Coccidiosis- off label treatments
By Dr Mackie Hobson BSc(Agric),BVSc

1. Drugs
2. Field Studies

Coccidiosis is one of the most important diseases affecting Angora goat kids.

It is the setback suffered and the impact of chronic coccidiosis that results in lowered resistance, stunted growth and poor hair production that is the major concern in weaned Angora goat kids.

A number of producers have used ‘off-label’ to treat Cocci. The question is, how effective are these treatments?

We conducted 2 field studies to compare the effect of a few off label treatments on coccidiosis and compared these to Baycox and Vecoxan.

• DECCOX , instead of using as a feed additive, was made up as a:
• Paste
• Solution
• CHLORINE DIOXIDE
• CHLORINE DIOXIDE + DMSO

STUDY 1:

• DECCOX  - Paste/Solution
• CHLORINE DIOXIDE
• VECOXAN

Thanks to Jonno Moolman and his staff and Grootfontein labs (J.Venter) for the faecal egg counts, Zoetis (Vecoxan) and Aqua Viventum  for the Chlorine Dioxide.

Method:

50 randomly selected kids (5 months old, 13 -22kg) were divided into 4 groups.

1. CONTROL (No treatment)
2. Deccox - diluted with water group

• 1ml per 2kg of the filtered solution was dosed (3mg/kg prior to filtering)

3. Deccox – made into a paste group

• Dosed for the heaviest kid (1mg/Kg)

4. Chlorine Dioxide group

• Dosed 20ml of 300ppm solution

5. Vecoxan

• Dosed at 6ml/10kg (higher than licensed dose 0f 4ml/10kg body wt)

• The groups were kept on the same pasture with the rest of the flock (untreated).
• Faecal samples were taken on days 0, 4, 7 and 14 after treatment and analysed by Grootfontein.
• Chlorine dioxide entered the trial on day 7

Jonno, Eric and Ace at work during the field study

RESULTS:

Cocci oocyte counts

Discussion

From the graph, it can be seen that:

1. Chlorine Dioxide (300ppm) was introduced into the study on day 7. Dosed as 20ml of 300ppm solution had a good efficacy when checked at 7 days post-treatment. The duration of efficacy is unknown due to the length of the study but is suspected to be under 14 days.

2. Deccox solution (3mg/kg prior to straining sediment off) was surprisingly more effective than the paste, although the solution strength dosed (prior to starting) was higher than the paste. Cocci levels began to rise by day 7.

3. Deccox paste (2mg/Kg). The recommended dose in an ongoing feed additive is 0,5-1mg/Kg. Although the paste still reduced the oocyte count, it was not as effective as the solution at the study dose levels.

4. Vecoxan is a licensed treatment for goats to treat coccidiosis. The efficacy was very good, but the duration was limited to less than 14 days.

I suspected the limited duration of efficacy in these products is largely due to the poor acquired immunity of the Angora goat kid resulting in the counts rising quickly post-treatment back to the level of the control groups.

See the article on the poor immunity (innate/acquired) of the Angora goat kid https://www.angoras.co.za/article/immunity-in-angora-goats

STUDY 2:

Thanks to Lloyd Short and his staff of the farm Borden for hosting the study and Grootfontein labs (J.Venter) for the faecal egg counts. Aqua Viventum CC for the Chlorine dioxide and DMSO and Arnold de Jager for the Baycox

• CHLORINE DIOXIDE + DMSO - Each kid was dosed with 20 ml of AQUAVi2000-V, CLO2 solution @ 300 ppm combined with DMSO in solution
• BAYCOX - Each kid/young goat doses 6ml/10kg of baycox (higher than the licensed dose of 4ml/10kg)

DMSO was added to the Chlorine dioxide in this study. Dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is a treatment for various inflammatory conditions. It is known to reduce intestinal inflammation and barrier dysfunction*

Method:

30 randomly ram kids were weighed and divided into 3 treatment groups. Weight ranged 17.8-27kg (average 21.8kg)

1. Control (no treatment)
2. Baycox (dosed 6ml/10kg - 10ml each
3. Chlorine Dioxide + DMSO preparation (dosed 20ml per kid)

All goats were kept under the same environmental conditions, and Faecal samples were taken on day 0,7,14,21 and sent to Grootfontein labs.

Results:

The results reflected those in the previous study where the Chlorine Dioxide, DMSO, and Baycox reduced the Coccidiosis oocyte count in the first 7 days and by 14 days, were back at the control levels. The Chlorine dioxide/DMSO group did have a lower count on day 21, but the study would need to be extended to see if this was a longer-term effect.

