Quail Worming and Coccidia mantainance dose

[BobDBirdDog]

Bob just like you, when they puff up and start drop'n dead I do my best to figure why. A guy tends to remember after it happens to his birds. Have you noticed it more likely to happen in the rainy periods when your birds are stressed? It seems like my young chickens, LF cornish, seem to show symptoms mostly based on the weather. They however dont take it nearly as hard unless they are very young. The chukar however are painfully prone to die'n from it. Im sure its the chickens have a longer history of dealing with it and immune systems are better geared to fend it off.

I have only had one case so far and I was on it like flies on ...xxxx...a dead squirrel. Still, you live and learn. Yes, it did seem to happen during the wet months and I agree with you. I think it is more related to fecal and when its wet birds will drink from puddles (spite having a gazillion nipples around the pen) , if not just from the run off into streams. That's how most cows get it (scowers), ponds, creeks, etc. You have to love cows, they drop a load and then drink where they just dropped!

In saying that, I just recently picked up a new Roo and am watching him closely, he got the first week dose of albon (along with the rest) as his poop does not look right to me. The wazine is ongoing and I may do a quick shot of Ivomec and others after the wazine, even though I have not seen any signs other than darker poop. Otherwise he is full of himself and seems perfectly fine.

If it turns out positive, that will be the second case, but it would be due to an import of the new roo. I have not put it under the microscope yet as he is very jumpy right now, thus no fresh samples to test.

I did a dumb one after picking up the trio, the next day I walked to the pen as i normally do out of habit, spooked one of the new hens. She broke her neck and is now in the Fridge.

 

[BobDBirdDog]

Just to note to those unaware or Newbies....


I commented above......
"In saying that, I just recently picked up a new Roo and am watching him closely, he got the first week dose of albon (along with the rest) as his poop does not look right to me. The wazine is ongoing and I may do a quick shot of Ivomec and others after the wazine, even though I have not seen any signs other than darker poop. Otherwise he is full of himself and seems perfectly fine."

I didn't notice the poop until about 3 days after I introduced him to the flock, and had already started treatment. It very well could be a diet change and/or the treatment. But any time a new bird is introduced, you should isolate, check first and treat before introduction to your flock as not to infect your entire flock.

Since I had already started (1 day prior) treatments, some of the steps and precautions were eliminated and ignored based on experience. A bad Idea if you don't know what you are doing or what to look for. Atop that I do fecal samples and inspect them with a microscope for verifications.

And I might treat with Safeguard (Fenbendazole) before the ivomec.

 

[BobDBirdDog]

Bob just like you, when they puff up and start drop'n dead I do my best to figure why. A guy tends to remember after it happens to his birds. Have you noticed it more likely to happen in the rainy periods when your birds are stressed? It seems like my young chickens, LF cornish, seem to show symptoms mostly based on the weather. They however dont take it nearly as hard unless they are very young. The chukar however are painfully prone to die'n from it. Im sure its the chickens have a longer history of dealing with it and immune systems are better geared to fend it off.

While the below speaks of dogs, the same can be generally be applied to fowl so to speak with the exception of pups being replaced with eggs.

Only after sending out a PM, did I realize I overlooked (failed to elaborate) an obvious point that FD stated/asked; "Have you noticed it more likely to happen in the rainy periods when your birds are stressed?It seems like my young chickens".


This statement has more merit than meets the eye. In dogs Coccidia can exist in the dog and remain dormant in the blood, intestine or muscles in the form of a cyst for a lifetime. During stressful times, long road trips, rehousing etc, the coccidia can appear out of nowhere leaving you wondering where it came from in the first place, or how they recently contracted it. Ironically, in humans a similar STD shows up in the same manner "stress" and is known as Harpies and No I don't have it!

More so, when a Female has her pups, if she has the cyst in her body they can be transmitted during the pregnancy, at birth or thru the milk when feeding. Even the mothers fecal can transfer coccidia if the pups eat the fecal which is common. The adult can deal with the coccidial infection better than a newborn as her body's immune system is stronger and the natural bacteria in the digestive track fight off the increase.

Because the pup is still living off the immune system of the mother, and antibodies transferred in the milk the pup usually is able to handle the coccidia. It is usually when the pup body starts to become independent, producing its own antibodies, that coccidia starts to surface. This is usually at 8 weeks old but severe cases may show up at an earlier age.

While there are many strains of coccidia, the ones that effect dogs are not the same as the coccidia found in fowl strains. Still they all populate/propagate in the same manner. Coccidia thrive in the intestines and the developed Coccidia (the adult) populates forming more Coccidia cells and the numbers increase dramatically each day. As these numbers increase they quickly take over the digestive track, attacking the intestinal walls, which will deteriorate and cause bleeding and severe damage if left untreated.

The ability to fight this infection depends on the maturity and initial health of the species infected. Usually high levels of white blood cells are noted during an infestation/infection as to indicates such. The intestines defense is to produce a mucus which is water based and houses thousands of these cocciddia octets. As fecal is voided, usually a watery or mucus type feces is noted in the beginning. As the intestine is continuously attacked, it will soon start to bleed as the walls of the intestine break down. All voided feces will contain thousands of coccidia cells.

Since the intestines produce a watery mucus, the increase will most likely result in dehydration and weaken the body as white blood cells increase to fight off the infections. the dehydration and exerted energy leave the species in a lethargic state which will continue to worsen if treatment is not given or the adult is unable to fight off the attack naturally.

Well that freaked me out when I read it, and while I put this in my own words, it should be pretty accurate. How it applies to fowl? Well, I am betting in the same manner as the symptoms are so much alike.