Commonly Used Medications

Backyard poultry are commonly being presented to veterinary practices for individualized and small flock care. For laying hens, the FDA-approved withdrawal time is 0 days, thus there are a limited number of FDA-approved medications available for egg-laying chickens. This chapter provides practical information on what is commonly used and available to treat backyard poultry within the current laws and regulations. The pros and cons of the various routes of administration of medications in poultry are listed. Some drug dosages are arrived at empirically or anecdotally if no pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic studies have been performed on chickens or other poultry species. The goal of therapy is to achieve antimicrobial tissue levels at the site of infection that are greater than the minimum inhibitory concentration, but realize tissue penetrations vary. Examples of medications commonly used in backyard individual poultry are also listed.