How to prevent and treat trichomoniasis in pigeons? A must-read guide for breeders

Trichomoniasis is very common in pigeons. It is a multiple-occurrence protozoan disease that is highly harmful to pigeons and is one of the major diseases of pigeons. The pathogen causing the disease is Trichomonas. The characteristic of this disease is the appearance of obvious button-shaped yellow deposits on the pharyngeal mucosa.

This disease is mainly transmitted through contact infection. Young pigeons aged 2—5 weeks are most commonly affected, and the condition is more severe. Adult pigeons are mostly asymptomatic carriers of the parasite. According to the different parts attacked by the parasite, the disease is divided into the pharyngeal type, visceral type and navel type.

Pharyngeal type: This is the most common and most harmful type. Sick pigeons have difficulty swallowing and breathing, are depressed, have digestive disturbances, become emaciated, eat little, have increased thirst, and pass yellow-green loose droppings. Necropsy shows pale yellow secretions in the pharynx, or clearly demarcated button-shaped caseous deposits, and in some sick pigeons the entire nasopharyngeal mucosa is evenly scattered with pinpoint-sized lesions.

Visceral type: Sick pigeons are depressed and have poor appetite, increased thirst, ruffled feathers, and diarrhea; when breathing they open the mouth and stretch the neck, accompanied by coughing and gasping. When the lesions occur in the digestive tract, there are white small nodules in the crop and esophagus, with caseous material inside, fluid accumulation in the crop, and grayish-white clearly demarcated small nodules can also be seen on the surface of the liver and spleen.

Navel type: Inflammation forms under the skin at the navel of the pigeon. Sick pigeons are dull, have ruffled feathers, eat little, and become emaciated. The navel area is red and swollen, and when the swelling is cut open, caseous or ulcerative lesions can be seen.

Prevention and treatment. To prevent this disease, the main measure is to regularly check whether the flock carries the parasite in the oral cavity, that is, take oral mucus for microscopic examination. In terms of feeding management, adult pigeons and young pigeons should be raised separately, and attention should be paid to the hygiene of feed and drinking water.

The following methods can be used to treat this disease: (1) Prepare 1,2-dimethyl-5-nitroimidazole as a 0.05% aqueous solution and let the pigeons drink it continuously for 3 days, then after an interval of 3 days, let them drink it again for 3 days; in between, use furazolidone at 0.02% in drinking water for 2 days to kill bacteria and cut off the nutrient source of Trichomonas. (2) Metronidazole at a concentration of 0.05% in drinking water for 1-2 days. (3) Oral administration of 2-amino-5-nitrothiazole, once a day, 20-40 mg per kg of body weight each time, for 7 consecutive days. (4) Drink a 0.5% copper sulfate solution for 3-5 days.