Certain diseases and parasites cause great damage to the poultry industry. Infact, this is the biggest discouraging factor for adopting poultry farming. Hence, it becomes necessary to the poultry keepers to study about their diseases, symptoms and cure. Most poultry diseases are usually caused by virus, protozoa and bacteria.
Respiratory mycoplasmosis :
It is a contagious and destructive disease of the poultry and affects birds of all ages.
Causative organism : It is caused by a bacteria like organism. They are of two types namely Mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) and Mycoplasma synoviae (MS).
> Symptoms : MG causes respiratory problems, breathlessness and overall dull performance while MS causes swollen hock joints and leg problems.
> Treatment and preventive measure : Antibiotics ; The infected bird should be destroyed or else the whole flock gets infected.
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Fowl pox or chicken pox
(not to be confused with chicken pox of humans as it does not affect poultry and vice versa). It is a highly contagious and infectious disease and the mortality rate is almost 100%. It affects birds of all ages and young chicks are more susceptible.
> Causative organism : It is caused by a virus.
> Symptoms : Black warts on the head, comb and wattles* ; White patches and nodule formation in the mouth, tongue and eye.
> Treatment and preventive measure : Destruction of infected birds ; Preventive measure is vaccination of chickens in advance.
Candidiasis :
It is a disease which affects the alimentary tract of chickens, turkeys and sometimes other birds and mammals too
> Causative organism : It is caused by a fungal yeast Candida albicans.
> Symptoms : Reduced growth, diarrhoea and lack of appetite
> Treatment and preventive measure : It could be treated by antibiotics ; The drinking water and feed should be clean and free from fungus. Chlorinated water at 5 ppm should be provided.
New Castle (NCD) or Ranikhet disease :
It is one of the most contagious and destructive diseases of the poultry with 100% mortality in broilers and affects birds of all ages.
> Causative organism : It is caused by a pathogenic strain of Paramyxoviruses-1 (PMV-1)
> Symptoms : Diarrhoea where the faeces is green in colour ; Paralysis of the body with twisted neck and head region.
> Treatment and preventive measure : If an infected bird is found positive for NCD, then all the birds of the group must be destroyed ; Preventive measure is vaccination of chicks.
Fowl Cholera :
It is a highly contagious disease. The disease can range from being acute to chronic and the mortality rate is almost 100%. The route of infection is oral or nasal.
> Causative organism : It is caused by a bacterium Pasteurella multocida.
> Symptoms : Sudden death without any visible symptoms ; Diarrhoea ; Painful growths ocurr in the joints of legs which results in lameness.
> Treatment and preventive measure : Antibiotics ; Disinfect the hen-house and keep it clean.
wattles : a fleshy appendage on the head or throat region of a fowl.