Well, it took a fair bit of effort and perseverance - this chicken raising isn't for the faint of heart. My vet isn't too knowledgeable about poultry, so I contacted a poultry consultant who was going to sell me 4 L of amprol and wanted me to put it in the water at a ratio of 2 parts medication to 1 part water!! Fortunately, there is one other local source, a Pharmacy that deals with with animal veterinary medicine and natural remedies and is only 45 min. from where I live. The pharmacist was very reluctant, however, to answer any questions, as he has to be careful not to be seen as prescribing. So he put the products they sell in front of me and I selected Amprol, based on what I had been reading on the forums, and then had to do the calculations myself. The product they sell is 9.6% and they recommend starting at 0.0240% (2.5 mls/L or 2 tsp/gal) for the first 5-7 days, then go down to 0.0060% for 1 to 2 weeks. Fortunately they sell it in smaller quantities. I went away with 500 mls, and after I re-did the calculations (which were a bit confusing on the directions) I discovered I could have done with a smaller amount. Good thing I didn't buy the 4 Litres!
I've been thinking about what to do for the next hatch of chicks (due two weeks from today). I read an interesting article by someone called Beth Rogers, on 'basic information about coccidiosis in chickens' which I think has merit and makes very good sense. This article suggests that if chicks are not raised by a mother hen, and are not outside scratching dirt early, and if they are not exposed to the coccidia protozoa, and are on medicated starter, they may not develop immunity. The chicks I have raised now (some of which died) were not raised by a hen and were inside for the first weeks, and we had a cool, very wet spring and early summer, and they were not on a dirt floor the first few weeks. And, they were raised on medicated starter.
My next hatch will have a mother and it's now summer, and the ground is dry, so I imagine they'll be outside very quickly. In my previous experience, the chicks were outside within a day or two with the mother. I never had any sick chicks before, in three previous hatches. And I never used medicated starter. (My previous flock was killed by a dog, so I'm starting up a new flock, which is why I had chicks without a mother this time). So, I'm not sure if I'll use medicated starter next time, and having done the reading, I won't consider vaccinating them for coccidiosis, but instead will allow them to build up some immunity. Vaccination isn't apparently such a readily available option for a small flock anyway. And, having read this article, I also believe it's not necessary to go out and buy a super disinfectant to disinfect the coop. I've kept it clean, changed the water regularly, and still lost chicks. I am now convinced it was because of the way they started out in life. I wonder if they should have had extra vitamins in the next feed (after the 6 weeks of medicated starter), and probiotics. That is one thing the pharmacist was willing to recommend when I asked about what to do for the next hatch of chicks: use probiotics to build up their normal gut bacteria, to give the opportunistic protozoa less chance to multiply. Apparently, a few oocytes will help them build up immunity. So, I've just decided: instead of using medicated starter, they'll get probiotics, and they will be raised with a mother. I'm feeling much better already.
The pharmacist also agreed, when I told him I had read that Vit. E can shorten the duration of the coccidiosis, that it could be helpful to give the chicks Vitamin E. I had read that in Peter Brown's article.
My current flock is doing well, so far. And, having read up a bit on the need to encourage natural immunity and having read how Amprol works (preventing the multiplication of the oocysts), I think I will follow the recommendation for Amprol dosing that I've read on a few US sites: 0.0120% for 3-5 days (1.25 mls in 1 L or 1 tsp/gal.) for 3-5 days, then half of that for a week. The one chick that was showing some early signs a few days ago had already started showing signs of improvement. I had been giving them buttermilk and was putting DE in their feed. The pharmacist indicated that DE could perhaps be helpful for killing off the coccidia protozoa. So maybe that is keeping the number of oocysts down in their intestines and allowing them to build immunity.
The poultry vet I spoke with also suggested at first that I could wait until Monday before deciding to treat the existing flock, as they could be developing immunity, he said. Then when I asked him if he would suggest that I do wait before treating, he said "they could all be dead over the weekend". Interesting how no one wanted to give any firm direction, but felt they had to be so careful to protect themselves. Makes it a challenge for those of us who are new to the business of treating sick chickens. I really found I had to do my own work from start to finish today. It's been a learning curve. And I have extra Amprol in my cupboard, if needed in future.
Another thing I learned from the pharmacist, which neither the vet nor most of the literature mentioned, is that the amprol has to be changed daily and a new mix made up in order for it to be effective. And, another thing I've come across in some postings is that some people recommend chick starter with medication for treatment of coccidiosis. I have to go back to the place where I bought mine, but I did see on the label the other day that there is a caution about precisely that, i.e. it said NOT to use medicated starter if there is an outbreak of coccidiosis, and not to use it for chickens older than 14 weeks. I'll have to double check to see what medication is in that particular starter feed.
