HOW MANY DAYS OF MEDICATED FEED FOR TREATING COCCIDIOSIS?

[Fawn and Fam]

How many days do I give medicated feed to chicks I think may have coccidiosis? I want to get them off it as soon as possible, just wondering how many days it takes to knock it out?

 

[loveourbirds]

a week of medication will normally do it, but medicated feed is weaker so I would go 2 weeks. medicated/unmedicated is a big decision for all of us.

although several newbies in the chicken world think that chilling and cocci are the same thing. the symptoms are similar but cocci is much rarer especially if you go ahead and feed the medicated feed through the first 8 weeks of the chick's life. the antibiotics will wear off long before you eat any eggs or meat from them. and if you have a respiratory infection, wouldn't you go and get some antibiotics?

since you haven't been feeding medicated feed, you can use corid. its actually for cattle, but works for chickens too. this will cure it in one week if its cocci. give another half dose 1 week after finishing treatment.

if your birds have been chilled, you can warm them up, keep their butts clean, and add some sugar or raw apple cider vinegar to their water. pasturized will work but not near as well.

sugar helps them get rehydrated, acv helps rehydrate and helps respiratory problems. you can mix the 2 (1 tablespoon each to 1 quart of water) this will perk them up in 24 hours usually, but the butt cleaning will go on a couple of days longer. keep giving it until the butt is clean.

brian

 

[ChickensRDinos]

Carefully read the label on your medicated feed to see what medications are in it. They are not all the same. Some have anti-biotics and some to not. Most have amprolium. It does not kill the parasites it only aids in helping to keep them from reproducing. If you already have a serious problem then you will need something much stronger.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amprolium

http://www.clemson.edu/public/lph/ahp/disease_links/images/coccidia.pdf

 

[Fawn and Fam]

Thanks guys. I'm pretty sure it is "chilled" because of what happened to them and when the diarrhea started. I posted several things on the forum but no one used the word chilled, which makes most sense to me. I got the medicated feed just to be safe (they have been on it for a week). Someone did recommend acv but didn't say it would help w/ respiratory so I haven't tried that. Now I will. Where do I get unpasteurized? What happened was 8 days ago (we had only had them one day and had normal solid poop) we left for my in-laws for Easter day. We were gone 11 hours. They had everything they needed: unmedicated food/water w/ vits &electrolytes/heat, etc. When we came home they had scratched so much bedding into their water that it siphoned all 4 cups of water out of the mason jar completely soaking all the pine shavings and paper towel under it. Also they had scratched lots of their food out and that was soaked, though they still had plenty of dry food. There wasn't any standing water, though they were standing up at night time and their under feathers were wet. They had no water at all, and for who knows how long. I cleaned up everything immediately. They drank, drank, drank so much that one threw up water right after and the other immediately had diarrhea. Then for the next 24-48 hrs. (I can't remember how long) they both had lots of diarrhea (dark brown stinky liquid). I had to clean their bottoms the day after the incident but never again. I used a blow dryer to dry them but seemed difficult to get completely dry, so again they were exposed to moisture when I dipped their bottoms in warm water. I've given them ground oatmeal to help w/ the diarrhea but that hasn't changed anything. They have diarrhea everyday 2 to maybe 3 times each. They haven't shown any cold symptoms until yesterday & today a few sneezes, though maybe that's normal? Also even though they eat well they eat (one more than the other) the paper towel and lots of the pine shavings. Throughout this whole ordeal (before and after) they haven't change how they've acted- always happy and active. At this point I'm wondering are they still sick or is their 2x's/day diarrhea normal? Any thoughts are appreciated

 

[ailron]

They really shouldn't have diarrhea. I had this problem and just treated with Sulmet in their drinking water for about 5 days. Boiled egg is a great cure for pasty butt too. I just cut one egg in half and lay it on the feeder once a day. Once they get a taste they will attack your hand the next time you put some in.

The egg is full of protein and helps firm up their poop. Once the Sulmet is finished, I put a vitamin and electrolyte supplement in their water for about five days and after that about once a week.

 

[loveourbirds]

the diarrhea could be from several things, but occasionally it does come with chilling. high water ph may cause it too. if you have a pool test kit you can use it to test your water ph, litmus paper will work too if you can find it. if your ph is high the acv will lower it, chickens like a slightly acidic ph. it will also help keep them hydrated during the sickness. it is a good idea to do the electrolyte/vitamin treatment after symptoms go away.
a larger wal mart store, larger iga, or health food stores will sell the raw acv sometimes its called "apple cider vinegar with mother".

if you put a board under the waterer it may help. also anytime my chicks get damp, I do add a small amount of sugar to the very next water I give them. I also run the water just a touch warmer than summertime tap water.

I hope this advice helps you, but what works for me may not work for you.. so best of luck.

brian