Application of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Summer Poultry Farming

In summer, according to Traditional Chinese Medicine theory, it belongs to the fire element, and fire nature flames upward, easily damaging yin and consuming qi. In summer, northern regions, due to high temperatures and little rain, are prone to summer-heat disease, also called summer-warm disease. However, in southern regions, due to abundant rain and high temperatures, dampness is mixed in, and summer-dampness disease occurs more often. Therefore, in the same season, because poultry are raised in different environments, different disease patterns will occur, so the medicines we use for treatment and prevention cannot be the same. First, let us talk about the north. Due to high temperatures and little rain in the north, warm-heat disease occurs frequently. What is warm-heat disease? What are its causes and disease mechanisms? How should it be treated?

First, summer-warm disease is a warm disease caused by contracting summer-heat pathogenic qi in summer, characterized by sudden onset and interior heat exuberance from the very beginning. Because the pathogenic qi is intense, summer-warm disease can present from the start with high fever, profuse sweating, thirst with desire for cold drinks, and other clinical manifestations described in warm disease theory as intense heat at the qi level.

Second, its causes and disease mechanisms are mainly contraction of summer-heat pathogenic qi in summer. From the Summer Solstice to the End of Heat period, if the climate is extremely hot, dry, and rainless, animals are prone to contracting summer-heat pathogenic qi and developing summer-heat disease. Summer-heat disease belongs to newly contracted warm disease, but at onset it may directly enter the interior without passing through the exterior syndrome stage, and from the beginning intense interior heat is seen. The reasons for this situation must be analyzed from two aspects. On one hand, it depends on the functional state of the body. In the hot summer climate, the animal body is in a state of profuse sweating, with interstices open and defensive qi sparse, thus opening a convenient door for invasion by summer-heat pathogen. On the other hand, it depends on the nature of the pathogenic qi. Summer heat is the extreme of heat, with extremely strong pathogenicity, so when the interstices are sparse, it very easily invades the body and drives straight in, so interior heat syndrome can appear from the beginning. From the perspective of disease progression, summer-heat disease generally begins with intense heat at the qi level. If high fever and profuse sweating consume fluids and qi, this can further lead to impending collapse of fluids and qi, and even yang collapse. If the high heat at the qi level penetrates into the ying and blood levels, it can lead to coma, wind agitation, and critical patterns of bleeding from various parts of the body. If summer-heat pathogenic qi lingers for a long time, it can also deepen into the lower jiao, consume and scorch true yin, leading to large-scale poultry deaths under high temperatures.

Finally, let us discuss the principles of prevention and treatment. The overall principle for preventing and treating summer-heat disease is to clear and wash away summer heat. At the initial stage of the disease, when there is intense heat at the qi level with lung and stomach heat blazing, treatment uses the sweet-cold method of clearing qi. Because high fever and profuse sweating consume qi and damage fluids, producing the pattern of summer heat damaging fluids and qi, sweet-cold medicinals are mainly used to clear and wash away summer heat and to boost qi and generate fluids. The representative formula is mainly White Tiger Decoction, using pungent-cold to clear qi, drain heat, and protect fluids.

In the later stage, the pathogenic qi has gone, but fluids and qi are greatly damaged and have not recovered. Sour flavors should be mainly used, with bitter and sweet flavors used together, using sour and bitter to drain heat, and sour and sweet to astringe yin. The main treatment is modified Clear Summer Heat and Boost Qi Decoction, to clear and wash away summer heat and boost qi and generate fluids. Codonopsis pilosula, Dendrobium, Ophiopogon, Coptis chinensis, bamboo leaf, lotus stem, Anemarrhena, licorice, polished round-grained rice, watermelon rind, black plum, and Rehmannia. The medicinals in the formula can be divided into two major categories: one category clears and washes away summer heat, and the other boosts qi and generates fluids. The medicinals that clear and wash away summer heat include: Coptis chinensis, bamboo leaf, lotus stem, watermelon rind, and Anemarrhena. Coptis chinensis is bitter and cold, clearing qi and lowering heat. Bamboo leaf is bitter and cold; it can both clear internally and vent externally, and can also guide heat downward, causing summer heat to be eliminated through urine. Lotus stem is aromatic and moves qi, clears summer heat, and awakens the spleen and stomach. Watermelon rind clears summer heat. Anemarrhena can both clear heat and nourish yin. It should be especially noted here that Coptis chinensis has the effect of clearing and washing away summer heat, but it is bitter and drying, so its dosage must not be too large. The other category is medicinals that boost qi and generate fluids: Codonopsis pilosula, Dendrobium, Ophiopogon, and Anemarrhena. Codonopsis pilosula is sweet and warm, tonifying qi and yin. Dendrobium and Ophiopogon are both sweet-cold medicinals, and Anemarrhena is bitter-cold; they all have the effect of nourishing yin and generating fluids, while also being cold and cooling to clear heat. Licorice and polished round-grained rice protect stomach qi. This formula has a very good effect in clearing and washing away summer heat and boosting qi and generating fluids, and is a representative formula for treating summer heat consuming qi and damaging fluids.

