When to medicate!

[cochinbantam-lover]

I don't want to give medication when it is not actually necessary but if you wait till you see symptoms of anything you have let it go too long so then how are you to know when to medicate if your chick is just standing by himself in the brooder with fluffed up feathers.
I saw him, her, drink water and also saw him eat plain yogurt that I spooned on top of their starter. I don't want to wait till i lose my chicks before I do anything so is there some safety measures that I can take without harming my chicks. I had sent in another post earlier titled Worried about chick with other information. I wish I would be able to put a stop to anything before it gets ahold just to be safe! I feel like I should be doing something! They are still in the brooder and will be 4 weeks on Saturday!

Thanks very much!

 

[Judy]

If you give medication without knowing what might need treating, you are much more likely to do harm than good, especially if you are talking about antibiotics. I doubt I would ever give a chicken an antibiotic, with the possible exception of severe trauma.

You gave very little information. There is a sticky at the beginning of the emergencies forum listing all the questions that you should answer when posting because you feel a chicken is sick, such as feed, type of litter, size of brooder, etc.

Offhand, from what you did say, I would suspect the chick may be too hot.

 

[threehorses]

Any updates or more information so we can try to help you?

I completely agree with what Ddawn has said. Absolutely solid advice!

 

[Glenda L Heywood]

ARE THE CHICKS EXPOSED TO COCCIDIOSIS?
DO FIND BLOOD IN THE MANURE?
SOME CASES YOU DO NOT

i DOUBT IT IS ANY THING THAT ANTIBIOTICS WOULD HELP
ARE THEY SNEEZING OR COUGHING?

now with that said what symptoms are they showing?

how long have you susspected they were getting sick?

has it been all the hype about MG or CRD that has made you feel uneasy?

Have you had new folks in handling them?
could you have carried a disease such as respiratory disease on your clothes

Have you had the chicks out in the yard?

if so they may have contacted coccidiosis

email me any questions

 

[cochinbantam-lover]

Hi,
Thanks for your replys. I have copied this from a previous message that I sent in the other day.


I have 28 three and a half week old chicks that have been doing very well! They were vaccinated for Mareks and Cocci. I believe i am doing a pretty good job of keeping their brooder clean.

I am feeling them organic chick starter since I got them. They are on wood pellet bedding and have clean water and the temp in their brooder is a little less than 80

The other day I gave them half of a honeydew melon with the seeds scooped out. They had it all eaten in about 5 hours. I thought it would be good for them. Theyalso get chick grit. they havn't been outside yet as temp during the day have been about 60 or little over. I really didn't notice anything suspicious till today. Should I start feeding the medicated feed or treat with something? I don't want to rush into anything but she doesn't seem too interested in her surroundings. I picked her up and she feels like she has some weight to her and her vent area is clean and dry.

Please do you have any ideas, could it be a sickness or maybe too much melon, I just don't know and could sure use your input!

Last night I gave the chicks some plain yogurt on top of their starter and she ate some and was taking a drink also. She doesn't doesn't seem right tho, I can't really put my finger on it you just have this feeling! There is something to be said for the shaving bc you can see their droppings, them wood pellets it blends right in so it is difficult to see anything. This weeknd I think I will put down some shavings, just to see. They will be 4 weeks Saturday.

Thanks hope I gave you some ideas.

Thankyou!

 

[threehorses]

Honestly I would do the amprolium medicated starter, yes. You'll have the rest of her life to go organic with them. I just feel that's such an important way of getting a good foundation on them. And believe me - I'm not a believer in medicines. I always try to find the way to do everything but medicate until I have to.

I also like the idea of giving probiotics young. Their whole digestive tract is dependent on two things: their gizzard (and the grit therein), and the bacteria in the portion following the gizzard that digest what the gizzard can't break down. So since they're not born with bacteria in their gut, it's like an open range for anyone to claim - good bacteria or bad. I like to insure that the good are the ones that get established as they fight off the bad and make birds a lot more apt to survive exposure to cocci on their own. Just IMHO.

Agreed on the shavings, by the way! That's why I always discourage people from using shredded newspaper. It just hides droppings and doesn't really absorb. The pellets - I hadn't thought about those, but I suppose they would do the same as the shreds. Thanks for the heads-up on that!