Coccidiosis?? Or not??

[aking19]

I need help with chick poo. These babies are approaching 2 weeks old. I have had them a week and had them on medicated feed, prior to that I am not sure if they were on medicated feed, I don’t think so. Some of these poos look strange to me. They are also getting probiotics in their water. I think the first 2 are maybe just cecal. But these last 2 its hard to tell, rust color and the last one is slightly gelly. This isn’t my first rodeo with chicks, but these poops seem odd to me. Edit note: everyone seems to be acting ok, eating, drinking, moving about. They are EEs and Australorps

 

[azygous]

Have the chicks been on the soil outside their brooder? At two weeks, they would have had to have been exposed to coccidia a week ago to account for the incubation period. But I agree with your concern about the poop being abnormal. It won't hurt to give them two rounds of Corid to be safe.

While you must refrain from giving the chicks any B vitamins during Corid treatment, you should give these vitamins in between rounds and directly after the second round to restore thiamine levels.

 

[aking19]

Have the chicks been on the soil outside their brooder? At two weeks, they would have had to have been exposed to coccidia a week ago to account for the incubation period. But I agree with your concern about the poop being abnormal. It won't hurt to give them two rounds of Corid to be safe.

While you must refrain from giving the chicks any B vitamins during Corid treatment, you should give these vitamins in between rounds and directly after the second round to restore thiamine levels.

Thanks for your reply. They have not been outside at all. I got them from a local hatchery but their babies are all inside in brooders too. I get chicks from these folks regularly too. I thought all chicks/chickens have coccidiosis in their imlntestines regardless and they get exposed as they poop even in the brooder?? I did change all bedding today too as its been a week with them in it.

One other question, can i treat with corid even if theyre not sick? That doesnt hurt them right? I have never had to deal with coccidiosis before

 

[azygous]

Corid is a coccidiostat, not an antibiotic. It merely blocks the thiamine in the intestines that coccidia thrive on. Corid starves them. It is safe to treat for coccidiosis at any time even if you only suspect it.

You may, however, get confirmation by taking some random poop samples to your vet and request a fecal float test. It can be run in less than an hour and they could give you results that quickly.

Newly hatched chicks will not have coccidia in their feces until they are exposed to the soil outside. Then they will have a certain amount in their intestines, but they will develop resistance to them. Only when coccidia become so numerous in the soil and the intestines do the chickens become sick.

Chickens can also become sick if soil is somehow brought in from another location that has a different strain of coccidia that the chickens are not resistant to. It is also conceivable that new chicks could become infected with coccidia if handled with dirty hands that have been working the soil outside. Other than that, it's unlikely that such young chicks would be infected.