non medicated chick starter

[TheRidingLibrarian]

Here! Here! Same dealio with me. Feed store said there was no such thing, but good old Tractor Supply came through. I hate to not support a local business, but I gotta admit that TSC has come through a number of times when the local shop has not.

 

[siroiszoo]

I know this is a little (or a lot) after the fact but I'm experiencing the same thing with a late shipment of chicks I have coming in.

The first feed store told me that they have a product called Home Grown (probably by Purina) but when I arrived, they were out of it.

The next feed store wanted to know why I needed non-medicated feed as they had never heard of it. Guess these people don't vaccinate for anything which is why some of the backyard bird people now have mareks in their chicken yards.

The next feed store argued with me that the vaccinations at the hatcheries have nothing to do with the medications in the feeds. Then they wanted to sell me some game starter that I'd never heard of. Guess they won't be seeing my business.

I finally called one that knew exactly what I was talking about and said that all the kids feed their show birds/chicks Turkey Starter which has no medication in it. After reading some of these posts (and after I call the hatchery in the morning) I think I will do business with this people.

 

[Bullwinkle]

Quote:
The Turkey starter has more protein in it than your chickens need (usually 22 or 24% verses chick starter that is 18 or 20%)). I have used it before when I could not find 18 or 20% chick starter.

On a side note, when I was using the higher protein feed for both my chickens and my geese/ducks, the geese started to develop angel wing. I backed off on the protein percentage and gave them more free run (lots of grazing/grass) and the problem corrected itself.

 

[cmom]

The amprollium in the starter helps in the chicks developement of a resistance to cocci. It is sulfa based.

 

[kipepeo]

I had the same problem I had mine vaccinated for both and got a small bag of non medicated organic food to start with. Of course then I know I will run out of food on the weekend. I didn't know it was going to be so hard to find non medicated food ( I hadn't found BYC yet) Orschlens, Coop and town and country which are the closest to me didn't have it. Then TSC came to the rescue.

 

[Chris623]

This thread is of interest to me. I'm waiting on my first chicks. They should ship on the 30th of June. I've had them vaccinated for both COVC and Marek's. While at Atwoods the other day, I picked up a bag of starter feed for chicks. I just went out to the barn and noticed it is medicated. The vaccinations only cost $7.50. The feed is already opened because (anxious me) I've already filled their feeder..............so can't return it.

Would it be better to throw away the feed and go get a non medicated feed? If I understand correctly, the medicated feed will nullify the vaccinations. But if I go ahead and use the feed, will they be any less "properly" medicated?

 

[Gwen]

Ask for organic feed. It's nonmedicated.

 

[Judy]

Quote:
Ummm, no, sorry. Amprolium inhibits thiamine uptake. It is not an antibiotic. Sulfa drugs are antibiotics. Amprolium slows the growth of cocci, does not kill them off, so the chick can develop its own immunity.

I do not know what happens if you feed medicated feed to a chick that has been vaccinated for cocci.

It is my understanding that amprolium is safe for other fowl such as ducks. Chick feed used to be medicated with something else, I believe an arsenic compound, that was harmful for ducks, but it is no longer used.

 

[Casey3043]

I've always fed medicated chick starter, and have never had any problems with coccidiosis. I've always bought Purina Sun Fresh at my local feed store. Recently when they were out of it, I went to the "other" feed store in town. I don't shop there because they don't carry Purina, but rather Cleveland feeds which have a lower protein content.

Anyway, when I asked for medicated chick feed, the man said (in a gloom and doom voice) "NO ONE feeds that! It's full of STEROIDS!"

I wanted to say, "Um, I think you're WRONG. It has amprolium in it to HELP prevent coccidiosis."

But I didn't. He owns a feed store and obviously thinks he knows everything about feed. I told him I would keep looking. I called all the feed stores in a 40 mile radius and found one that had medicated chick starter. Unfortunately it was made by Cleveland, but I drove out there and bought it anyway because I was just plain OUT of chick feed. It has been fine, and the chicks are still healthy and happy.

 

[bryan8]

TSC's dumor chick starters are un-medicated

I used them for about 4 weeks and then switched to medicated

~Bryan