A Detailed Guide to the Symptoms and Prevention of Chicken Coccidiosis
Chickens are the main livestock raised by farmers. If raised well, they can be profitable; if raised poorly, serious economic losses can occur, such as coccidiosis. So, what are the symptoms of chicken coccidiosis? How is it prevented and treated?
1. What are the symptoms of chicken coccidiosis?
1. Chicken coccidiosis is a parasitic disease that damages the chicken's intestines. It is an acute epidemic parasitic disease caused by one or more species of coccidia. The pathogen is coccidia of the genus Eimeria, family Eimeriidae, among the protozoa. A total of 13 species of chicken coccidia have been recorded worldwide, and 9 species have been found in China. Different species of coccidia parasitize different sites in the chicken intestine, and their pathogenicity also differs.
2. Eimeria tenella parasitizes the ceca and has the strongest pathogenicity; Eimeria necatrix parasitizes the middle third of the small intestine and is highly pathogenic; Eimeria maxima parasitizes the middle section of the small intestine and has a certain pathogenic effect; Eimeria acervulina parasitizes the duodenum and the anterior section of the small intestine and has a certain pathogenic effect; Eimeria mitis and Eimeria hagani parasitize the anterior section of the small intestine and have low pathogenicity; Eimeria praecox parasitizes the anterior third of the small intestine and has low pathogenicity; Eimeria brunetti parasitizes the posterior section of the small intestine and the base of the ceca and has a certain pathogenicity; Eimeria mivati parasitizes the small intestine, rectum, and ceca and has a certain pathogenicity.
3. In chronic coccidiosis, affected chickens develop diarrhea, but it is mostly not bloody, production performance declines, and susceptibility to other diseases increases; in acute coccidiosis, affected chickens show listlessness and loss of appetite, increased thirst, rough feathers, diarrhea, feces often containing blood, anemia, pale visible mucous membranes, combs, and wattles, dehydration, shriveled skin, decreased production performance, and severe cases can cause death.
2. How is chicken coccidiosis prevented and treated?
The economic losses caused by chicken coccidiosis are staggering. The morbidity and mortality rates of chicks aged 10 to 30 days or growing chickens aged 35 to 60 days can be as high as 80%; adult chickens generally do not become ill, but they are carriers and are an important source of coccidiosis transmission; chicks that recover from the disease have stunted growth and slow weight gain. Therefore, chicken coccidiosis is best prevented primarily through prevention.
1. Prevention methods for chicken coccidiosis
Method 1, management prevention: The chicken house should be kept dry, ventilated, and hygienic. Spreading montmorillonite powder on the ground can improve ground dryness and inhibit bacteria. Manure should be removed regularly and piled for fermentation to kill coccidial oocysts; cages, feed troughs, and water troughs should be disinfected regularly to kill coccidial oocysts; adult chickens and chicks should be raised separately to prevent carrier adult chickens from spreading the pathogen and causing coccidiosis outbreaks in chicks.
Method 2, feeding prevention: Adding 0.25 to 0.5 mg of selenium to the chicken's daily ration can enhance the chicken's resistance to coccidia; giving chicks a small amount of infectious oocysts orally every day can help them acquire immunity; adding probiotics such as bifidobacteria and lactic acid bacteria to the feed maintains the balance of intestinal flora, reduces the incidence of enteritis in the flock, and can effectively resist coccidial infection.
Method 3, immunization prevention: Vaccinate chickens with coccidiosis vaccine. It is reported that immunizing chickens with attenuated strains passaged through chicken embryos or attenuated strains selected through early maturation can produce a relatively good preventive effect against coccidiosis.
Method 4, drug prevention: There are robenidine, amprolium, nitromide (clopidol), monensin, salinomycin (coccidiostat powder, Yousujing), diclazuril, maduramicin (anticoccidial king, Duqiu, Jiafu), nicarbazin, and others, which can be mixed into feed and have a good preventive effect.
2. Treatment methods for chicken coccidiosis
Treatment is generally with drugs, such as toltrazuril solution (Kuiwen Poultry Research Institute), sulfonamides, compound sulfa-5-methoxypyrimidine (SMD-TMP), sulfaquinoxaline (SQ), sulfadimethoxine (SDM), sulfamonomethoxine (SMM, DS—36, Zhijunhuang), sulfadimidine (SM2), sulfachloropyrazine (Esb3), administered by mixing with feed or drinking water. For specifics, consult a veterinarian.
The above is an introduction to the symptoms and prevention methods of chicken coccidiosis. We hope it is useful to everyone.