I hate coccidia

[LoneStarHen]

::insert 4-letter words here::

I have never had a problem with coccidia - for YEARS. I've never had to use medicated feed. This year I got a small group of hatchery chicks that were the same age as some I'd hatched at home. I put them all in the same brooder. When the symptoms hit, I lost 7 turkey poults (my hatch) and two of the hatchery chicks. I went to three feed stores, all I could find was sulmet. I put them on that, then I started them on medicated feed.

Bleach, bleach, and more bleach - cleaning, scrubbing, and more bleach. A month later I had some new chicks that were doing just fine. Then they suddenly came down with coccidia. I started sulmet on those, and I lost 3 out of the 5. Now anything that is newly hatched or newly introduced to the property is getting medicated feed. Pretty much anything 9 weeks or younger has had a round of coccidia, been treated with sulmet, and survived.

I brought home some peafowl - they got sulmet when I put them outside in a coop - even though no coccidia birds had been in that coop. They are getting medicated starter too.

So frustrating. I guess medicated starter will the the standard from now on.

 

[Eggcessive]

There are still a lot of cases of coccidosis here on BYC with people that use medicated feed. Also in those whose chicks were vaccinated for coccidiosis at the hatcheries. Sulmet, a sulfa antibiotic, will treat the two most severe strains, but can be hard on the kidneys of chicks. Corid or amprollium, will try all of the known strains (9 or more) and sulfadimethoxine (Di-Methox, Sulfamed G, or Albon) will treat the worst strains plus some other diseases such as coryza and fowl cholera as sulmet does. Some people recommend using a lower prevention dose of Corid (amprollium) to treat chicks for 5 days every 3 weeks until they are past the danger age of 20 weeks or older. The severe out break dosage of Corid is 2 tsp liquid (or 1.5 tsp powder) per gallon of water and the preventative dose is 1/2 tsp liquid (or 1/3 tsp powder.) In othe countries amprollium brands are Amprol or Coxoid, and Baycox (toltrazuril) is another drug used.

 

[Triple Willow]

From what I have read, bleach does not kill cocci.* You need to use ammonia to sanitize with. Due to having cocci on my place in the past, I start new chicks on medicated starter and about week two put a big chunk of dirt from my ground in the brooder so they can begin building up their immunity. Keeping things as dry as possible, keeping the soil covered with litter and feeding fermented feed keeps cocci under control so far at my place.

 

[LoneStarHen]

Bleach will kill coccidia on solid surfaces, (such as my plastic brooder). There is nothing that will kill it on the ground though.

- except maybe napalm.

I didn't like giving them sulmet - but the feed stores in my area were both out of corrid when the first outbreak happened. I have some now - because I don't want to be in that situation again. I usually put babies out to free range with the rest of the flock at 6-8 weeks, maybe I'll just treat them when that time comes. Luckily I only have one more group to rotate out this year and all chicks will be out of the brooder or growing pen.

I've worked in veterinary medicine for 18 years, 13 of which I've been a boarded veterinary technician. In the 90s I had a litter of pyr pups that appeared to have parvo. We tested them, started them on fluids, but it wasn't parvo. I did a fecal and sure enough, it was coccidia. None of my adult animals had ever had it, and the pups were in the kitchen. Mom must have tracked it back in to her pups from somewhere. After fluids and Albon they were all just fine.

Years later chicken coccidia rears it's head and no matter how much I've cleaned and isolated these chicks - it seems to have gotten away from me.

I've just decided, I hate coccidia. Hate it.

 

[Triple Willow]

The bleach must not be working...???

 

[LoneStarHen]

I dunno. I've thought of trying peroxide...

I think because it's going around that I've got different birds shedding it at different times. The good thing is that if they survive the initial episode, there doesn't seem to be any relapse. I guess they develop an immunity to be able to deal with it better. No adult birds have had problems.

Now we've had days of rain and major flooding. I don't think that's going to help things.

 

[casportpony]

I've had them get coccidiosis in brand new brooders. Get yourself some 9.6% Corid and if you get another outbreak, use it like eggcessive suggested. You can also give it as an oral drench. One very small drop per small chick is what I do, but the dose is actually 20mg/kg (.2ml per 2.2 pounds).

-Kathy

 

[Triple Willow]

@LoneStarHen... I have read several places that bleach will not kill cocci but ammonia will. Good luck.

 

[casportpony]

No harm in cleaning thoroughly, but that is no guarantee that they won't get coccidiosis. The best bet would be to have Corid on hand in case it's needed.

-Kathy

 

[cafarmgirl]

I dunno. I've thought of trying peroxide...

I think because it's going around that I've got different birds shedding it at different times. The good thing is that if they survive the initial episode, there doesn't seem to be any relapse. I guess they develop an immunity to be able to deal with it better. No adult birds have had problems.

Now we've had days of rain and major flooding. I don't think that's going to help things.

Yes, as they grow they do develop resistence to the strains of coccidia that are in their environment. The trick is protecting them from outbreaks when they are little. I just keep a close eye on chicks and am prepared to treat immediately with Corid at the very first signs that there might be a problem. I've never had any have a relapse after the initial treatment.

I have no idea if peroxide kills the protozoa, bleach does not. As mentioned previously, we do know that ammonia kills it so if I wanted to disinfect that is what I'd use.

No harm in cleaning thoroughly, but that is no guarantee that they won't get coccidiosis. The best bet would be to have Corid on hand in case it's needed.

-Kathy

DItto. You can clean all day long and still have chicks sprout a nice case of coccidiosis. The easiest solution in my opinion is simply vigilance and being prepared to treat immediately.