Coccidiosis

[tracyallyson]

Help! Coccidiosis fecal tested by vet. confirmed! first treatment was for five days with Corid / also cleaned their pen out . They still have loose stools no blood. retested confirmed again - six days later my chickens still have Coccidiosis the vet said it will never really go away???! I don't beleave it.I really need some advice, do to the reinfestation aspect of this parasite. my chicks are four weeks old and some are six months old and some are almost two yrs. They all have it of course since it is very contagious. The vet recommend same treatment Corid for five days or food that is medicated all the time or new treatment of squirting some medication in to each chickens mouth( which costs quite a bit of money.) The money really isn't the real problem for me. its the fact this stuff won't really go away! the vet could not recommend any disinfectant to clean their inside pen except bleach water and nothing for their dirt floor outside pen. I usally let them free range all day on our ten acres i AM REALLY AT A LOSS!

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Not ususual, really.

I have twice had to treat twice in a row with Corid, as the bloody poo came back a few days later (two batches of chickens had this happen).

Cocci are in the soil everywhere. Don't worry- if they survive, they will get their immunity.

If I felt they were still sick, I'd just retreat. Don't give them vitamins at the same time as the Corid. The standard medicated feed doesn't give them enough medication to treat coccidiosis, and just helps prevent it, unless this is special feed that the vet had recommended.

I have never done anything special to treat my coops for coccidiosis. Just bleach water and sometimes just spraying out with hot water.

 

[dawg53]

ChickensAreSweet is correct in her assessment. It is normal to have cocci in your chicks/chickens. The problem comes when it gets out of control or they are infected by a different type of cocci that is not present in your soil. When you take a fecal sample to a vet, the microscopic slide will show a few oocysts on the slide. It's when the slide is loaded with oocysts is when there'll be a problem. When you treat for cocci, then take a sample back to the vet, the microscopic slide is still going to show a few oocysts, which would be normal. Continue to feed your chicks medicated chick starter til they are 18-20 weeks old, then switch to layer feed. Dont give them treats, scratch nor vitamins as ChickensAreSweet mentioned. Dont add anything to their water. You want the diarrhea to clear up as best as possible, especially if it's constant. Bleachwater will not kill cocci protozoa. Use ammonia water to sanitize waterers, feeders, roosts etc...rinse and dry thoroughly. You can add sand to your pen/run to help keep it dry. Keeping everything bone dry is the key to keeping cocci, other parasites down...but not completely eliminating them.
If some of your birds are really sick, they might not be able to drink the water on their own. You will have to use an eyedropper and withdraw the medicated water and dose them individually 4-5 times a day til they can drink it on their own. For larger birds, you can use a large syringe without a needle.
If the corid fails you, I recommend sulmet to treat them.

 

[andiphant]

I'm a new chicken owner (have had 4 mature cinnamon queens for two weeks now, they are between 8-12 months old) and trying to decide if I should be concerned or not... One of the hens does have diarrhea and on two occasions there have been red specks (blood I assume) in it. They act happy and healthy, eating and drinking and each of them laying an egg every day. Is this something that comes and goes and not a big concern or something I should treat for? Thanks for your input.