Yep, powder isn't available in Canada, actually the brand name Corid isn't available at all in Canada. No idea why. The active drug, Amprolium, is available as liquid ( you add it to water same as powder)in gallon jugs at feed stores for $$$. Many farm vets will also give you a smaller "pour-off" amount, but for this to be cost effective it has to be a combined visit
.
You can buy Corid powder on Amazon.ca, but it is still shipped from the U.S..and for the price, you're better off to buy the gallon jug of liquid amprol, keep it in a cool dark place, and share/sell with other poultry keepers when they need some. A jug that size will treat a LOT of poultry. 2 teaspoons per gallon of water...unless you are a commercial breeder, it will take you years and years to use that much.
Other options are: 1:)Make sure it's cocci you're dealing with. There are various bacterial enteritides that present exactly the same, up to and including including bloody
. If it's enteritis, no amount of Corid will help.
2:)Sulfonamide, still readily available at the moment, and cheaper than Amprol. It's a folic acid antagonist. Caveat is that there is widespread resistance to sulfonamides, and whether it is effective as a treatment depends on what strain of cocci you have at any given time.
3:) there are many drugs that are effective against poultry cocci parasites, but their use either IS, or very shortly WILL BE, illegal for use in food animals. Chickens fall into that category, even if the bird you are treating is a pet and you will never eat their eggs or meat. Studies are often not done, or not clear, on whether or not there are residues in eggs and meat, or whether or not the use of such drugs contributes to microbial resistance or leads to reduced effectiveness of such drugs in any species.
Look for online canadian pigeon or cage bird medication suppliers. They will often have small containers of hard-to-find bird medications, wink wink.
4:) immediately kill any bird exhibiting signs of illness. While this may sound like an extreme solution, or you may consider it as a very last resort (as do I), consider this: a bird only shows signs of illness when it is VERY ill. And contagious. Killing at first sign limits the spread of illness, while the infected bird has still shed little enough to provoke an immune response in other birds, but potentially not enough to dangerously infect them.
In the case of a coccidiosis infection, it is common (even inevitable), and treatable, but also has long term effects in survivors of severe illness whether they were treated or not. It scars intestines. It stresses liver and kidneys as they flush out not only toxic by-products of the parasites as they live, feed, damage, metabolize, and die and get "digested", but also whatever you give the bird to treat the parasite. Liver and kidneys are further stressed by repairing the damage after the parasites are gone.
It's not a big deal, if you expect for chickens to live 2-7 years. It's a HUGE deal though if you'd like long-lived birds (especially the "favourites") and especially if you'd like decent egg production for most of those years. Cocci malnourishes your birds. First by stealing nutrients directly, and by causing blood and fluid loss through excess mucus production and diarrhea. Second by causing intestinal scarring and malabsorption issues which are often permanent.