Safe-Guard AquaSol (Dewormer)

We recommend Safe-Guard AquaSol (Fenbendazole 20%) as it does not have an egg withdrawal period. Many people use the Safe-Guard for Goats version (Fenbendazole 10%), which is more commonly available — however, it not only has a 17 day egg withdrawal period, but is not anywhere near as effective, as it doesn’t actually fully dissolve in water, so they don’t actually get a large enough dose.

When treating, ensure that the ONLY water available to them contains the medication. It should be given for 5 consecutive days before switching back to unmedicated water.

MOLT NOTICE: If your chickens are molting, do NOT use Fenbendazole, as it potentially causes stunted feather growth. Instead, we recommend using Pyrantel Oral Solution as the most effective secondary option. As a side note, Pyrantel does not work for tapeworm or gapeworm, and has a 7 day egg withdrawal period.

It is also strongly recommended that a second treatment be administered 10–14 days after the first treatment, in order to kill off any remaining worms that may have hatched after the initial treatment.

Why is there No Egg Withdraw?

Excellent question (and you’re not the first to ask)! It’s actually got nothing to do with the medication itself; but rather, in what form the medication is both made as well as administered.

The water soluble version (AquaSol) is a quick and effective dose that hits the system hard and leaves the body quickly. The Goat version comes in either a capsulated powder form or liquid oral suspension form.

The powder form has particles that remain in a chickens digestive system for weeks before they’re completely broken down and removed from the body. The liquid oral suspension is a ruminant drench product; a dewormer used safely for decades in many species (Safe-Guard Suspension 10%), which is vastly different from the Safe-Guard AquaSol dewormer labeled for use in poultry.

While both dewormers use the same active ingredient (fenbendazole), the process employed to produce Safe-Guard AquaSol yields particle sizes 10 to 100 times smaller than Safe-Guard Suspension 10% for Goats.

Additionally, Safe-Guard AquaSol is a 20% suspension – two times more concentrated than the Safe-Guard Suspension 10% for Goats. Most people don’t realize that many medications actually require a much higher concentration to be effective in poultry.

This is why we always recommend a water-soluble solution such as AquaSol (or if they’re molting, Pyrantel). FYI, Pyrantel is ineffective against tapeworms and gapeworm.