Dirt for baby chicks

[Saraschickens]

I've heard that too, but I don't recall ever hearing it from a poultry science specialist that would know what they are talking about. I understand about first milk with mammals but chickens are not mammals and the inside of an egg is not " special milk" (colostrum) straight from the mother that gets altered later.

I'm not a poultry science specialist but it makes no sense to me why you would be better off waiting any longer to start working on immunities. If they are raised by a broody hen they will get that stuff immediately from her. In a brooder they will not start working on immunities until they are exposed to it. I want mine exposed while it is still easy to observe them, not because they are stronger in developing immunity. It is easier to keep the brooder dry than the run if they are on the ground and the weather sets in wet.


I'm going to copy something I wrote several years ago about Coccidiosis and medicated feed. It was written in response to different questions but it might help your understanding of Coccidiosis.

In response to your questions if you keep conditions dry so the bug that causes the problems does not multiply to great numbers you have a decent chance of never seeing any symptoms. Once the bug is introduced the chicks start developing immunity to it. So you are in a race between them developing immunity in two to three weeks or of the numbers growing so large they get sick.

As to symptoms, only some show bloody poop. A lot do not. What you are looking for is them standing around puffed up and lethargic. They don't feel good and they show it.


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.

Thank you so much for all the information! You're awesome!
I've been raising chickens (and breeding and raising chicks) for 17 years (mostly silkies). I've never fed medicated feed, I've never gotten coccidiosis in my flock or lost chicks to it, thank God. I had a scare 2 years ago, which ended up being worms, that people here thought could be coccidiosis so I bought Corid under recommendation. I never used it since that wasn't the problem.
I've learned so much! And it never hurts to be prepared...and educated!
Thank you soo much!

 

[Saraschickens]

Thank you so much for all the information! You're awesome!
I've been raising chickens (and breeding and raising chicks) for 17 years (mostly silkies). I've never fed medicated feed, I've never gotten coccidiosis in my flock or lost chicks to it, thank God. I had a scare 2 years ago, which ended up being worms, that people here thought could be coccidiosis so I bought Corid under recommendation. I never used it since that wasn't the problem.
I've learned so much! And it never hurts to be prepared...and educated!
Thank you soo much!

I've actually never given them dirt before either though. This is officially my first time. But I wasn't ever very sterile with it, so I'm sure they were getting exposed. When I first started I didn't have Google or YouTube or anywhere to get information. So it was just trial and error, and any information parents could provide.

 

[Saraschickens]

I'm curious, can Corid be used as a preventive for chicks getting coccidiosis? I've given them dirt twice now. Tomorrow, half are 2 weeks old and the other half will be 3 weeks old the next day.
I'm just curious if it's only best to use it when needed, or can it be used as a preventive?

 

[rosemarythyme]

I'm curious, can Corid be used as a preventive for chicks getting coccidiosis? I've given them dirt twice now. Tomorrow, half are 2 weeks old and the other half will be 3 weeks old the next day.
I'm just curious if it's only best to use it when needed, or can it be used as a preventive?

It is not a preventative in that it can only affect the parasite if it's in their system - you cannot give it ahead of time to affect parasites or eggs that are ingested after.

If you're inoculating via outside exposure you don't want to kill off any parasites that they might have taken in, the point is to get a little bit in there so their bodies learn to deal with it.

 

[Saraschickens]

It is not a preventative in that it can only affect the parasite if it's in their system - you cannot give it ahead of time to affect parasites or eggs that are ingested after.

If you're inoculating via outside exposure you don't want to kill off any parasites that they might have taken in, the point is to get a little bit in there so their bodies learn to deal with it.

Oooh! That's a good answer! Thank you!
Is the only thing I can do to prevent coccidiosis, is keep the brooder dry, and clean? Giving electrolytes, vitamins, minerals, probiotics? And then give dirt every 3 days?

 

[rosemarythyme]

Oooh! That's a good answer! Thank you!
Is the only thing I can do to prevent coccidiosis, is keep the brooder dry, and clean? And give dirt every 3 days?

Dry brooders are always ideal not just because the parasite prefers damp conditions but because chicks can get chilled from being damp.

The dirt doesn't have to be on a schedule, you can have it in there all the time if you wish for purposes of early exposure.

 

[Saraschickens]

Dry brooders are always ideal not just because the parasite prefers damp conditions but because chicks can get chilled from being damp.

The dirt doesn't have to be on a schedule, you can have it in there all the time if you wish for purposes of early exposure.

Ok, great! Thank you! You rock!