Backyard Brahmas!!

[speckledhen]

ok so i called the hardware store, they have been given the "mech ? merk" ? shot but not the coccidiosis shot,,,

I'm stupid, please teach me----so do i put them on the medicated food?

Mareks Disease is what they meant. None of mine are vaccinated for ANYTHING, never have been, no need here. They don't need a cocci shot and don't need medicated feed, either. It won't hurt but probably won't help much, either. It will not prevent cocci, no matter what anyone tells you. If there are oocysts in the soil that cause cocci and you haven't given them any dirt in their brooder from early on, when they hit the dirt, they'll most likely get cocci anywhere from 4-10 weeks of age. After that, they generally outgrow it. You need powdered or liquid Corid on hand for when that happens. It's concentrated amprolium, the same med in medicated feed in a much larger dose. It is a thiamine blocker, not an antibiotic, so not a problem to give them Corid when they get cocci, which is very common, especially in wet areas of the country.

 

[SD Bird Lady]

It's a personal choice, medicated helps prevent cocci but if you want completely "natural" then its probably not what you want. I personally dont feed medicated and have never had a problem, but cocci can be fast moving and deadly so definitely worth adding it to your program if cocci is a problem in your area.

 

[speckledhen]

It's a personal choice, medicated helps prevent cocci but if you want completely "natural" then its probably not what you want. I personally dont feed medicated and have never had a problem, but cocci can be fast moving and deadly so definitely worth adding it to your program if cocci is a problem in your area.

Actually, I've never seen that medicated feed prevented cocci at all. We live in the soupy south, which does make a difference, but I used to feed medicated until I found that it did nothing to prevent cocci at all here. Now, I generally use non med feed to keep their B vitamins balanced since medicated feed blocks the B vitamin thiamine.

It's always good to have Corid on hand in the medicine chest when raising chicks. Cocci is indeed fast moving and will kill a chick so I'd not worry about medicated feed and just get some Corid. I now prefer the powdered 20% form. Easy to administer. You may find even if you feed medicated, you'll need Corid anyway.

 

[speckledhen]

Adding to what SD Bird Lady said, if you want to feed as naturally as possible, you can skip medicated feed. If you see signs of cocci, just give them Corid-doctored water for 5 days and usually, that's all it takes. At least they won't have it running through their systems every single day, which is something I don't really want. But, I used to have a hard time years ago finding non-medicated in my area.

If the co-op is out of non-med feed when I must have chick starter, I just get the medicated, but I never assume it will help prevent cocci. And the next bag, if they have the non-med, I switch to non-medicated. If they have it from the beginning, they just start out on the non-medicated feed and I see no difference in the instances of cocci between medicated and non-medicated. If it's in the soil, especially during a long, protracted wet period that occurs during that 4-10 week age range, they will likely have one bout of it, no matter what feed they're eating.

 

[newmarch2014]

I agree medicated feed is not really neccessary. I keep Corid on hand if I see a couple really runny poop in a row from a couple chickens/chicks when they are young and use it as stated above. I know they say they cant get it till they are out in the run but I am pretty sure mine came to me with it from the feed store one year. One of mine almost died and the rest were showing signs within a week. I treated with corrid and all was eventually fine. Earlier you asked about grit, I let them have a few days to make sure that everyone is eating well and then I put a grit container in the brooder, it gets them ready for treats that I can never resist giving them after the first week. You do have to keep an eye and make sure they are all getting plenty of actual feed but I haven't had a problem ever.

 

[speckledhen]

I agree medicated feed is not really neccessary. I keep Corid on hand if I see a couple really runny poop in a row from a couple chickens/chicks when they are young and use it as stated above. I know they say they cant get it till they are out in the run but I am pretty sure mine came to me with it from the feed store one year. One of mine almost died and the rest were showing signs within a week. I treated with corrid and all was eventually fine. Earlier you asked about grit, I let them have a few days to make sure that everyone is eating well and then I put a grit container in the brooder, it gets them ready for treats that I can never resist giving them after the first week. You do have to keep an eye and make sure they are all getting plenty of actual feed but I haven't had a problem ever.

What you may not know is that now, coccidiosis has mutated. There is a form of it that can actually be passed down through the egg to the chick from the parents-whodathunkit?! I know this only because of a necropsy done by the University of KY on a friend's chicks.

This was a few years ago. A breeder sent me hatching eggs to hatch for a friend who was coming down for a visit, a surprise gift she wanted to give as she was also a friend of my friend. The chicks were in my brooder for less than two weeks when she took them home, along with chicks of my own that I hatched. A couple of months later, they began to die, just seemed lethargic one day, dead the next, one by one. No symptoms. She did treat for cocci, but it didn't work. It was so mysterious that she had one tested and it was a mutated form of cocci that was not known in that region and that was not one of the 9 normal known types; they say it passed through the egg and the chicks already had it inside them. That was a shocker for both of us. None of my chicks in that same brooder with them ever had anything wrong with them, so it was specific to those olive egger chicks. The vet said you must give them a double dose of Corid, not the regular one, but double strength, that a regular dosage would not touch that type of cocci they had.

Germs and other organisms are mutating. It's not that strange that the minimal dose of amprolium in the medicated feed does not work well anymore. That's one reason why I say medicated feed is practically useless now.

 

[eleaserek]

So my little 9 week old light brahma is limping

I've got her separated in a crate, but I'm wondering if there is anything else I can/should be doing for her? It's the 3rd day she's been limping, and I'm not sure how it happened. At first I was hoping it would heal by itself, so I just let her be. But she is so determined to keep up with everyone else that it just is getting worse. So today I put her in the hospital crate.

 

[SD Bird Lady]

Does her foot seem fine? (bumble foot, cut, etc..) which joint seems to be the problem? (hip, "ankle") She may have hurt it jumping down from somewhere, its common in brahmas since they are larger birds.

 

[eleaserek]

Does her foot seem fine? (bumble foot, cut, etc..) which joint seems to be the problem? (hip, "ankle") She may have hurt it jumping down from somewhere, its common in brahmas since they are larger birds.

I checked her feet and they look good. I think it might be her hip or knee? She limps much worse after she's been laying down for a while, but while it is a little better with use, it's still very pronounced.
The best guess I can make is she pulled something while running from one of the big girls. They've been integrated with my 5 adult hens for about 3weeks. For the most part, everything is peaceful, but my head hen, a barred rock sometimes gets a burr up her butt and patactically stalks them. I have lots of little hidey holes for them, and I don't think that she actually got caught since there are no actual marks on her.

 

[newmarch2014]

Sometimes bumblefoot hides itself well. Make sure the feet are clean and inspect for any black spots. I have thought mine looked clear before but upon cleaning and strectching have found the black spot near the toes.