it might be time to look for a more concentrated treatment.


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## Hobbyfarmer (Sep 7, 2011)

I use them. They seem to work well. I've not run fecals at this time so i base this on eyelid color. I also have Ivermectin on hand and use it if needed. 

Please be aware there is an adjustment period in getting the goats used to herbal wormers or supplements. It seems like a lot of people are discouraged when their goats won't gobble them up immediately. Takes time and patience.


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## PearcePastures (Oct 6, 2012)

Using eyelid color works pretty well for Barberpole but it is the only parasite that it indicates, which is why the fecal tests are ideal. If a goat has coccidia, tapes, or any of the other worms, their eyelid color won't be an indicator.


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## ThreeHavens (Oct 20, 2011)

I'm hoping to start my own fecal testing, that way I will be able to judge which herbal wormer works best, and I can nip any problems in the bud. Exciting  Maybe someday I'll have my own deworming mixture, who knows!


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## PearcePastures (Oct 6, 2012)

Same here--I have the microscope and got a lesson on how to do the float but I need to get the right slides and really want someone to show me how to tell the differences in the eggs. There are a of good webpages out there but I just do better with someone showing me firsthand. I bet if I ask my vet this summer, he might show me (it would save him some time in running tests for me).


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## TwistedKat (Dec 28, 2012)

If there was a workshop available in my area, I'd pay money to have someone show me how to detect fecal test worms/eggs.


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## IrishRoots (Jan 7, 2013)

My husband is a vet tech and my father in law is a vet. We have all been SUPER impressed by Molly's herbal wormer! We do fecal tests at home once a month and have not had one single outbreak of worms treating as instructed! So much more gentle that chemicals and you can use it on all of your animals. We Love it!!


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## HoosierShadow (Apr 20, 2010)

Well instead of doing this we decided to order the stuff to do our own fecals and go from there. I think, we 'may' look into the herbal wormer once we get some goats sold, right now my issue is trying to dose everyone once a week. With babies, we have 15, and it's hard enough when we do the monthly Cylence treatments, and then we weigh all the babies 1x a week.


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## lottsagoats (Dec 10, 2012)

I tried it and it nearly cost me my herd. I even started with a "clean" herd. The people that I know who use it successfully live in a very arid environment or have acres in which to pasture them on a rotating basis.

I live in a damp environment, on a small place. I have to fecal monthly and follow up with chemical de-wormers that target the worms they have at that time.


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## ThreeHavens (Oct 20, 2011)

I do understand it is not for everyone, but I am thankful it has worked well for my herd thus far.


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## TwistedKat (Dec 28, 2012)

I was curious if area made a difference and possibly the history of the land too, our property had only grazed cattle and that was probably more than 50 years ago. I agree that paddock rotation helps too.


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