Successful coccidiosis vaccination in cage-free systems relies on effective post-vaccination management to ensure proper immunity development.
1. Tools to Estimate Immunity: Crop Filling & OPG
🔍 Immunity starts in the gizzard, where feed “cracks” the oocysts to make them active. Checking crop filling in the first 24 hours confirms if chicks are eating enough to trigger this process, while OPG monitoring tracks the progress of the recycling cycles.
2. Proper Chick Paper Management
📄 In cage-free aviaries, chicks have little contact with their own faeces. Sturdy chick paper (covering 60–80% of the floor) is essential to catch and hold the vaccine oocysts so they can be re-ingested.
3. Freshness is Key for Sporulation
🌡️ Oocysts need warmth and oxygen to become infective, but moisture is the deciding factor. They can survive up to 7 days in fresh, moist faeces, but may die within hours if the droppings dry out.
4. Facilitate Re-uptake Through Behaviour
🐤 Stimulate natural pecking by distributing feed directly on the chick paper for the first 10–12 days. Increasing light intensity can also make moist, shiny faeces more attractive for pecking, ensuring the cycle continues.
5. Safeguard Gut Health & Avoid Interference
🩺 Vaccine replication happens in the gut wall, so gut integrity is vital. Avoid antibiotics (like sulphonamides) or water disinfectants that can kill the vaccine oocysts and effectively block the immunization process.
LOHMANN BREEDERS – It’s the egg. 🥚💛
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