Should I start them on medicated feed?

[LibrariHen]

Total newbie here...
I got 3 girls last week, different ages but they were all between 6-8 weeks old. The guy I got them from was not feeding them medicated feed. Should I start now? I know that the point of it is to help them develop their little immune systems, so would they still need it, or are they old enough that they should be okay?
(I unthinkingly bought unmedicated, but can go and get the medicated stuff today).
thanks!

 

[BoltonChicken]

I would always use medicated chick starter until the 18th week, when I would switch to regular layer food. No, it surely will not hurt
them to start it now. Better late than never.

 

[N&MSchroeder]

Hi and

I have never fed my chicks medicated feed so you should be fine continuing with unmedicated since that is what they were started on.

Have fun with your chicks and be sure to post pictures! What kind(s) do you have?

 

[N&MSchroeder]

and yes, this is how BYC works! You have received two responses offering completely different advice!

 

[JodyJo]

i will chime in, I prefer the medicated, but it is a personal choice...good luck and welcome!

 

[LibrariHen]

Thanks for the quick replies! Looks like I'll need to decide myself...

I have a Rhode Island Red, a Buff Orpington, and a Barred Rock. They are sweeties and I am so excited to be raising chickens!

 

[N&MSchroeder]

Quote:

These are great breeds!

 

[Ridgerunner]

N&MSchroeder :

and yes, this is how BYC works! You have received two responses offering completely different advice!

Exactly. A big part of that is that we all have different conditions so there is seldom one right answer for all of us. Another part is that chickens are so adaptable that many different things work.

I never feed medicated feed. I don't see anything wrong with it, I just have never had a reason to feed it.

The "medicated" part of the feed is probably Amprolium or some such product. Not always but probably. It is purely to help reduce the chance they will have problems from Coccidiosis. It is not there to help them get any other immunities, just Coccidiosis. Coccidiosis is caused by a protozoa that can live in the ground. They can develop an immunity to specific strains pretty easily when they are real young, but if they are older, like yours, that immunity can be harder to develop. Usually it is not a probem if they are kept in a dry area, but if it is wet they can be at more risk. Some strains of the protozoa are stronger than others and immunity to one strain does not mean they have immunity to all strains.

Let me try to translate that to your circumstances a bit. Since you are moving them to a new area, they might be introduced to a strain that they do not have immunity to. But they might not.

If it were me, I would not feed them medicated feed but would look up the symptoms of Coccidiosi and be on the lookout for them. I would not expect to see any problems but would know what to look for and be ready to treat them if it becomes necessary. Even if you decide to feed them medicated feed, you need to look up the symptoms and be oncthe lookout for them. The medicated feed does not prevent Coccidiosis or treatit. All it does is reduce the chance they will have a bad case if they get it. But they can still have a bad case even with the medicated feed.

As I said, I would not expect a problem. But I'd be aware there could be a problem so I could be onthe lookout for it. Same as you do for worms, mites, or lice.​

 

[jenkassai]

YES you will get tons of different responses!! I am new to chicken too, my oldest chicks are going on 5 weeks, youngest going on 2 weeks. I did tons of research and just kept wavering back and forth. In the end, someone had posted that if this was my first time with chicks, I should do the medicated feed because I might not recognize that something was wrong until it was too late. That really helped to make my mind up. We live on clay soil, and I know it can harbor all sorts of nasty stuff because it stays wet for a long time, and it is warm and humid here in the summer (OH). While I know it doesn't prevent Cocci, I know it is supposed to help, and I guess that was one small measure of comfort to me

Good luck with your chicks. Guess what, they are addictive and they grow SUPER fast!!!!!

 

[CatDaddyAlbert]

I use medicated just to be on the safe side for Cocci. The only medicated in Medicated Chicken Starter (20% Protein) and Medicated Turkey Starter that I use for my Guineas(24% Protein) is the Amprolium for Cocci. That is the only medication in the feed.

Again it is personal choice. Some do, and some don't, and all that do or don't have success and great birds. I just had a run of Cocci one time and I just do not care to deal with it. If you keep your drinkers, brooders, coops and pens somewhat clean you can likely get away without using it.

Good luck and MOST OF ALL

ENJOY your birds.