looking for natural remedy for loosse stools in 12 week old chicks.

[utterchaos]

One or more of my 12 week old chickens is having loose stools. I have raised them organically and want to sell their eggs as organic. I think it's the silky roo with the problem but maybe one of the other girls has it as well. For 13 of them (with only one rooster) it's not that bad but I would like to get a handle on it. At this point, they don't get any vits but maybe I should put some in their water. Any suggestion but still be organic???

 

[fiberart57]

It's possible they have coccidiosis which may require medication. Twelve weeks is about the time it starts to manifest if it's going to. You could take a stool sample to a vet, it usually doesn't cost all that much to test it. It'll need to be a fresh as possible.

One possible thing you could try is cayenne pepper in their food. The chickens don't taste spicy so it doesn't bother them. I've never done it but the recommendation is to put enough in their food to turn it reddish-pink. Or try some fresh parsely; it's supposedly got some antiparisitic qualities.

Another option is to try some food grade Diatomaceous Earth, feeding that to them. It's a little iffy because if they're at the point where they're having loose stools and it is cocci it could get bad pretty fast.

If their stools turn bloody and they start looking poorly you'll need to make a decision to medicate or you could lose your flock. It's a bummer when you're trying to be as organic as possible but you might think of it in terms of our own medication. If I need to, I'll take medication to alleviate an illness despite my mostly organic diet.

Other than these suggestions I don't know. You could go up and do a search for cocci or loose stools and see what comes up.

Good luck, Mary

 

[feathersnuggles]

You could try giving them a little active-culture plain yogurt (I usually mix it with a little oatmeal so they have something to "grab" and eat). If the diarrhea is caused by a bacterial imbalance in the gut, yogurt should help firm up the poop. Also a little raw apple cider vinegar (ACV) in the water can help settle down an intestinal imbalance.

if you give them a couple doses of yogurt and/or ACV and they continue having runny stools after 24 -48 hours, I would consider something stronger, like some of the meds for worms, etc.

 

[utterchaos]

Thanks Mary and Feathersnuggles,
I will try both. And yes, I will use mends if I absolutely have to rather than loose my flock.