Coccidiosis prevention

[Pampered chicken girl]

Not trying to start a fight but Amprolium resistance is a real thing and has reduced the effectiveness of Amprolium.
I am glad you have not experienced it but it is a real problem.
What I don’t know is whether the low doses in medicated feed are enough to lead to resistance.

Various references below. There are dozens of studies on this topic.

https://www.poultrymed.com/Amprolium

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3724148/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/274682/

Hmm, ok thank you for the information.

 

[sdm111]

Survival of the fittest. You're going to have weak blood if you keep them on medicine. Keep them clean, dry and not overcrowded and what happens happens..

 

[Pampered chicken girl]

Survival of the fittest. You're going to have weak blood if you keep them on medicine. Keep them clean, dry and not overcrowded and what happens happens..

Some people want to do everything to keep them healthy. It's not their fault that their immune systems aren't developed yet!

 

[sdm111]

Some people want to do everything to keep them healthy. It's not their fault that their immune systems aren't developed yet!

Their immune system strength is a direct result of their parents. So yes it is

 

[Pampered chicken girl]

Their immune system strength is a direct result of their parents. So yes it is

If you get sick nobody is going to tell you "well sorry but survival of the fitest, sorry" you apparently have no appreciation for their little lives

 

[Ridgerunner]

Could I give corid powder to chickens 1 Gal per week? As a preventative measure to keep them from getting sick?

The active ingredient in Corid is Amprolium. Amprolium is not an antibiotic, it is a thiamine inhibitor. It affects the ability of the bug that causes Coccidiosis to reproduce. It does not affect anything other than Coccidiosis. In the dosage in Corid it is a treatment after they catch the disease. In the dosage in medicated feed it is an inhibitor but not strong enough for a treatment.

I'll copy something I wrote up for another thread on Coccidiosis and Medicated Feed. If your problem is Coccidiosis and nothing but Coccidiosis this might help you. Any questions let me know. If your problem is something else then what is the problem. How are they getting sick? What are the symptoms?


First you need to know what the "medicated" is in the medicated feed. It should be on the label. Usually it is Amprolium, Amprol, some such product, but until you read the label, you really don't know. Most "medicated' feed from major brands for chicks that will be layers uses Amprolium, but there are a few out there mostly for broilers, that use other medicines. I'll assume yours is an Amprolium product, but if it is not, then realize everything I say about it may not apply. And it is possible that the "medicated" is Amprolium AND something else.

Amprolium is not an antibiotic. It does not kill anything. It inhibits the protozoa that cause coccidiosis (often called Cocci on this forum) from multiplying in the chicken's system. It does not prevent the protozoa from multiplying; it just slows that multiplication down. There are several different strains of protozoa that can cause Cocci, some more severe than others. Chickens can develop immunity to a specific strain of the protozoa, but that does not give them immunity to all protozoa that cause Cocci.

It is not a big deal for the chicken’s intestines to contain some of the protozoa that cause Cocci. The problem comes in when the number of those protozoa gets huge. The protozoa can multiply in the chicken’s intestines but also in wet manure. For them to reproduce they need some moisture. Slightly damp isn't an issue, soaking wet is. Different protozoa strains have different strengths, but for almost all cases, if you keep the brooder dry, you will not have a problem.

To develop immunity to a specific strain, that protozoa needs to be in the chicks intestines for two or three weeks. The normal sequence is that a chick has the protozoa. It poops and some of the cysts that develop the protozoa come out in the poop. If the poop is slightly damp, those cysts develop and will then develop in the chick's intestines when the chicks eat that poop. This cycle needs go on for a few weeks so all chicks are exposed and they are exposed long enough to develop immunity. A couple of important points here. You do need to watch them to see if they are getting sick. And the key is to keep the brooder dry yet allow some of the poop to stay damp. Not soaking wet, just barely damp. Wet poop can lead to serious problems.

