I need some advice pertaining to silkies in particular.
I have a brooder with six chicks, four of which are silkies. A little over two weeks ago there were suddenly bloody droppings in the coop. I put the chicks on Corid (amprolium) as soon as I saw them, and within two days the bloody droppings had stopped. I finished their course of Corid treatment. This occured very shortly after they'd been taken off medicated feed (which they had the first six weeks of their lives) and been exposed to the outdoors. I had never had a problem with raising chicks on medicated feed before, but I've never raised silkies before. I've since read that Amprolium, even in the very small doses in medicated feed, can deplete their vitamins. The dosage in Corid is definitely known to. One of my chicks has since developed a bad case of crook neck that I am currently treating. I suspect that this is, at the very least, in part due to the medicated feed/Corid treatment. I haven't seen much improvement with her yet but I have hope.
Now this is where I need advice. Two days ago the bloody droppings came back in the brooder. I have to give them further treatment with Corid, because I know that cocci is very deadly. However, I am very worried that my three other silkie chicks will develop the crook neck that Tabitha has. When I look up cocci treatment everyone says to give them vitamin supplements AFTER treatment, but not during, which implies that they would make Corid less effective. But I just don't know what to do to keep my silkies healthy. Also, I do not understand why the cocci came back. My chicks are in a sanitized brooder, on pine shavings that I change frequently, with waterers that I clean out multiple times a day and a feeder that I clean when I refill. They're not in dirty or damp or poorly ventilated conditions. If the cocci isn't kicked by this treatment I will consult my vet, but he is not an avian specialist so I don't think he'll have any helpful advice on what do with silkies and this vitamin issue. I have poly-vi-sol and vitamin e (and I know that you also need selenium to make the vitamin e effective) but I'm not sure when I should be treating them with it. or how much to treat them with as a preventative measure? I've never dealt with these issues before and would appreciate any advice from people who have experience with it.
I have a brooder with six chicks, four of which are silkies. A little over two weeks ago there were suddenly bloody droppings in the coop. I put the chicks on Corid (amprolium) as soon as I saw them, and within two days the bloody droppings had stopped. I finished their course of Corid treatment. This occured very shortly after they'd been taken off medicated feed (which they had the first six weeks of their lives) and been exposed to the outdoors. I had never had a problem with raising chicks on medicated feed before, but I've never raised silkies before. I've since read that Amprolium, even in the very small doses in medicated feed, can deplete their vitamins. The dosage in Corid is definitely known to. One of my chicks has since developed a bad case of crook neck that I am currently treating. I suspect that this is, at the very least, in part due to the medicated feed/Corid treatment. I haven't seen much improvement with her yet but I have hope.
Now this is where I need advice. Two days ago the bloody droppings came back in the brooder. I have to give them further treatment with Corid, because I know that cocci is very deadly. However, I am very worried that my three other silkie chicks will develop the crook neck that Tabitha has. When I look up cocci treatment everyone says to give them vitamin supplements AFTER treatment, but not during, which implies that they would make Corid less effective. But I just don't know what to do to keep my silkies healthy. Also, I do not understand why the cocci came back. My chicks are in a sanitized brooder, on pine shavings that I change frequently, with waterers that I clean out multiple times a day and a feeder that I clean when I refill. They're not in dirty or damp or poorly ventilated conditions. If the cocci isn't kicked by this treatment I will consult my vet, but he is not an avian specialist so I don't think he'll have any helpful advice on what do with silkies and this vitamin issue. I have poly-vi-sol and vitamin e (and I know that you also need selenium to make the vitamin e effective) but I'm not sure when I should be treating them with it. or how much to treat them with as a preventative measure? I've never dealt with these issues before and would appreciate any advice from people who have experience with it.
