Help - Coccidiosis Treatment Questions!

[HelloGiggles]

Hi all! Long time lurker, first time poster - excited to be a part of the community but sad this is my first reason for posting --

I have been treating what I am assuming is a bout of Coccidiosis in my four 17-18 week old pullets but I could use some advice, please!

I noticed some blood/intestinal shedding in the poop in photo #1 on 7/2 and became concerned. I order Corrid right away because my 4 young chickens had only recently been integrated into our flock of adult chickens outside maybe 3 weeks ago and we have gotten a lot of rain recently making things outside hot and damp. In my mind, perfect climate for cocci, right? To my knowledge, the little ones had not been vaccinated (purchased as chicks from TSC) and were fed unmedicated feed).

I started treating my entire flock for coccidiosis on 7/4 but read conflicting info online at first. I was only giving 1 teaspoon per gallon of drinking water. I was giving this as their only source of drinking water.

A few days later on 7/8, I saw similar stools from the young birds and read more information encouraging 2 teaspoons per gallon of water so I increased the dosage of Corrid. I have been giving this dosage since 7/8.

At no point in time have the young birds shown any other symptoms - all are eating and drinking normally, no lethargy or puffiness, no weight loss (thankfully!).

Today on 7/11, I am now on day 4 of the double dose of Corrid and still saw a much smaller amount of blood/intestinal shed in their poop this morning. However, should I still be seeing any blood at this point?

My other question is - how long should I continue dosing this way? Should I taper down to the recommended 1/2 teaspoon preventative dose even though they started on a 1 teaspoon dose initially? If so, when?

Is there anything else you recommend?

I do have nutri drench on hand to give them once we are done giving Corrid to replenish their vitamins, as well!

Thank you in advance - I am a nervous wreck and just want to make sure I get everyone healthy again!

 

[DobieLover]

Today on 7/11, I am now on day 4 of the double dose of Corrid

You are not double dosing. This is the correct dose for a severe outbreak.

how long should I continue dosing this way?

I would treat at this level for 7 days.

Should I taper down to the recommended 1/2 teaspoon preventative dose even though they started on a 1 teaspoon dose initially?

After you finish the 2 tsp/gal concentration, switch to the 1 tsp/gal for 5 days then stop and just give fresh water.

Is there anything else you recommend?

I would start fermenting some food when you start the tapered down dose and offer it the third day in. I would also add Kefir or buttermilk to the fermented feed to boost probiotics. Offer the Kefir or buttermilk every other day for a week then stop.
You can give some poultry vitamins after the Corid treatment is done if you want. It won't hurt.
Corid only inhibits the absorption of thiamine, not all vitamins.

all are eating and drinking normally, no lethargy or puffiness, no, weight loss

This is a very good sign that they are recovering well. But if they are shedding that much lining, it means a lot of repair and rebalancing of the gut biome is required.

Is their run exposed to lots of air and sun? The dryer things are, the better for keeping populations of coccidia under control.

 

[HelloGiggles]

You are not double dosing. This is the correct dose for a severe outbreak.

I would treat at this level for 7 days.

After you finish the 2 tsp/gal concentration, switch to the 1 tsp/gal for 5 days then stop and just give fresh water.

I would start fermenting some food when you start the tapered down dose and offer it the third day in. I would also add Kefir or buttermilk to the fermented feed to boost probiotics. Offer the Kefir or buttermilk every other day for a week then stop.
You can give some poultry vitamins after the Corid treatment is done if you want. It won't hurt.
Corid only inhibits the absorption of thiamine, not all vitamins.

This is a very good sign that they are recovering well. But if they are shedding that much lining, it means a lot of repair and rebalancing of the gut biome is required.

Is their run exposed to lots of air and sun? The dryer things are, the better for keeping populations of coccidia under control.

Thank you so much!

How do you ferment food?

They free range during the day in our fenced in yard so yes, the majority of the yard is exposed to lots of air and plenty of sun. Things have been much dryer fortunately, so I'm hoping the coccidia issue will have resolved. I also did a thorough cleaning of their coop and switched out all of their bedding, etc, just to be on the safe side.

Everyone is still acting normally and eating/drinking well so I'm thankful for that! I'm still seeing a teeny, tiny bit of intestinal shedding in their droppings today (today will be day 7 of 2 teaspoons of Corrid per gallon). I will plan on dropping down to 1 teaspoon per gallon of water as you advised and doing that for 5 days.

 

[DobieLover]

How do you ferment food?

I just add dry crumbles to a 1 gallon pitcher then add enough cold water to make a thick soup consistency. Add more water if needed if it gets too thick to stir after sitting for several minutes.

Until you get the hang of how thick it needs to be, keep the pitcher in the sink in case it bubbles over. Stir it twice a day for 2 - 3 days until it's bubbly and smells yeasty.
I then take out what I want to feed for the day, add dry crumbles as needed to make the mash stiff enough for the birds to eat. Then add more dry crumbles and water to the remaining fermented feed in the pitcher, stir and let sit until the next day.

Keep repeating.

My current fermented feed has been going for over 2 years now.

 

[HelloGiggles]

I just add dry crumbles to a 1 gallon pitcher then add enough cold water to make a thick soup consistency. Add more water if needed if it gets too thick to stir after sitting for several minutes.

Until you get the hang of how thick it needs to be, keep the pitcher in the sink in case it bubbles over. Stir it twice a day for 2 - 3 days until it's bubbly and smells yeasty.
I then take out what I want to feed for the day, add dry crumbles as needed to make the mash stiff enough for the birds to eat. Then add more dry crumbles and water to the remaining fermented feed in the pitcher, stir and let sit until the next day.

Keep repeating.

My current fermented feed has been going for over 2 years now.

Hi! I just came back here to thank you for the advice on the coccidiosis treatment. My flock has made a full recovery (so thankful!!) and I really appreciate your advice. Thank you, thank you!