Topic of the Week - Emergency/First Aid Preparedness

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I use amoxicillin. It's marketed for fish under the labels "Fishmox or "Aquamox" usually. You can buy it online or from local feed or pet stores that choose to carry it. It comes in capsule form and the dose for chickens is 250mg and is given directly into the beak to swallow whole.
 
Gooood question. Everything has expiration dates for sure. 🐓❤️
The expiration date on a bottle refers to unopened shelf life. Some products expire after once unsealed and exposed to the effect of light, oxidation, moisture, etc.
Personally, as my general rule I will not use certain products (ointments, vitamin supplements (especially gel caps, fish oils, gummy) if over 6 months past the date it was opened. I also recommend storing in a dry, dark, cool location. If meds are mixed in bulk store in a dark colored glass or food grade plastic container with a good sealing lid.
Keep in mind UV light can degrade products. Oxygen will oxidize. Heat and moisture are catalysts for chemical change.
 


My arsenal against injury and illness, along with my ability to recognize the onset of such, has grown over the years from nothing to a pretty sizable cache.

The first time a chicken died occurred just a couple days after I began my flock with two adult chickens adopted from a friend's flock after she died in a horrible accident. I had no idea why the hen died, and I just assumed it was something that just "happened" with chickens.

Now, nearly ten years later, I've learned the signs of a sick chicken, and even without being a vet, I can often figure out what's wrong and how to treat it. However, I still need to come back here and ask questions when I have a chicken with an ailment I can't figure out, as I just did recently, surprising a few of my friends here.

I keep amoxicillin and penicillin on hand to treat a chicken who suddenly becomes ill. A normally chatty hen will suddenly go mute. She will seclude herself in a corner, often facing a wall, tail held low and flat. Last spring, I lost a new layer to a sudden illness and it took her life before the antibiotic could take hold, but I was in time to save her sister a week later when she came down with the same thing. I strongly suspect my compost pile was responsible.

A very wet winter and spring had made a soggy mess out of the compost bins, and I had been disposing of a lot of spoiled apples and squash in it that turned normally present botulism spores into a deadly toxin called Clostridium perfringens. It can kill in 24 hours. With an antibiotic, a chicken can be cured.

I get my antibiotics from KV Pet Supply. They're for fish, but work just fine on chickens, and I can cope with the new US federal law which requires a vet prescription starting in 2017.

I also have on hand antibiotic eye drops, steroid drops, and anti-inflammatory drops for eye infections and sinus infections, as well as simple lubricating saline eye drops. I and a few of my friends have had cataracts removed and these drops were prescribed for our surgeries. They work splendidly on chickens.

I've dealt with my share of injuries, and vet wrap is one of the most important items to keep in a chicken first aid kit. Chicken beaks are sometimes even more dexterous than human fingers, and vet wrap is practically chicken proof since it adheres to itself. I use it cut into one-inch wide strips twelve inches long with telfa pads on the wound. Bandaging a bumblefoot patient with vet wrap enables me to return them immediately to the flock to avoid re-entry stress later.

Bag Balm is a helpful product for frostbite prevention. It's better than Vaseline since it has lanolin in it and lubricates and protects deep into the tissue.

Vetericyn is another valuable wound care product, protecting against infection while promoting tissue regeneration.

Here's more:

Epsom salt
Triple antibiotic ointment
Electrolyte powder
corn starch
worm meds
Corid
Elector PSP or permethrin dusting powder
Castor oil
Coconut oil
Mineral oil
Betadine
alcohol
Miconazole for sour crop
Copper sulfate for sour crop and other yeast infections
Blu-kote or Blue lotion
hydrogen peroxide
soap
Q-tips
cotton balls
Baby aspirin
Antibiotics
Poultry nutri-drench and B-vitamins and selenium
Calcium citrate
Vet wrap and telfa pads
sharp, small scissors



Start your own kit. It can save the life of your favorite chicken!
I absolutely love this! I'm printing this out and getting the things I don't have today! That you for this detailed post and list ❤️
 
I do have a question as for what you would keep in hand in case they eat something they aren't supposed to i.e. metal or plant that can be poisonous? I have a very large property and my ducks dig random things up all the time, it's a nightmare of mine that one day I won't see it in time. Suggestions! Is there a tar paste of some kind?
 


My arsenal against injury and illness, along with my ability to recognize the onset of such, has grown over the years from nothing to a pretty sizable cache.

The first time a chicken died occurred just a couple days after I began my flock with two adult chickens adopted from a friend's flock after she died in a horrible accident. I had no idea why the hen died, and I just assumed it was something that just "happened" with chickens.

Now, nearly ten years later, I've learned the signs of a sick chicken, and even without being a vet, I can often figure out what's wrong and how to treat it. However, I still need to come back here and ask questions when I have a chicken with an ailment I can't figure out, as I just did recently, surprising a few of my friends here.

I keep amoxicillin and penicillin on hand to treat a chicken who suddenly becomes ill. A normally chatty hen will suddenly go mute. She will seclude herself in a corner, often facing a wall, tail held low and flat. Last spring, I lost a new layer to a sudden illness and it took her life before the antibiotic could take hold, but I was in time to save her sister a week later when she came down with the same thing. I strongly suspect my compost pile was responsible.

A very wet winter and spring had made a soggy mess out of the compost bins, and I had been disposing of a lot of spoiled apples and squash in it that turned normally present botulism spores into a deadly toxin called Clostridium perfringens. It can kill in 24 hours. With an antibiotic, a chicken can be cured.

I get my antibiotics from KV Pet Supply. They're for fish, but work just fine on chickens, and I can cope with the new US federal law which requires a vet prescription starting in 2017.

I also have on hand antibiotic eye drops, steroid drops, and anti-inflammatory drops for eye infections and sinus infections, as well as simple lubricating saline eye drops. I and a few of my friends have had cataracts removed and these drops were prescribed for our surgeries. They work splendidly on chickens.

I've dealt with my share of injuries, and vet wrap is one of the most important items to keep in a chicken first aid kit. Chicken beaks are sometimes even more dexterous than human fingers, and vet wrap is practically chicken proof since it adheres to itself. I use it cut into one-inch wide strips twelve inches long with telfa pads on the wound. Bandaging a bumblefoot patient with vet wrap enables me to return them immediately to the flock to avoid re-entry stress later.

Bag Balm is a helpful product for frostbite prevention. It's better than Vaseline since it has lanolin in it and lubricates and protects deep into the tissue.

Vetericyn is another valuable wound care product, protecting against infection while promoting tissue regeneration.

Here's more:

Epsom salt
Triple antibiotic ointment
Electrolyte powder
corn starch
worm meds
Corid
Elector PSP or permethrin dusting powder
Castor oil
Coconut oil
Mineral oil
Betadine
alcohol
Miconazole for sour crop
Copper sulfate for sour crop and other yeast infections
Blu-kote or Blue lotion
hydrogen peroxide
soap
Q-tips
cotton balls
Baby aspirin
Antibiotics
Poultry nutri-drench and B-vitamins and selenium
Calcium citrate
Vet wrap and telfa pads
sharp, small scissors



Start your own kit. It can save the life of your favorite chicken!
If you can tell what disease, can you tell me if my chicken has mareks or an injury (or something else)?
(Go to the timestamp 3:54)
 

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