Science Fair Experiment

[alleykae]

I'm doing a science fair experiment and am hatching chickens, but I need an antibiotic to give them so I can test the effects the antibiotic has on the chicken. I found a lot of antibiotics that you give chickens when they are sick, but are there any you can give as a precaution for sickness without them being sick. Thanks!

 

[Free Spirit]

Before you attempt anything like this I would strongly advise you to read and learn about antibiotics first.

Antibiotics are NOT a preventative to bacteria. Antibiotics are ineffective to treat viruses. Not all illnesses require antibiotics. There are many many many pathogens resistant to antibiotics due to improper use and dosages. Antibiotics can be hard on an animal and should only be used when no other treatments are available.

That being said, please do research first and here is some starting articles for you to read. The are discussing human use but it ALL applies to livestock as well.
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/about_bacteria.shtml
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/about_antibioticres.shtml
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/when_how.shtml
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/multi_drug.shtml
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/societal_prob.shtml

Here is one for agriculture (livestock)
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/antibiotic_agri.shtml

I'm not trying to sound negative but once you read these and do further research you will understand why I urge you to research before attempting your experiment.

Sincerely,
-Free Spirit

 

[mirandaleecon]

Before you attempt anything like this I would strongly advise you to read and learn about antibiotics first.

Antibiotics are NOT a preventative to bacteria. Antibiotics are ineffective to treat viruses. Not all illnesses require antibiotics. There are many many many pathogens resistant to antibiotics due to improper use and dosages. Antibiotics can be hard on an animal and should only be used when no other treatments are available.

That being said, please do research first and here is some starting articles for you to read. The are discussing human use but it ALL applies to livestock as well.
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/about_bacteria.shtml
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/about_antibioticres.shtml
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/when_how.shtml
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/multi_drug.shtml
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/societal_prob.shtml

Here is one for agriculture (livestock)
http://www.tufts.edu/med/apua/about_issue/antibiotic_agri.shtml

I'm not trying to sound negative but once you read these and do further research you will understand why I urge you to research before attempting your experiment.

Sincerely,
-Free Spirit

I'm sorry but I would have to agree with this. It is a great idea if you could do it in a quarantined lab type setting, but just giving chickens antibiotics when they don't need them will only add to the resistance of any bacteria present.

Maybe you could do something similar, but with another medication that won't contribute to antibiotic resistance. Would you be able to use hormones? That's another hot topic when it comes to our food, and a bit safer.

Good luck and I would love to hear what you end up doing and what your results are! I have a degree in biology and a bit of a science nerd, so I love this kind of stuff!

 

[cafarmgirl]

How do you plan to test for effects?

 

[lazy gardener]

I have to agree with FS and MLC. There are many many reasons why it would not be a good idea to give antibiotics to any animal or human who is not sick, and in need of them to clear up a specific diagnosed bacterial infection. There are plenty of other experiments that you can do with your chicks that would be fun, and have measureable results. How bout working on an experiment on chick intelligence? See if you can teach them to peck at a specific shape or color for food reward. See how long it takes, or even if you can teach them how to complete a maze. Divide the group in half, and feed one group chick starter only, and give the second group fermented feed, or a different type of feed. Put your thinking cap on, and see how many other ideas you can come up with that don't involve giving medication to your chicks. Any experiment you come up with should have the #1 criteria of doing no harm to those chicks. Using antibiotics would be harmful. I wish you the best with your science fair. Just the act of hatching eggs should be able to count towards the science fair. Perhaps you could wash 1/2 of the eggs, and leave the other half with the natural bloom.