Coccidiosis Questions - egg safety, feces composting

[starlogva]

Hi Everyone. I love this site and use it frequently as a reference. Thanks to everyone who posts.

I'm pretty new to chickens - got my first ones May 2010. I've had no issues except one Australorpe with recurring sour crop who, unfortunately died despite medication. Two days ago I installed nice, white poop boards and was rewarded with bloody poop! I'd given them watermelon and thought it was that, but this morning there was no doubt. One of my 1-yr old EEs was still on the roost, hunched, tail down, lethargic, comb pale and shrunken, and watery, bloody feces under her.

I immediately brought her inside and started frantically searching the internet. She appears to have coccidiosis and I just happened to have Sulmet. She wouldn't eat or drink so I used a crop tube to place about 10ml of medicated water into her. An hour later, she passed the liquid, stayed standing, and ate a little whole wheat bread covered with plain yogurt. Within the next hour she started talking to me, eating pellets, and drinking medicated water. Shortly thereafter, her tail popped back up. Her comb is still pallid.

I've already replaced the drinking water with medicated water for the remaining chickens. I saw a few other bloody spots on the boards of both the 1-yr olds and the 3-mo olds so I'm sure they're also affected.

My questions are:

1. How long should I keep the sickest girl isolated? Since the others are already exposed, should I just wait until she looks strong enough?

2. Did I catch this early enough to likely prevent any deaths?

3. I've never wormed so I'm considering doing that during the withdrawal period for the Sulmet. Should I do it now or wait until I finish the 6-day course of Sulmet (or longer)?

4. What is your opinion on the best way to eradicate the oocysts in the coop and chicken yard? There is so much conflicting information about lime, bleach, steam, ammonia, etc.

5. Did I cause this problem by using the deep litter method? I removed the litter the same day I installed the new poop boards and I found a damp spot underneath. Was this harboring the coccidia and did my disturbance spread it to my girls?

6. Is it safe to compost the manure? I searched and haven't found it mentioned.

7. Are the eggs from the last few days safe to eat?

I know I should take her to a vet but I've found them to be somewhat lacking, especially with chickens. They couldn't even figure out what was wrong with my dog (thousands of dollars down the drain) and all he had was a simple yeast infection and some allergies. Finally, I had to "steer" them to the yeast diagnosis so I could get the prescription drug to treat it. There was a bird vet, but she left the area. Sigh...

If anyone believes my "diagnosis" to be incorrect, you won't upset me by saying so! All I care about is saving my girls. Thanks in advance!

Barb in Central VA

 

[kimmybee]

I am by no means an expert, I have posted several things on here and sometimes I get no response so if you don't get your questions directly answered try going back to old threads, I would be curious about the composting too. You sound very knowledgeable so good luck!

 

[starlogva]

Thanks kimmybee. I'm worried because she stopped eating & drinking again. I just finished tubing more water into her. I really like my girls and I don't want to lose her.

 

[Blue]

I wouldn't worry too much about getting rid of the cocci in the soil. It's something that I doubt can ever truly be eradicated, and it's something that the chickens just need to build up an immunity to. Some agricultural lime might be a good idea, though; it could be possible that the dampness of the coop floor played a part, and a layer of lime under the bedding would help to dry up any moisture. I've noticed that when I change pine shavings in my coops, there's always at least one spot that's extremely damp, too. I've also been battling Cocci in my 4 week old chicks this year, but their pen has a dirt bottom that I've put shavings over top of. It seems to dry out fairly well, but they've still developed Cocci. In my case, I believe it's because I put them outside to stay without slowly acclimating them to the soil beforehand: hindsight.

 

[starlogva]

Blue - I see you're in VA, too. I wonder if the weather has made it worse - wet, dry, hot, then not...? I'll have to get some powdered lime. The soil here is very acidic (we had it tested) so we'll soon be spreading lime everywhere. Maybe it'll reduce some of the cocci load in the soil. Thanks!

I didn't know to introduce them slowly to the outside to build immunity. I was just lucky that I did it because I didn't want them too stressed by suddenly putting them outside all day. You know how freaked out they get. Help! Help! What is all this green stuff??? Oh, I can eat it. Chomp.