Now What.. I bought a bag of non-medicated feed and I am worried about coccidia

[MrsKasinec]

This is my first year of raising chickens I wanted to raise them as "naturally" as possible so I bought a bag of non-medcated feed. I've had my little gals for about a week, but after reading so many forums about the benefits of medicated feed, I am rethinking my choice. Is there something I can add to their feed or water that will help prevent coccidia. I would hate for them to get sick. How many weeks does it take for them to have enough immunity to fight coccidia? Thank you!

 

[ll]

I read earlier today to put a shovelful of dirt in their brooder from your yard when they are a week old.
(I think 1 week -- use the long search bar at the top of each byc page to search key words)
(I recommend to dry the dirt on a tray in the sun first - don't put damp dirt in the brooder area).
I also read about adding apple cider vinegar (Braggs sells it with "The Mother" which is an important ingredient). I've given acv to my girls often over the last year ... I don't know how much or often for baby chicks.


.... and welcome to BYC!

 

[sumi]

I don't know what, if anything, you can feed to prevent coccidia, except medicated chick starter. For a more natural health boost you can add ACV (apple cider vinegar) to their drink water. 4-5 Tablespoons to a gallon water, it helps prevent pasty butt and it's so good for them! I give it all my chickens, even the grown ones. Plain yoghurt is also good for chicks and they love it. If you can get hold of some aloe vera plants you can also chop up the leaves and put some of that in their water bowls. It's got lots of nutrients in it and studies showed that it makes broiler chickens grow quicker. It made my hens lay better.

 

[LunaticCafe]

This is my first year of raising chickens, also. Can't remember which book I found this in, but I read that the risk of cocci is low if chickens haven't been kept on the land before. I skipped the medicated feed and had no problems.

 

[emrys]

If you wish to use a medicated feed then by all means go buy some. The feed you have now can be put aside in a secure dry place and fed later. I use a metal garbage can for food storage. Just drop the whole bag in the can and secure the lid.

 

[Chris09]

I don't know what, if anything, you can feed to prevent coccidia, except medicated chick starter. For a more natural health boost you can add ACV (apple cider vinegar) to their drink water. 4-5 Tablespoons to a gallon water, it helps prevent pasty butt and it's so good for them! I give it all my chickens, even the grown ones. Plain yoghurt is also good for chicks and they love it. If you can get hold of some aloe vera plants you can also chop up the leaves and put some of that in their water bowls. It's got lots of nutrients in it and studies showed that it makes broiler chickens grow quicker. It made my hens lay better.

I would make quite sure that you have Aloe Vera and not just a Aloe plant. There are over 400 types of Aloe and many of them are toxic.

Chris

 

[donrae]

If you wish to use a medicated feed then by all means go buy some. The feed you have now can be put aside in a secure dry place and fed later. I use a metal garbage can for food storage. Just drop the whole bag in the can and secure the lid.

x2

 

[tshirtdr1]

I purchased all of my chickens at TSC at one time. Knowing that I wanted babies, I purchased both pullets and some straight run. I have had no problems whatsoever. Your chickens will be healthy if you isolate them. Don't go buying chickens from other people. Isolate your flock and let them eat lots of grass or grass clippings and bugs in addition to your regular feed. Clean water and feed and lots of bugs and grass, and biosecurity. They will be healthy and happy.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Here is something I wrote up about Cocci and medicated feed a while back. It may answer some of your questions.


First you need to know what the "medicated" is in the medicated feed. It should be on the label. Usually it is Amprolium, Amprol, some such product, but until you read the label, you really don't know. Every "medicated' feed I'm aware of from major brands for chicks that will be layers uses Amprolium, but people on this forum that I trust have posted hat some feeds for broilers have things other than Amprolium. I'll assume it is an Amprolium product, but if it is not, then realize everything I say about it may not apply. And it is possible that the "medicated" is Amprolium AND something else.

Amprol is not an antibiotic. It does not kill anything. It inhibits the protozoa that cause coccidiosis (often called cocci on this forum) from multiplying in the chicken's system. It does not prevent the protozoa from multiplying; it just slows that multiplication down. There are several different strains of protozoa that can cause cocci, some more severe than others. Chickens can develop an immunity to a specific strain of the protozoa, but that does not give them immunity to all protozoa that cause cocci. Little bitty tiny baby chicks can develop that immunity easier than older chickens.

It is not a big deal for the chicken’s intestines to contain some of the protozoa that cause cocci. The problem comes in when the number of those protozoa gets huge. The protozoa can multiply in the chicken’s intestines but also in wet manure. Different protozoa strains have different strengths, but for almost all cases, if you keep the brooder dry, you will not have a problem.

To develop immunity to a specific strain, that protozoa needs to be in the chicks intestines for two or three weeks. The normal sequence is that a chick has the protozoa. It poops and some of the cysts that develop the protozoa come out in the poop. If the poop is slightly damp, those cysts develop and will then develop in the chick's intestines when the chicks eat that poop. This cycle needs go on for a few weeks so all chicks are exposed and they are exposed long enough to develop immunity. A couple of important points here. You do need to watch them to see if they are getting sick. And the key is to keep the brooder dry yet allow some of the poop to stay damp. Not soaking wet, just barely damp. Wet poop can lead to serious problems.

What sometimes happens is that people keep chicks in a brooder and feed them medicated feed while they are in the brooder. Those chicks are never exposed to the cocci protozoa that lives in the dirt in their run, so they never develop the immunity to it. Then, they are switched to non-medicated feed and put on the ground where they are for the first time exposed to the protozoa. They do not have immunity, they do not have the protection of the medicated feed, so they get sick. Feeding medicated feed while in the brooder was a complete waste.

I do not feed medicated feed. I keep the brooder dry to not allow the protozoa to breed uncontrollably. The third day that they are in the brooder, I take a scoop of dirt from the run and feed it to them so I can introduce the protozoa and they can develop the immunity they need to the strain they need to develop an immunity to. To provide a place for that slightly damp poop, I keep a square of plywood in the dry brooder and let the poop build up on that. I don't lose chicks to cocci when they hit the ground.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with feeding medicated feed to chicks, whether the protozoa are present or not. It will not hurt them. They can still develop the immunity they need. But unless the protozoa are present, it also does no good.

If you get your chicks vaccinated for cocci, do not feed medicated feed. It can negate the vaccinations.

 

[Going Quackers]

It's such a complicated subject. I'll admit i did not feed my chicks medicated, i had ducks already and preferred to use a flock raiser(non medicated) now i have never had chickens before and there has never been a chicken on this farm, so ours were the first in quite a few aspects.

The info posted above is quite useful by Ridgerunner, i am really not convinced there is a one size fits all answer, many variables need to considered. FWIW my girls are fine, all happy.. nicely grown basically 3mth olds lol

Good luck~