Layers with possible Cocci

[Redbud Roost]

My girls are Black Sex Link and they are 24 weeks old tomorrow. They are housed in a hen house with access to a spacious outside run. We use pine shavings as the litter in the house and change it regularly. They are fed a layer ration with grit and shell given as free choice. I change their water at least twice a day to make sure they have plenty of fresh water. The girls started laying at the beginning of August and we are almost to the point where everyone (all 24) is laying.
On Saturday morning as I went out to open the door to the run I found one of my girls dead under the roost. No sign of a reason. Everyone seemed very healthy and happy. Sunday evening I found another hen in the corner of the run by herself. When I checked on her she was very pale and inactive. We pulled her out and checked her over. She has diarrhea but no discharge from her eyes or nose. She was panting but felt cool. We put her in a small cage with a heat lamp and started giving her some sugar water through a dropper.
About 11:30 last night she started drinking on her own but still is not eating. This morning she is still alive but still very pale and inactive.
I would assume this is Cocci but thought it odd that they have been healthy for 6 months and now get sick. This is the first time we have lost a girl. What is the best way to handle this illness so as to not lose anymore girls? How does this affect the eggs, can we still use them or should we stop using the eggs until it is all cleared? I am so sad for my babies and want to make sure I do the right thing for them. Any help you can offer would be greatly appreciated.

 

[lurky]

If you go to www.randallburkey.com you will find the phone # on there site. They are very good/helpful at diagnosing and helping you with the right treatments. They are very knowledgeable and happy to help.
I hope you are able to get your flock straightened out. Welcome to BYC

 

[speckledhen]

I would not assume it's cocci. Have you found any bloody poop at all? Are they losing weight? Standing with their heads hunched in? Seems odd to suddenly get it at that age, not unheard of, but odd, if they've been raised on your soil all their lives.

 

[Redbud Roost]

Quote:
Yes, there is blood in the poop. I can't really tell that any weight has been lost because it has all happened so fast. I have had them since they were 2 days old and I am pretty careful about not allowing visitors in the coop.

 

[Redbud Roost]

I am so lost. She won't eat her food but she is eating some cucumber. Her stool is still very loose but not really any blood now. She is still very pale and is not moving around much. I don't want to medicate her for something that she does not have.

 

[speckledhen]

Ok, then, another possibility would be a heavy worm load. This seems to be a terrible year for cocci, but to suddenly come down with it after they've been raised on that soil would be a little odd. You may want to try first (since they are not feeling well) some buttermilk with chopped unsalted pumpkin seeds. That is a natural wormer, plus a side benefit is that milk products have been used for decades to help combat cocci. Just pour a bunch either in a pan by itself, or make some not-too-thick oatmeal and cool it down with buttermilk enough to make it soupy, then add a handful or two of the pumpkin seeds to it. See what happens then. A supplement like AviaCharge2000 would also be good to add to a plastic gallon waterer. If you really think they have worms, you could use Eprinex Pour On for cattle as a wormer, but worming is hard on their systems, which is why I suggested a natural wormer first.

 

[wc_tophat]

I would treat them with sulment you can get it from smith game and poultry supply. I would do this asap before the other die as well. Good luck !!



Marcos

 

[Redbud Roost]

Thanks. I love the idea of the natural wormer, I will try that. We have only had one egg today and it seems the whole flock now has loose, nasty stools. Maybe I will have to do the other stuff.

 

[speckledhen]

If you do treat for cocci, I'd advise using Amprolium before Sulmet. Sulmet will continue intestinal bleeding, but Corid (Ampro) will not. Corid is not an antibiotic. If the Corid fixes it, then no need for Sulmet. And you can do the natural wormer at the same time.

 

[Redbud Roost]

UPDATE: First, thank you all for your suggestions and for helping me not lose my mind.

Here is what we are doing. I called my local co-op to see what they had on hand. They had Sulmet but that is apparently not safe for the eggs of a layer. They had the Corid but he wasn't sure about that since it would be off label. He gave me the number to the state office and I talked to their Vet, who by the way was so very nice. Here is what he would have me do. Corid Oral Solution is off label but safe for layers. We are giving 1/2 cc for each gallon of water for 5 days. As for disinfection, because chickens are very sensitive to chemicals, he suggested a product called Nolvafan. The outside run, he said to tear up the soil as best we can. Here is to hoping all the girls start feeling better soon.