What sometimes happens is that people keep chicks in a brooder and feed them medicated feed while they are in the brooder. Those chicks are never exposed to the Cocci protozoa that lives in the dirt in their run, so they never develop the immunity to it. Then, they are switched to non-medicated feed and put on the ground where they are for the first time exposed to the protozoa. They do not have immunity, they do not have the protection of the medicated feed, so they get sick. Feeding medicated feed while in the brooder was a complete waste.

I do not feed medicated feed. I keep the brooder dry to not allow the protozoa to breed uncontrollably. The third day that they are in the brooder, I take a scoop of dirt from the run and feed it to them so I can introduce the protozoa and they can develop the immunity they need to the strain they need to develop an immunity to. Since I keep my brooder extremely dry and the water clean the protozoa can't reproduce so every three days I give them more dirt from the run so they get more protozoa and can develop immunity. I don't lose chicks to Cocci when they hit the ground.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with feeding medicated feed to chicks, whether the protozoa are present or not. It will not hurt them. They can still develop the immunity they need. But unless the protozoa are present, it also does no good.

If you get your chicks vaccinated for Cocci, do not feed medicated feed. It can negate the vaccinations.

 

[Okie Bob]

Could I give corid powder to chickens 1 Gal per week? As a preventative measure to keep them from getting sick? I don't know if I have just bad luck, but I hatch out a ton of chicks. And clean everything but I will still have chicks die and or get sick randomly out of no where. I even spray chickens with mite spray. Thanks for the help!!

Liquid Corid is easier to use. The powder tends to cake. I routinely give all of my hatchlings Corid for a minimum of 7 days before they leave the brooder. In wet weather, I extend that to 16 days. I use 4 drops to a pint, 8 to a quart. Should be sole source of water.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

My understanding is that Corid, mimics thiamine not blocks it.. and the coccidia feed on the fake thiamine ultimately being starved out to slow their growth/reproduction but doesn't actually kill them thus allowing for some resistance to build. Or at least that's what their website says..

https://www.corid.com/CoridProducts.html

IF/when Amprolium is no longer effective against coccidia.. then a sulpha drug can be used. Resistance is a KNOWN fact.

Some chicks just don't make it.. regardless of coccidia load. Questioning the symptoms, day of passing, etc.. and identifying if there really is need for treatment/prevention aside from standard good husbandry.

I think I'd just hatch less chicks, create less crowding. But this much I do know.. the more chicks you hatch the more things you will see and experience. including failure to thrive, genetic weaknesses, possible deformities, etc. Let's not forget things like Marek's and so on.

FWIW.. using medicated feed is LOW dose and may NOT be enough to prevent coccidiosis in an individual environment, therefore.. drench or treatment dose with Corid (or sulpha drug) may STILL be required and the medicated feed may be leading some to a false sense of security and won't even consider coccidiosis when it starts to hits.

Introducing chicks to the soil slowly as indicated by another poster has made a huge difference for my juveniles going outside staying well.

I'm not against medicated feed or Corid.. I am against over use of anything.

Dear OP, with high stock density.. you might consider treating your ground, discussing it with your local agriculture department (or veterinarian) to see what's still working or not in your location.

If you're not already using a nipple type water system.. that might be an option.

Best wishes for thriving and healthy chicks!

 

[Chickn Keaper]

Could you use medicated feed? If you are wanting to medicate anyway, then this might be the easiest and most productive way of administering as a preventative.

I agree. 1 bag of medicated feed and I never have a problem.

 

[KBEquine]

Newbie here, so take my comments for what they are - or are not - worth. I bought chicks from a very experienced breeder. They arrived along with the heat wave and she suggested 7 to 10 days of CORID water on arrival due to the stress. Then one got sick & we went back to CORID. She said in the heat, you really can't overdo the CORID.

I don't know that that would translate to weekly CORID as a preventative, but it seems to work for us [I just wish I'd known to do it before that pullet got sick, but as I said . . . newbie here.]