Coccsidiosis Question

So, I have 5 birds that are approx. 5 wks old. Yesterday morning I noticed bloody, watery, droppings in the brooder box and 2 of the babies were just standing in the corner fluffed out. I IMMEDIATELY got them to the vet and he prescribed Albon twice daily for 1 week then nothing for a week and twice daily again for the 3rd week. He said that the really sick one MAY be too far gone to save and sure enough she was gone this morning. Of the remaining 4 there is 1 that is showing symptoms but the others SO FAR have no symptoms. I was just wondering, from anyone who has dealt with this disease, how long do they have to be on the medication before I can breathe easy and think that they may make it??? I don't want to lose any more :-( Or is it a forgone conclusion that I will lose them all? Is it possible that they MAY survive? They are still inside - they are not big enough to be outside yet. The vet said to boost the brooder box temp to 85 - done that. He also said to supplement their water with Pedialyte at a 50/50 ratio - done that. The remaining 4 seem to be eating and drinking fine. Giving a baby chick medicine through a syringe is challenging to say the least - but I am doing EVERYTHING he said to do.

It sounds like you are doing a fabulous job! I'm sorry about your little one that didn't make it. Yes, electrolytes are good for them. I would also add some vitamins to their water just to give an extra boost to them. You can get that at any feed store. You probably only have to wait another day or two to see if the other weak one will make it. Once this all passes your remaining chicks will actually be stronger and have a stronger immune system for making it through this!

Good luck!

Coccidiosis is a very common illness in new chicks. Albon or sulfadimethoxine is one of the good treatments for it, but Corid (amprollium) is a little more widely used. When you take a break from the Albon, give some poultry vitamins with probiotics for a few days to get their guts back to normal. It's good that you caught this in time to save some of your chicks. Here is some reading about the disease:
http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2012/12/coccidiosis-what-backyard-chicken.html
http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/poultry/coccidiosis/overview_of_coccidiosis_in_poultry.html
http://www.chickenvet.co.uk/health-and-common-diseases/coccidiosis/index.aspx