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I use Sulmet for cocci and that is the only reason I like to use it. Since I do not feed medicated starter then I have to watch for lethargic chicks or bloody stools. I will use it if one of the fecals comes up positive, too, of course.
In most cases I use it for several days then stop for a few days, then treat again for several more days, depending on the chicks I am treating, the amount of cocci seen in the fecal and often, the time of year. Warmer weather will make them drink more and therefore they are taking in more of the medicine whereas in the winter they won't drink as much and have as much to absorb into their system.
If they don't perk up then I do not do a lot more to help them out. This year I have been offering Gallimycin to ones I move to new flocks. It hasn't done much.
I have noticed that ones that are more likely to get sick are ones I bring in from hatched eggs or purchasing from others. I have used Gallimycin on them to see if it will help and some have bounced back. I have a few d'Uccles that I hatched from one particular breeder that I have had no success with. They live but do not thrive. I fear I will have to remove them permanently as I have spent 2 months working with them and have seen no change. I did find out that she does vaccinate for several things and I am against vaccinating for anything. I like natural immunity. Yes, I do get rabies vax for my cats and dog but that is because there isn't a natural immunity against death!
I use ACV and garlic mixed in my waterers but am doing it less this year because it is just too hot to be out there mixing it and most of the time I forget it in the barn while making rounds with the water wagon and ice.
I use DE only in the bedding in coops or the favorite dusting spots. I have never believed it would deworm them. Though I am beginning to wonder if it would help with gape worms. I do use red pepper flakes to deworm a lot of the time but this year since the lice/mites have been so bad then when I treated everyone this past spring I just used the Eprinex. It treats internal and external parasites to a degree. It does not take care of coccidiosis.
If I feed oats it is rolled oats or this time of year the chickens like some fermented oats. I use about a 5 gallon bucket or sometimes a 3 gallon and put whole oats in it. Add about a cup or cup and a half of ACV, add water enough to make the oats start floating and let set for 2-3 days. OMG! When you offer that to the chickens they go nuts! As soon as I bring the bucket out the door of the feed room they know what it is and start trying to get into it. Especially at the first of the summer.
I have offered yogurt as a treat to my chicks but they would not eat it. I saw no reason to offer it to sick birds as their gut does not react the same as ours. They are not mammals so not all things work on their digestive system like it does on ours.
I haven't heard about fruits and sick birds but I don't offer things such as that when they don't feel well. It is bland staple foods that i offer.
I have offered warm oatmeal to my Silkies in the winter when they had gotten too wet and they did eat it. But they are used to eating the mash balls I make so that may have made a difference.
