Help! I gave my chickens doxycycline for 24 hours will I eventually be able to eat the eggs again

[Folly's place]

There's a big difference between what's fine for pet birds like parrots, and livestock species like chickens and turkeys, in what drugs are acceptable. A veterinarian who only treats pets may not focus on this part of the picture unless it's something that person knows about. And rules and treatments change and evolve over time!
Mary

 

[aart]

Given the short period of treatment and given that the eggs are for personal consumption it would not bother me, but then again I have been on two 30 day treatments with Doxycycline for Lyme disease.

This is exactly why antibiotics are not approved for food animals, the residuals in the food products can cause resistance in humans.

 

[sourland]

This is exactly why antibiotics are not approved for food animals, the residuals in the food products can cause resistance in humans.

And how much residual will remain after a 24 hour treatment of low dose doxy ? "Given the short period of treatment ---------------"

 

[Folly's place]

I have serious problems with tetracyclines myself, and wouldn't be good with any residual left in eggs I'd be eating. That's another possible problem with using meds in hens and then eating (or selling!) those eggs.
Mary

 

[Eggcessive]

I really don’t like to use antibiotics or anything else on my chickens, but many choose to use them if there is a serious respiratory or reproductive problem. But we mainly were trying to answer the OP’s question about how long the drug takes to go out of the system. Oxytetracycline doesn’t take as long, but doxy stays in there for 26-28 days. It is good to throw away those eggs just to make sure no one has an allergic reaction or builds up antibiotic resistance. It is a personal choice whether to use them or to discard the eggs.

 

[aart]

And how much residual will remain after a 24 hour treatment of low dose doxy ? "Given the short period of treatment ---------------"

I would think 'low' and short term doses are most harmful in creating resistance.

 

[sourland]

I would think 'low' and short term doses are most harmful in creating resistance.

If routine in nature, absolutely. I am not advocating routine use of antibiotics in poultry - I do not treat birds with antibiotics. I am simply replying to this one specific query.