Use antibiotics and get poisoned eggs and hens!

[jmc]

It seems that almost all antiobiotics proposed for laying hens are dangerous, in that the residues may remain for who knows how long, if not forever.

In other words anyone who uses or has used things like

Terramycin, Tylan in any form, Aureomycin, and most wormers have now tainted their hens and their eggs and are at least in some form of risk if they eat the eggs--EVER.

This seems to be the latest, posted here on the forum.

This to me seems to be really bad news. Almost means:

"If you have a sick hen and you want to eat her eggs: you really can't treat her. Good luck buddy."

Then why are these things even put in ads? ( I know , they CAN be used in meat birds apparently)

 

[silkiechicken]

Well, antibiotics work by inhibiting some sort of pathway in microorganisms. As humans, what ever the mechanism that is blocked in the bacteria leading to their death, could also be blocked in us if we share such a pathway. It could also block that pathway in a essential bacteria that live in us. Add that to how people often take antibiotics for as many sicknesses as they can get it prescribed for, wash their hands in soap boasting it's presence, slather it onto every scrape or paper cut and then have to take stronger and stronger ones as they become obsolete over time, I don't really think it's that big of a deal when USED CORRECTLY and won't poison you in small doses.

Even if you try to never use an antibiotic, you can still pick up resistant bacteria from the world around you, and they can share plasmids (little pieces of DNA) that can confer the antibiotic resistance to all other receptive bacteria in or on your body. I mean, everything we do slowly poisons us, including the process of living since byproducts of our metabolism if built up would spell our end. I say relax and read up on what you're using as the benefits can outweigh the risks if used right.

 

[jmc]

I just ordered 100ml of Tylan 50 injectable: something which I think many BYC ers use.

But now, I feel I shouldn't use it and just tell my entire sneezing flock, "Sorry girls, hope you survive the winter!"

Then why are we using it/or YOU using it (admitteldy rarely) if it opens you and yours to chemical risks?

 

[jmc]

Quote:
Silkie, thanks.

I need to reread your heavy post and digest it a bit. I'm not sure I understood it all.

I think we need to face this question.

 

[Hangin Wit My Peeps]

Interesting thread...now did this question arise from someone who is paranoid about using antibiotics and has "heard" things about this, or is this a real fact? You just never know! It sure would be nice to know though.

 

[silkiechicken]

Well basically it comes down to everything is a risk and you have to weigh the benifits to the risks of each thing you chose to do/don't do/treat with and see if it is worth it to you, once you learn possible side effects of doing something and not doing something. I have never treated my flock with wormers or antibiotics, but I have treated with an coccidiostant for cocci. If my chickens ended up with a overload of worms and started loosing weight and so on, and I wasn't planning on culling them because they were pets, I'd go ahead and treat them. If I was going to cull them, I'd just cull them.

Everything is poisonous in the end, but it's the concentration that makes the biggest difference. A lady drank too much water for a radio show once and she died from "poisioning" as it messed up her bodily functions required to live.

 

[KellyHM]

It is true that not enough tests have been done to determine how long withdrawal of antibiotics from chicken meat takes, so if you treat your chickens with antibiotics their meat shouldn't go into the food chain for a reasonable amount of time.

 

[mypicklebird]

Some antibiotics given orally stay IN the GI tract, and some can cross and enter the blood stream. Injectable antibiotics are absorbed and go systemic. Some antibiotics penetrate into deep tissues better than others, and some can cross into the CNS and some cannot.

I cannot believe a vet or anyone with more than a peripheral knowledge of antibiotics would say that. FARID would love to have a talk with that vet- please share the name so I can pass it on.

Each antibiotic will have it's own pharmacology, though classes of antibiotics will tend to act in a similar fashion. Baytril gets into eggs for sure.

Most of the antibiotics commonly used by people with backyard do NOT have any published withdrawal times for laying hens. The research has not been done period, or it is not published. Meat studies have been done with some of the drugs, with eggs- almost nothing. It is expensive to do, and it is not worth it for the drug companies. Commercial egg producers practice very strict biosecurity. They don't use antibiotics (and can't), and they cull if something infectious gets into the flock that decreases production.
jess

Quote:

 

[KellyHM]

Not trying to start a fight...just passing on what someone else passed on to me. You have to pick and choose everything you hear, no matter where it's from!

 

[jmc]

Kelly HM don't worry, no one's offended. Your input is desired and appreciated. Nothing is without use. Without your post, look what we would have missed ( and you would have missed)

I did a bit of research this am and saw a couple of abstracts which indicate that Tylosin (Tylan) does get into eggs, as do a number of other Antibios. Had to pay to see the whole article, so forget that.

But apparently, according to two anyway, there is some type of 'recovery' in the product (I take that to ' lack of residue in the product') which does occur.

But yes, it seems that 'egg studies' are really at a dearth.