YOUR  MEDICINE  CABINET

Here are some of the medicines the fancier may be wise to stock, and the reasons to use them.

BAYTRIL: a good choice for serious infections, mainly intestinal or systemic. This drug comes in tablet form and individual pigeons can be dosed at 5mg per pigeon per day. Flock treat with the liquid Baytril only (the tablets will not go into solution). Use for 5 to 10 days. Do not use during reproduction and rapid growth of squabs.

AMOXICILLIN: a safer alternative drug to Baytril. It can be used during reproduction and racing without any side effects. Not as broad spectrum as Baytril, but often very effective in treating serious infections. Comes in tablet form (50mg) which can be used once or twice daily on individual cases.  Flock treatment best accomplished using 3 grams per gallon for 5 to 10 days.

TETRACYCLINE DRUG (Terramycin, Aeuromycin, Tetracycline or Doxycycline): good for respiratory infections; best when used in combination with Tylan. One usually has no distinct advantage over the other and they share a common spectrum of activity.  With the exception of Doxycycline, they are all available over the counter as poultry preparations. Use 4 teaspoons per gallon of regular strength or 2 teaspoons per gallon of the concentrate. Doxycycline is dosed at 500 to 1,000mg per gallon. Use these for 7 to 14 days.

TYLAN: use as mentioned above, in combination with a tetracycline for respiratory infections. Tylan powder is dosed at 1 to 2 teaspoons per gallon. Individual dose at 50mg per pigeon per day.

DELTA  ALBAPLEX: this is a veterinary tablet which can be quite useful in treating individual cases of respiratory infections. It contains a tetracycline plus albamycin as well as a small amount of corticosteroid. Use half a tablet twice daily for 3 to 7 days.

AMPROLIUM: the standby  for coccidiosis, treat at 1 teaspoon per gallon of the 20% powder for 3 to 5 days.

BAYCOX (TOLTAZURIL):  a newer, more effective coccidiostat, can be used instead of Amprolium. Dose for 1 to 2 days at 4cc (100mg) per gallon.

RONIDAZOLE (RIDZOL): for trichomonas. This is the safest of the three products commonly used. 1 teaspoon per gallon for 3 to 5 days.

EMTRYL (DIMETRIDAZOLE) for trichomonas. Use carefully, as it can cause seizures at higher doses.

FLAGYL (METRONIDAZOLE) for trichomonas, 25 to 50mg per pigeon per day for 1 to 3 days, or 1250 to 2500mg per gallon for 3 to 5 days.

IVOMEC (IVERMECTIN): a wormer, give 500 to 1,000 micrograms(ug) per pigeon. Effective against Capallaria (hairworms) and Tetrameres and Dyspharynx (stomach wall worms); less effective against roundworms.

PYRANTEL  PAMOATE: 1 to 3mg per pigeon (75mg per gallon) for 1 to 2 days for rounsworms only. 

TRAMISOL (LEVAMISOLE)  give 1 to 1.5grams per gallon for 1 day for roundworms only.

PANACUR (FENBENDAZOLE) effective against the three major worms but has potential to cause feather damage. Do not use during reproduction or moult. 5mg per pigeon per day for 3 days.

There are many other choices available and I've kept the list to what I consider minimal, giving choices for some conditions. Not all of these drugs are commonly available. Consult your vet for help.

THINGS   TO   AVOID

We have all heard these things before, I am sure, but we all forget and need to be reminded periodically on the medication "no-nos".

Avoid using Emtryl during mating times. It has been shown to temporarily decrease fertility in the cock. We assume that the other anti-trichomonas drugs have similar effects but as far as I know, this has not been demonstrated.

Avoid using Bendazole wormers such as Panacur and Telmintic during the moult or when feeding youngsters. This family of drugs can cause feather abnormalities, sometimes severe.

Avoid having grit or pellets available when treating with the Tetracycline family of antibiotics. The calcium in grit or pellets can bind the drug making it unusable in the body, resulting in severe underdosing. The Tetracycline family includes Terramycin, Aureomycin, Tetracycline and Doxycycline.

Avoid leaving medications in the drinking water more than 24 hours. The medications gradually break down and become ineffective. The warmer the temperature, the faster this occurs. So in warm weather a 12 hour limit may be more practical. Make freash preparations each morning.

Avoid higher doses when medicating. One spoon doing the pigeons good does not mean that two spoons will do them twice as good! The recommended dosage should be adhered to. Some drugs are very toxic at higher levels.

When treating via the drinking water, remember that the dos should be adjusted depending on the volume of water consumed. The recommended doses are for mild temperatures. Use a little less in hot conditions, and up to twice the dosage in very cold weather when the birds drink much less.

Avoid using drugs at lower than recommended doses and for less than the recommended time. This practice allows the organisms to become tolerant or resistant to the medications by being exposed to them for insufficient time or at levels too low to eliminate them. This resistance factor becomes very important and gradually produces "super bugs" which are unstoppable with antibiotics.

Avoid using antibiotics as "preventive medication". Antibiotics prevent nothing. They are used to treat certain infections but, by no means, prevent anything. Actually they may make the birds more susceptible to infection because they eliminate the normal beneficial bacteria; and these bacteria protect the birds, in some degree, from infection.

Avoid mixing the medications unless the mixtures are shown to be safe. Certain combinations are known to be safe and generally used. Don't get carried away and assume that all medications can be mixed and dosed simultaneously. Proceed cautiously and try to stick to known safe combinations.

Avoid putting anything else in the drinking water when household bleach, such as Clorox, is used as a water disinfectant. These are very oxidizing substances and will change the product mixed with them, either rendering them ineffective or toxic. Clorox is to be used only by itself. Discontinue it when medicating in the water, or even using vitamins in the water.

This article is by Dr. David Marx, a fancier himself and probably America's best known pigeon veterinarian.