Methods of treatment and prevention of Newcastle disease in chickens

Send

Newcastle disease (other names - fidget, pseudo-puss, Asian bird plague, pneumoencephalitis) is a serious infectious disease that affects internal organs, nervous and respiratory systems.

The causative agent of the disease is PMV-1 paramyxovirus, characterized by a large number of different strains. Because of this, the disease takes various forms, sometimes "masking" for cholera, bronchitis, bird flu or laryngotracheitis. Newcastle's disease will help to identify only accurate diagnosis.

Poultry of all ages and breeds are susceptible to the disease, but most often Newcastle's disease is diagnosed in domestic chickens. Outbreaks of the disease are recorded around the world, which gives a lot of problems to large poultry farms.

For a person, Newcastle disease is not dangerous, but after contact with an infected individual, an indisposition that resembles the beginning flu can appear. Characteristic features of Newcastle disease in birds are encephalitis, pneumonia and hemorrhage in the internal organs due to their defeat.

Symptoms of the disease

Symptoms of Newcastle disease vary depending on the virus strain and on whether the birds have been vaccinated. From infection to the onset of the first symptoms, it takes up to 10 days.

Acute form - observed in unvaccinated individuals. In 2-3 days, all the livestock falls sick, which leads to the death of up to 100% of chickens on the farm. Symptoms of the acute form are lethargy, chicken refusal of food and water, loose stools, the secretion of mucus from the beak. The bird's head is down.
Subacute form - observed in chickens vaccinated. Symptoms are lesions of the digestive, nervous and respiratory systems.
Nervous form - is characterized by impaired coordination of bird movements. The chicken walks, arching and twisting the neck, constantly twitching his head. Begin cramps, loose stools greenish. With the development of the disease, paresis of the wings, legs, neck is observed.
Respiratory form - characterized by respiratory failure - the so-called, "inspiratory dyspnea." A sick bird often wheezes and characteristicly croaks. Purulent conjunctivitis begins. When the respiratory form in most chickens begins asphyxia, which ultimately leads to their death.
Atypical form - is observed in large farms, where all birds have been vaccinated. Characterized by a decrease in egg production and reproductive capacity. After vaccination in young individuals, respiratory symptoms and conjunctivitis may occur.

In Newcastle disease, a preliminary diagnosis is made by a veterinarian on the basis of an examination of chickens and an autopsy of dead individuals. However, the final diagnosis can only be made public after the virus has been determined in a laboratory study.

Causes of disease

The cause of Newcastle's disease is a sick bird and a bird that carries a pathogen in the body, but looks healthy. In addition to poultry, carriers of the disease can also be domestic and wild animals, rodents and people. Ticks are particularly dangerous because the virus can live for more than 200 days in their bodies.

The infection is transmitted through the air and, according to research, the radius of its spread sometimes reaches 5 kilometers. Complicated by an increasing number of virus strains with different pathogenicity, with the result that some strains may not manifest themselves at all for a long time.

From one chicken to another, Newcastle disease can be transmitted in the following ways:

through the air, including with the help of fans in the poultry house, which carry the affected air throughout the room,
through contaminated chicken feed and water,
through raw bedding, feathers, down,
through the contact of a healthy and sick bird,
through the biological excretions of the sick bird,
through clothing, shoes and equipment of a person who has been in contact with sick birds,
through vehicles that have visited the places where the sick bird is located.

Often, the causative agent of the disease is transmitted from diseased individuals to chickens from eggs laid by them.

Treatment of the disease

Sick individuals are killed and healthy ones are vaccinated without fail. Vaccines are:

Live - give a quick, but short protection of up to 3 months. They are more often used on broilers, since such protection period is too short for laying hens.
Inactivated - suitable for adult birds, give protection for up to 12 months.

Broilers are vaccinated once in 15 days, however, if the bird has maternal immunity, then vaccination is carried out later, in 20-25 days. Young individuals are vaccinated twice - in 20 and 50 days (live vaccine) or once before the spacing, in 120-130 days (inactivated vaccine).

Vaccines differ in the strains that are part of them. Vaccines such as La Sota and Bor-74 have proven to be the best for farming.

In identifying Newcastle's disease, it is imperative to disinfect the room where the bird lives, and the entire inventory.

What to do if chicks have constipation? Find out the answer by reading our article.

What if the chicken has a puffy eye? Step by step instructions here.

Prevention

To prevent an outbreak of Newcastle disease, you should follow a number of rules. The room where chickens are located must be periodically thoroughly disinfected. Ultraviolet copes well with the infection, so it is recommended to install special lamps in the house. To minimize the likelihood of illness, it is recommended that preventive vaccination be carried out on time.

It is also important to completely eliminate the contact of domestic chickens with wild birds and animals that may be carriers of infection.

Definition of disease

Newcastle disease is spread all over the globe and is dangerous for all livestock. Its second name is the Asian plague or pseudo-poultry of birds. The causative agent of infection is paramyxovirus or Paramyxoviridae. Contacting people cannot become infected because the virus does not take root in the human body, but it still has a negative effect. A person develops a mild form of flu, as well as possible eye redness and purulent discharges, which quickly disappear with symptomatic treatment.

Newcastle disease chicken characterized by the following:

brain inflammation (encephalitis),
pneumonia (pneumonia),
damage to internal organs and hemorrhage.

Symptoms and signs

The disease has several pronounced symptoms, according to which farmers draw conclusions about the fact that they should immediately contact a veterinarian.

In some species, the symptoms may be blurred or not fully revealed, especially at the initial stage of development.

