When to introduce native soil to non vaccinated chicks

[jgessentials]

Hello,
I have 4 non vaccinated bantams that are now about 3 weeks old. We have been slowly giving then pulled plants from the garden with their roots and dirt for them to be introduced to the native soil. They have started dust bathing in the pine shavings and I would like to know when would be a good time to bring in larger amounts of soil in a box so they can dust bathe properly.
Anything we should be concerned about?
Thank you

 

[lazy gardener]

Ideally, it should be done within the first 2 weeks. For you, ASAP! The chick's natural immunity received from her mother is at it's highest in the first 2 weeks after hatch, and it's ideal to take advantage of that window of opportunity.

 

[Folly's place]

Welcome! Are these your first chicks, or do you already have a flock? Have you ever had issues with coccidiosis?
What vaccine are you talking about? Marek's disease s irrelevant to any discussion about coccidiosis. The 'coccidia vaccine' is actually a low dose of relatively safer coccidia, so the chicks can develop some immunity, and offering dirt is a very good idea, soon. One day eating amprolium in feed wipes out the 'coccidia vaccination', if they had it from the hatchery. It then depends on your actual level of coccidia in your soil, this year, to determine how much exposure your chicks will get, and if amprolium medicated feed would be a good idea. Mary

 

[speckledhen]

Vaccinated for what? Cocci or Mareks? I do not vaccinate my birds for anything and I get them exposed to soil immediately. Usually, my chicks are with a broody hen who takes them out within 3 days unless it's the dead of winter. Broody or brooder, they get a pan of dirt right away in their pen. Mary who commented above is correct, that if they eat medicated feed and they had a coccidiosis vaccination, the amprolium negates the vaccine.
Just to note, I do not feed medicated feed, though I did years ago, because it did not matter if they got it or not in relation to coccidiosis. If it was very wet outside for protracted periods, even chicks on medicated feed had a bout of cocci at some point between 5-8 weeks of age (we are in Georgia, so more humid than some places).

 

[Ridgerunner]

I’ll copy something I wrote years ago on medicated feed. It doesn’t specifically address your situation but if you read it you’ll better understand why you need to feed dirt to chicks early. It’s all about the life cycle of the cocci bug and them developing immunity. By keeping the brooder pretty dry and feeding them the plants with dirt on the roots you are a long way to already succeeding.

I’m pretty sure I’m the one that convinced Cynthia (Speckledhen) to stop depending on medicated feed which was not working and feed dirt to the chicks early in a dry brooder. She is my proof it does work. Most of the regulars on this forum know, love, and trust Cynthia.


First you need to know what the "medicated" is in the medicated feed. It should be on the label. Usually it is Amprolium, Amprol, some such product, but until you read the label, you really don't know. Every "medicated' feed I'm aware of from major brands for chicks that will be layers uses Amprolium, but people on this forum that I trust have posted hat some feeds for broilers have things other than Amprolium. I'll assume it is an Amprolium product, but if it is not, then realize everything I say about it may not apply. And it is possible that the "medicated" is Amprolium AND something else.


Amprol is not an antibiotic. It does not kill anything. It inhibits the protozoa that cause coccidiosis (often called Cocci on this forum) from multiplying in the chicken's system. It does not prevent the protozoa from multiplying; it just slows that multiplication down. There are several different strains of protozoa that can cause Cocci, some more severe than others. Chickens can develop immunity to a specific strain of the protozoa, but that does not give them immunity to all protozoa that cause Cocci. Little bitty tiny baby chicks can develop that immunity easier than older chickens.


It is not a big deal for the chicken’s intestines to contain some of the protozoa that cause Cocci. The problem comes in when the number of those protozoa gets huge. The protozoa can multiply in the chicken’s intestines but also in wet manure. Different protozoa strains have different strengths, but for almost all cases, if you keep the brooder dry, you will not have a problem.


To develop immunity to a specific strain, that protozoa needs to be in the chicks intestines for two or three weeks. The normal sequence is that a chick has the protozoa. It poops and some of the cysts that develop the protozoa come out in the poop. If the poop is slightly damp, those cysts develop and will then develop in the chick's intestines when the chicks eat that poop. This cycle needs go on for a few weeks so all chicks are exposed and they are exposed long enough to develop immunity. A couple of important points here. You do need to watch them to see if they are getting sick. And the key is to keep the brooder dry yet allow some of the poop to stay damp. Not soaking wet, just barely damp. Wet poop can lead to serious problems.


What sometimes happens is that people keep chicks in a brooder and feed them medicated feed while they are in the brooder. Those chicks are never exposed to the Cocci protozoa that lives in the dirt in their run, so they never develop the immunity to it. Then, they are switched to non-medicated feed and put on the ground where they are for the first time exposed to the protozoa. They do not have immunity, they do not have the protection of the medicated feed, so they get sick. Feeding medicated feed while in the brooder was a complete waste.


I do not feed medicated feed. I keep the brooder dry to not allow the protozoa to breed uncontrollably. The third day that they are in the brooder, I take a scoop of dirt from the run and feed it to them so I can introduce the protozoa and they can develop the immunity they need to the strain they need to develop an immunity to. To provide a place for that slightly damp poop, I keep a square of plywood in the dry brooder and let the poop build up on that. I don't lose chicks to Cocci when they hit the ground.


There is absolutely nothing wrong with feeding medicated feed to chicks, whether the protozoa are present or not. It will not hurt them. They can still develop the immunity they need. But unless the protozoa are present, it also does no good.


If you get your chicks vaccinated for Cocci, do not feed medicated feed. It can negate the vaccinations.