In the 2019 trial, the kids were treated (Baycox or Vecoxan) approximately every 2 months over a 6-7.5 month period after weaning. This treatment strategy did not improve the longer-term counts or weight gains compared to the control.

I suspected this was due to the poor acquired immunity of the Angora goat kid resulting in the counts rising quickly post-treatment back to the level of the control groups, as mentioned earlier.

Below are the oocyte counts of the Baycox and Vecoxan treated groups compared to the control in a study we did in 2019.

Vecoxan treated on days 40, 124,179 (3 times over 6 month period)- GRAPH BELOW. We know from the field that the counts remain lower than the control only for a period of less than 2 weeks.

The longer-term treatment (1 month) with Deccox (feed additive) in the 2019 study did reduce Cocci counts when compared to a control group of kids. On average, 6586 eggs per gram (EPG) cocci were reduced to 75 EPG over the treatment period.

See details of the study: https://www.angoras.co.za/article/drugs-for-treating-coccidiosis-in-angora-kids

TREATMENTS/OFF LABEL used in these studies

1. DECCOX

Deccox (decoquinate) is intended for use in feed for cattle and sheep as an aid in the prevention and treatment of coccidiosis.

The dose in feed equates to 0.5-1mg/Kg body weight a day.

Deccox is a Zoetis product which can be obtained from your Co-op or your local vet is stocked.

DECCOX SOLUTION

A 1-litre solution was made up by adding 100g Deccox to 1-litre water

• 100 g equates to approximately 25x heaped teaspoons (4g).

• The solution once mixed is 6000mg/l or 6mg/ml
• The solution is thoroughly mixed and left overnight before the sediment is filtered off.

The unfiltered solution cannot be dosed as it would cause the ‘dose gun’ to block.

Stand the mixture overnight and then drain it through a ‘cloth’ to remove the residue.

The strained solution is dosed at 1ml/2kg body weight (3mg/kg prior to straining).

DECCOX PASTE

• 2x heaped Teaspoons (8g) mixed with 20ml water.

This makes up enough paste to treat approx. 20 goat kids weighing 20kg.

8g = 480mg decoquinate. (60mg/g)

• Divided into 20 doses (20kg kids), so each dose was 24mg ( 1,2mg decoquinate /Kg )
• Dose Approximately 0.5g/10 kg (12 mg) or 1g/20kg of the paste (24mg decoquinate). Below are photos 1g being dosed.

Measure 1 g on an accurate gram scale to get an idea of how much 1g of the paste is.

Another rough gauge is an average faecal pellet’s weight is about a gram.

     2. CHLORINE DIOXIDE

AQUAVi2000-V  (Ready to Use- RTU) Calf and Lamb preparation

Used off label and can be purchased via your vet from Aqua Viventum CC.  (Stephan.Durand@aquaviventum.com)

RTU solution of 2000ppm Chlorine Dioxide stock is made by your vet.

The stock solution must be kept in the fridge. (Heat and UV will break down the Chlorine Dioxide solution).

The stock solution is then made up of a 300ppm solution that can be dosed.

The 300ppm solution is made up by:

• 150ml of stock solution(2000ppm) + 850ml water (makes up a litre of 300ppm ready to treat). Keep it in the fridge.
• Dose each kid with 20ml of diluted solution (300ppm).

    3. CHLORINE DIOXIDE + DMSO

Each kid/young goat can be dosed with 21 ml of AQUAVi2000-V, CLO2 solution @ 300 ppm combined with DMSO in solution.

Preparation:  Mix 150 ml of the 2000 ppm (mg/L) stock solution and add this volume to 850ml of clean water. This will yield 1 L of a diluted solution with a final solute concentration of 300 ppm (mg/L). Add 50ml of the supplied DMSO solution to the Diluted CLO2 and use this for the dosing.

One litre of 300ppm CLO2 solution will be enough for 50 goat kids

Remember, the problem of coccidiosis is one of stress in young kids, and an interaction between the kid, the parasite and the environment need to be considered.

Predisposing factors need reducing/eliminating.

Dr Mackie Hobson

Mohair SA Veterinarian

REFERENCES
*Dimethyl sulfoxide inhibits zymosan-induced intestinal inflammation and barrier dysfunction

Yu-Meng Li, Hai-Bin Wang, Jin-Guang Zheng, Xiao-Dong Bai, Zeng-Kai Zhao, Jing-Yuan Li, and Sen Hu 2015