What are the symptoms of pigeon Newcastle disease and what emergency measures should be taken?

Pigeon Newcastle disease, also known as type I paramyxovirus disease or pigeon Newcastle disease, is an acute, febrile, contagious, septicemic infectious disease caused by type I paramyxovirus, characterized mainly by diarrhea and myelitis.

Symptoms of pigeon Newcastle disease

1. Acute type: the birds die without showing any clinical symptoms.

2. Nervous type: shows neurological symptoms such as head twisting, neck stretching, paralysis of both feet, inability to stand, and drooping wings, accounting for about 5%-35%.

3. Diarrhea-nervous type: severe watery diarrhea occurs first, with yellow-green loose droppings, listlessness, ruffled feathers, poor appetite, and increased thirst. Some sick pigeons have paroxysmal spasms, tremors, twisted head and neck, and head tilted backward. Squabs die in large numbers, and young pigeons and parent pigeons also die. The mortality rate of sick pigeons can exceed 50%.

4. Dyspnea type: manifested as open-mouth breathing with a “clucking” sound and nasal discharge. A small number of pigeons have conjunctivitis or eyeball inflammation.

Emergency measures for pigeon Newcastle disease

For treatment, mildly affected pigeons and possibly infected pigeons in the incubation period must be immediately isolated under strict disinfection. Antibody therapy should be adopted, combined with adjuvant therapies such as antiviral and anti-infection treatment.

1. In the early stage of the outbreak or in threatened pigeon flocks, inject pigeon Newcastle disease hyperimmune serum or yolk antibody immediately, 0.5-1 ml per bird subcutaneously in the nape of the neck; severe cases can be injected once more the next day. Its effective period is only 7-14 days.

2. Early intramuscular injection of avian gene interferon, 0.01 ml per bird, once a day for 2 consecutive days, has a certain therapeutic effect.

3. Early intramuscular injection of polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid in each adult pigeon, 0.5-1 mg per bird, once every 3 days for 2-3 consecutive doses, has a certain therapeutic effect.

4. Intramuscular injection in each adult pigeon of penicillin 50,000 units, streptomycin 50,000 units, and ribavirin 1 ml, once a day for 3 consecutive days. For secondary or concurrent Escherichia coli disease, cefotaxime sodium, sulbactam sodium, clindamycin hydrochloride, rifampicin, enrofloxacin, etc. may also be selected.

5. For each adult pigeon, intramuscular injection of Banlangen injection 1 ml, vitamin C injection 1 ml, and dexamethasone 0.5-1 ml at one time, twice a day for 3-5 consecutive days.

6. For each adult pigeon, intramuscular injection of ribavirin 1 ml, vitamin C injection 1 ml, and amikacin 0.5 ml at one time, twice a day for 3-5 consecutive days^

7. Yinqiao Jiedu tablets, 0.2-0.3 g per bird, twice a day for 3-5 consecutive days.

8. Rhubarb, gentian, Banlangen, and forsythia 10 g each; Sophora flavescens, Rehmannia, and licorice 5 g each. Decoct in water for 20 pigeons to drink, 1 dose per day for 3 consecutive days.

9. Scutellaria baicalensis 100 g, Platycodon grandiflorus and Pinellia ternata 70 g each, mulberry white bark and loquat leaves 80 g each, tangerine peel, licorice, and mint (added later) 30 g each. Decoct in water for 100 pigeons to drink, 1 dose per day for 3 consecutive days.