Here we must also especially remind everyone of the precautions we should take when using Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui. If it is only heat stress in poultry caused by high temperature, that is, what we commonly call heatstroke, Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui absolutely must not be used, as it will only worsen the condition, because Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui is a pungent-warm dampness-transforming formula that will consume and damage body fluids. Heatstroke is caused by summer-heat pathogen directly entering the body, resulting in insufficient fluids in the poultry body and symptoms of high fever and drinking. It is not externally contracted cold pathogen with internal damage from dampness stagnation, so using Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui does not match the pattern. Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui is mainly used in summer for damage to spleen and stomach yang qi caused by internally contracted cold-dampness pathogen, with failure to separate clear and turbid, spleen failing to transport and transform, stomach qi failing to descend, and the subsequent symptoms of vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal distension, and no eating. It belongs to summer cold-dampness type common cold. At this time, using Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui can exert the effects of dispersing cold-dampness externally and transforming dampness stagnation internally. Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui is mainly composed of Huoxiang, perilla, Angelica dahurica, areca peel, Magnolia officinalis bark, Atractylodes lancea, tangerine peel, Poria, and other medicinals. Its main functions are to stop vomiting, eliminate gastrointestinal and chest-abdominal distension, fullness, and blockage, and stop diarrhea.

What has been said above concerns considerations for poultry in summer in the north. Next, let us discuss southern regions. In summer, because southern regions have abundant rain, high temperature, and dampness, poultry farming generally mainly involves damp-heat type diseases. Due to poor poultry management or sudden rain and temperature drops, cold-dampness type common cold is often easily caused, and for treatment the above-mentioned Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui can be used. On the other hand, due to long-term exposure to a damp-heat environment, it is very easy to cause damp-heat accumulation in the poultry intestinal tract, resulting in damp-heat pouring downward, and gastrointestinal and liver-gallbladder diseases often occur. The above analysis conforms to what Traditional Chinese Medicine calls summer-dampness disease. Summer-dampness disease mainly refers to disease caused when the external environment is hot and rainy, with damp-heat steaming, and the body contracts summer-dampness pathogenic qi. Its causes and disease mechanisms are contraction of the two pathogenic qi of dampness and heat, but summer heat predominates; it is a disease of summer heat mixed with dampness, so the clinical manifestations are heat heavier than dampness, and dampness pathogen easily transforms from dryness into dryness and becomes warm, transforming into warm-heat disease. In addition to summer-heat symptoms, there may also be manifestations of internal accumulation of dampness pathogen such as epigastric stuffiness, heaviness of the body, and greasy tongue coating. However, judging from the proportion of dampness pathogen and heat pathogen, heat is heavier than dampness. Because heat pathogen is relatively heavier, it is often easy to transform from dryness into warmth, and even penetrate deeply into the ying and blood levels. For daily prevention and treatment principles, summer-dampness disease mostly presents qi-level patterns. If summer dampness obstructs the qi level of the middle jiao, treatment should mainly use pungent-cold to clear qi, with concurrent drying of dampness. If summer dampness diffuses through the qi level of the three jiao, then clear heat and eliminate dampness, and free and disinhibit the three jiao.

Clinically frequent poultry coccidiosis, colibacillosis, and liver-gallbladder diseases caused by Salmonella, as well as airsacculitis, can all be treated from this aspect. For coccidiosis, modified Pulsatilla Powder can be used; for colibacillosis, modified Gegen Qinlian Decoction can be used; for liver-gallbladder diseases, treatment can be carried out through variations of Yinchenhao Decoction.