Treating a 5-wk chick for Coccidiosis

[blue_hydrangea_homestead]

Hello fellow chicken keepers! Apologies in advance for a long post...

I'm dealing with my first case of coccidiosis after having raised chickens with my family for years.
I have 3 1 month old chicks and found bloody, mucousy poo in their run yesterday morning. One chick is acting off and I've observed her in the process of pooing out the bloody stuff

I've done the following since finding the blood:
1. Cleaned the area as thoroughly as possible.
2. Put 10 ml of liquid Corid in their water.
3. Syringed approximately .02 ml of Corid directly to the beaks of all 3 chicks.
4. Only offered unmedicated feed.
5. Gave boiled egg yolk last night to encourage eating.
6. Have been consulting @TwoCrows and am SO thankful for all advice given so far!!!

So far, it seems it has only affected one chick (I call her Fran). The others are doing just fine and acting normally.

Since finding the bloody poo and giving the Corid treatment, Fran has fluctuated throughout yesterday and today.
I understand that she is likely in pain and I shouldn't expect her to be running around like normal just yet.

She will move if the others move around but she is obviously pretty weak. I've syringed Corid water to her all day in small increments, as well as small amounts of applesauce to make sure she gets some kind of food. Fran's crop is big and squishy, so I've massaged it gently just to be on the safe side.

At my last check in on them, Fran was at the feeder (though I'm not sure if she ate or not) and she drank on her own. However, she is still passing bloody stool. How long should it be before her poop is back to normal? Have I acted fast enough? And should I do a Corid drench again?

I hope she turns the corner soon! I really don't want to lose the poor baby, but I also don't want her suffering. It's so hard trying to judge if she's improving or not. Sometimes she's just laying down, other times she's walking around with the others. Yesterday when I first noticed something was wrong she was so sluggish and lethargic that when we held on to her to syringe the Corid she didn't even put up a struggle. Today she was NOT a fan of being handled. So I'm hoping that's a good sign at least?

Anyway, just looking for encouragement and more advice from more knowledgable chicken keepers. Since getting these chicks, I started a month ago with 6, lost one the first week to some kind of respiratory illness and foot injury, two weeks after that lost one to a snake, and the week after that lost another to the same snake. This week is coccidia... I don't think my little heart can take any more losses

Here is a video of her this afternoon https://www.backyardchickens.com/gallery/albums/ee-chicks-🐥.7430595/

 

[TwoCrows]

What a sweetheart she is!

Hopefully others can help you further here, I'd hate for you to lose her.

@azygous @Eggcessive @Wyorp Rock can any of you help here... Corid Drench, anything else?

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

It will take a few days if she is visibly sick. My pullets had an overload recently and their poop didnt look normal for a week.

 

[blue_hydrangea_homestead]

It will take a few days if she is visibly sick. My pullets had an overload recently and their poop didnt look normal for a week.

Okay good! I've seen some people saying it was 24 hours and the poop was back to normal so I was pretty concerned!!! Thank you for your input!

 

[Eggcessive]

You can give the Corid at that dose for 5-7 days and also give another 5 days at 1/4 th of that dose. Recovery and normal droppings probably depends on how sick she is and how much damage may have been done to her intestines. Drench dosage is 0.1 ml per pound of the undiluted Corid given once a day, and you can also syringe some of the diluted Corid water to her as well as offering some chick feed moistened with it.

 

[blue_hydrangea_homestead]

You can give the Corid at that dose for 5-7 days and also give another 5 days at 1/4 th of that dose. Recovery and normal droppings probably depends on how sick she is and how much damage may have been done to her intestines. Drench dosage is 0.1 ml per pound of the undiluted Corid given once a day, and you can also syringe some of the diluted Corid water to her as well as offering some chick feed moistened with it.

Ooo thank you so much! I will definitely give her some moistened food tomorrow (Lord willing I go out there in the morning and she's alive!!!)

 

[Eggcessive]

Oh yes, and do not massage a crop if it is squishy, since that can force liquid back up into the airway and could cause choking. It is okay to massage an impacted firm crop.

 

[blue_hydrangea_homestead]

Oh yes, and do not massage a crop if it is squishy, since that can force liquid back up into the airway and could cause choking. It is okay to massage an impacted firm crop.

Thank you! I didn't massage for long and was very gentle, honestly just trying to feel if there was anything firm in there at all. So, squishy crop is okay?

 

[Eggcessive]

A lot of people report that chickens can have a slow squishy crop when they are suffering from coccidiosis because the intestines are not working well and digestion is slowed. I also have found that true In broody hens.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

2. Put 10 ml of liquid Corid in their water.
3. Syringed approximately .02 ml of Corid directly to the beaks of all 3 chicks.

As mentioned, direct oral dose of Liquid Corid is 0.10ml per pound of weight given orally twice a day for 3 days. This is in addition to the chicks drinking the Mixed Corid Water as the only source of drinking water.

I'd try to encourage her to eat her normal feed. Try it wet/mushy or dry. Applesauce may cause loose stools as it can act like a laxative, it won't hurt her or the others, just be aware if she has looser than normal poop it may be due to this.

Do you have photos of the poop?

Re-check the crop first thing in the morning, if it's still squishy and big, then I'd treat as Sour Crop.

I've syringed Corid water to her all day in small increments, as well as small amounts of applesauce to make sure she gets some kind of food. Fran's crop is big and squishy, so I've massaged it gently just to be on the safe side.