01/10/2020
HEALTH CHALLENGE IN POULTRY PRODUCTION
Many farms has suffered a lot of setbacks as a result of health challenge facing their birds, some are even afraid of venturing back into the poultry business, considering the huge loss of capital. It has become important for us to take the health issues of our birds seriously.
The following can serve as a check or guide towards improving the health of our birds.
1. CONDUCT A DAILY PHYSICAL CHECK ON YOUR BIRDS: sick birds won't eat or drink very well and tend to isolate itself from others. Please ensure you remove any identified sick bird and put in an isolation house or pen. Leaving the sick bird with other birds would lead to the spread of the disease.
2. OBSERVE THE BIRDS' FAECES (POOPOO): a deviation from the normal faeces is a signal of infection. Blood stained faeces, greenish faeces, greenish yellow faeces, diarrhea, white faeces are all signs of infection. Please do not delay in providing necessary medication.
3. AVOID ANY FORM OF STRESS TO BIRDS : stress affects the immune system of the birds and expose them to diseases. Some of the stress are as follows;
a. Lack of feed
b. Lack of water
c. Poor ventilation
d. Inadequate floor space
e. Poor sanitation
f. High worm and lice infestation
g. Extreme weather conditions, that is too or too cold conditions
h. Sudden change in feed or environment
i. Pest, flies, ants and predators
j. Poor management condition
k. Feeding poor quality feed
l. Giving poor quality water; water that is excessively acid or alkaline will affects the birds. The acceptable ph is from 6.4 to 8.0. Please give birds water you can conveniently drink.
SOME COMMON POULTRY DISEASES AND THEIR SYMPTOMS
1. NEW CASTLE DISEASE : This is a viral infection.
Symptoms include gasping, coughing, paralysis of legs and wings, drop in egg production, high mortality, rotating of head, tumbling, tucking the head between the legs, greenish yellow faeces, soft shelled egg, misshapen egg, discouration of eggs.
There is no cure for this disease, therefore prevention with the appropriate vaccination is the best policy.
2. INFECTIOUS BURSAL DISEASE (GUMBORO):
this is a viral disease.
Symptoms include marked depression, loss of appetite, ruffled feather, droopy appearance (bending head, appearing sleepy ), watery diarrhea, high mortality.
There is no cure for this disease, increasing the house temperature and administering vitamins may reduce disease severity.
3. FOWL CHOLERA: this is a bacteria.
Syptoms include depression in birds, loss of appetite, respiratory challenge, nose discharge, watery greenish diarrhea, swollen joints, swollen comb and wattle.
Use sulpha based antibiotics to treat.
4. FOWL POX: this is a viral infection
Syptoms include watery blister on comb, wattle or face, cheesy patches in mouth or throat, lowered feed intake and drop in egg production.
There is no treatment for affected birds, since disease spreads slowly, unaffected birds can be vaccinated by wing web method using fowl pox strain (for broiler) or pigeon pox strain (for layers in production ). Broad spectrum antibiotics in feed or water are advisable to prevent the increase of secondary bacteria infection.
5. FOWL TYPHOID: this is a bacteria infection.
Syptoms include greenish diarrhea, pale shriveled comb and wattle, drop in egg production, droopy posture, enlargement of liver and spleen.
Give sulpha or nitrofurans antibiotics to reduce losses.
6.COCCIDIOSIS: this is a bacteria infection.
Symptoms include rough feathers, pale beak and shank, bloody droppings, enlarge caeca, reduced appetite, reduced body weight gain, watery diarrhea, birds appear droopy.
Use amprolium and sulpha antibiotics. Combination of 2 or more coccidiostats is encouraging.
CHRONIC RESPIRATORY DISEASE (CRD): this is a bacteria infection.
Symptoms include nasal discharge, persistent cough, thick and congested air sac and pus in wind pipe.
NOTE: Viral diseases have no cure, the best is by prevention by given the necessary vaccine at the right time.
These are not exhaustive, but would help you to diagnose disease when and where a veterinary doctor is out of reach.
Wish you the best.
Join our WhatsApp group such lectures and more by clicking on the link;
WhatsApp Group Invite
