Poultry disease - everything you need to know

Posted by maria on March 30th, 2021

Owning a poultry farm is a business of profit and loss and great responsibility of lives. Raising these domesticated birds such as chicken, turkeys, ducks, and geese for consumers' appetite needs at most care to avoid diseases carried over to their plates.

Environmental conditions, bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites, or nutritional deficiency, anything could be the cause for infections and early chicken mortality.

Awareness is the key:

Knowledge about diseases and their symptoms is the step of biosecurity. Where biosecurity is the set of defense mechanisms followed to prevent the entry of infection into the farm.

Let's discuss the common diseases, their symptoms, and the actions required.

1)      New Cattle disease or Rainhat disease: It's a viral disease, highly infectious, and can affect livestock of all ages.

Symptoms:

•           wheezing and coughing.
•           Green diarrhea
•           Twisted head and incoordination

Action required:

•           Consulting a vet and vaccination for chickens are actions required.

2)      Chicken Respiratory Disease (CRD): it's a respiratory illness caused by Mycoplasma gallisepticum (CRD bacteria). Contaminated people or equipment can spread the disease.

Symptoms:

•           Decreased appetite and egg production
•           Sneezing, Coughing, wheezing, and nasal discharge
•           Swelling around eyes and beak.     

Action required:

•   Isolating the infected flock

•.  Antibiotic poultry, consulting a veterinarian 

3)      Infectious bronchitis: In young chicks, IBV is rapidly spreading respiratory disease; specific IBV stain will also cause kidney disease.

Symptoms:

•           Reduced egg production
•           Eggshell abnormalities
•           Early chicken mortality.

Action required:

•           Immediate consulting with a veterinarian is the best action required.

4)      Infectious Laryngotracheitis (ILT): It's a highly contagious and potentially deadly respiratory disease which affects birds of all age.

Symptoms:

•           Coughing bloody mucoid exudate
•           Gasping
•           Rattling

Action required:

•           Strict biosecurity action
•           Early detection and Vacation for chicken can reduce mortality.

5)      Fowl cholera: It's a contagious bacterial disease caused by contaminated feed and water.

Symptoms:

•           Mucoid discharge from the mouth
•           Pneumonia
•           Ruffled feathers

Action required:

•           Antibiotics for poultry may reduce mortality but won't eliminate the bacteria.
•           Eradication of infection requires cleaning and disinfection.