Symptoms and Treatment Methods of Viral Hepatitis, a Major Infectious Disease in Ducks

Duck viral hepatitis is a common infectious disease in duck farming. If not detected promptly, it can cause massive losses. The symptoms and treatment methods of the disease are as follows:

1. Disease symptoms

Duck viral hepatitis often occurs in ducklings within 4 weeks of age. Ducklings aged 5-15 days are most susceptible to infection. The earliest onset can occur in 3-day-old ducklings, and the younger the age, the higher the mortality rate. The mortality rate of ducklings within 1 week of age can reach over 95%.

2. Disease treatment

(1) Immunization with attenuated duck viral hepatitis vaccine has a good preventive effect. Breeding ducks should receive the first immunization with attenuated vaccine one month before the start of laying, and the second immunization 2 weeks later, with 1 ml injected intramuscularly each time; or 2-3 weeks before the start of laying, immunization can be carried out simultaneously with duck hepatitis oil emulsion inactivated vaccine and attenuated vaccine; for ducklings without maternal antibodies against duck hepatitis, inject 0.1 ml per duckling of attenuated vaccine diluted 50 times subcutaneously at 1 day of age. For ducklings with maternal antibodies, inject 0.2 ml per duckling of attenuated vaccine diluted 50 times at 7-10 days of age.

(2) For affected ducks, treatment with anti-duck hepatitis serum or hyperimmune yolk antibody should be adopted as early as possible, with subcutaneous or intramuscular injection of 1 ml per duckling, and appropriate combination with antibacterial drugs to prevent secondary infection.

Appendix: What to do about duck arthritis?

1. Disease symptoms:

Duck arthritis syndrome is related to multiple bacterial infections. The affected joints become swollen and purplish-red, with a feeling of heat upon palpation. In the early stage, the area is relatively soft locally, then gradually becomes hard, showing severe lameness or inability to walk, reduced feed intake, gradual emaciation, and increased mortality.

2. Treatment methods:

Broad-spectrum antibacterial drugs can be selected for treatment, such as oxytetracycline, kanamycin, etc. For duck flocks with mild infection and mild symptoms, the drugs can be mixed into feed or drinking water. When the condition is severe, intramuscular injection can be given to the whole flock.

a. Oxytetracycline base, mixed evenly into the mixed feed at a ratio of 0.08%-0.1%, for continuous treatment of 5-7 days.

b. Kanamycin injection, each 10 ml containing 1 gram of the drug, can be used for intramuscular injection in 50-100 affected ducks, once daily, for continuous treatment of 2-3 days.