So, the main signs of infection with Newcastle's disease:

Chicken digestive tract disorder, characterized by liquid, yellow, green or gray.
Body temperature rises to 44˚С.
Visually noticeable mucus in the nose, mouth, with a characteristic cough.
The comb of the diseased individual becomes blue, the upper part of the body, including the head, swells.
Redness in the eyes quickly turns into purulent discharge.
Eggs become thin, translucent shells.

In severe stages, the hen develops a lack of coordination of movement, complete paralysis or partial paralysis. The neck and paws can involuntarily twist, tremble, and the individual periodically fall to the ground.

Similar signs can occur in other infectious diseases, so it’s best to show the hen to the veterinarian, and land her in a separate aviary for a while. An experienced doctor makes sputum sowing, takes blood for analysis and only on a combination of signs makes the appropriate diagnosis.

Newcastle disease is a rather ancient disease known to poultry farmers for more than a century. But despite this, scientists can not derive a universal formula for the treatment of a terrible infection, leading to the death of sometimes the entire population.

In most cases, when confirming the diagnosis, the farmer slaughters all infected hens, and the meat is discarded. Unfortunately, it is not suitable for food. If it is still possible to cure, then patients are planted in a separate cage and begin to give a course of antibiotics prescribed by a veterinarian.

If, after treatment, the hen recovers, her body produces a high resistance to the Newcastle virus, and the second infection is no longer scary for her.

Sanitary cleaning

The following measures should be included in the complex of sanitary measures taken during preventive measures:

Disinfecting a room by quartz or short-term ultraviolet radiation. To combat viruses, initially, special lamps are installed in the room, the inclusion of which is regulated.
Minimal contact with other birds should be minimized. domestic species and with wild specimens. The latter are the carriers of the deadly virus.

Chick vaccination

Vaccination of chickens is carried out, starting from 4 months of age, a double dose. Some experts advise starting prevention at the age of one month.

Broilers are vaccinated on the tenth day of life, this is enough to form a sustainable immunity to infection.

Vaccinations are carried out in the autumn and winter, making sure that the chicks are in good health.. Full protection after the administered drug occurs in 3-4 days and is valid from 2 to 12 months.

Vaccination of adults

If in the childhood period the chicken was not vaccinated, then in the adult state vaccination is carried out only when absolutely necessary. This is due to the fact that the drug affects the egg-laying, causing a decrease in productivity.

There are several subspecies injected substances:

inactivated
living natural,
live artificially grown.

Before vaccination, the hen feed is enriched with vitamins B, A and C, which increase the body's resistance to viral attacks.

Preparations based on live vaccines have faster protection and are based on several common strains: La Sota, Bor-74, Ulster 2C and PHY.LMV.42. Such drugs give more often complications to the respiratory tract and reproductive function.

La Sota (Avivac)

The most common and recommended for use by farmers drug. For its production under laboratory conditions, the embryonic germ fluid, which is known to be infected with Newcastle's disease, is released. Skimmed milk is used for homogeneity.

It is sold in the form of a dry yellow powder, which, according to the instructions, is diluted and applied, both on diseased hens and in preventive measures.

There are several methods of administration: traditional, subcutaneous, and spraying on the territory of the chicken coop.

Signs and symptoms of Newcastle disease

Incubation stage of the virus proceeds within 7-12 days, but the disease itself is immediately apparent. Unvaccinated birds and birds with weak immune systems die 2-3 hours after infection, without showing any symptoms.

Also pay attention to other the symptoms:

Nervous system problems. In a bird, coordination, paralysis of the limbs or neck are impaired,
Problems with the digestive tract. Birds have reduced appetite, diarrhea (diarrhea),
Damage to the mucous membranes of the nose and mouth. Mucous discharge, coughing, coughing,
Vision problems. Conjunctivitis and blurred eyes,
Increased body temperature. Mobility, depression.

Young chickens die within three days after infection during the acute stage of the disease.

Poultry farm

Chronic stage is rare and in layers with a strong immune system. For such cases is typical:

inactivity
convulsions limbs and cervical,
loss of appetite and depletion of the body
excitability nervous system
head reel.

In this case, the chances of salvation are great. With proper and timely treatment mortality risk no more than 15-30%.

All poultry such as chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys, broilers, etc. are susceptible to this disease. Young birds are most at risk of infection.

Sources of infection

Such sources are sick or in the incubation period bird. Also it is necessary to be afraid of rodents and wild birds. Infection is transmitted through non-disinfected food (eggs, meat), raw materials (bedding, feather, down, feed). Infection occurs through clothing and shoes that have been in contact with an infected bird.

Chickens eat

In places where birds gather, the Newcastle virus is transmitted through the ventilation system.

Although this virus has been known for a long time, the generally applicable therapy has not yet been derived. Basically, A large number of infected birds are simply destroyed..

Treatment in adult birds and chickens

As already mentioned, generally accepted treatment principles do not exist, but prevention measures will help reduce the risk of infection.

There are cases of pseudo-infection in chickens that have not been in contact with infected adults. To avoid such cases chickens need to be vaccinated. Birds acquire immunity 96 hours after taking the vaccine. And also in the event that the bird gets sick and remains alive, which happens quite rarely.

To do this, in rooms with feathered put special lamps. When eating meat or eggs it is worth subjecting products to heat treatment.

This poultry immunity is much higher than that of chickens. But geese too often fall prey to the newcastle virus. And they should also be vaccinated at the age of chicks. Geese are good carriers of the infection and transmit the virus without much harm to themselves. They much better treatable and the risk of mortality is much lower. But the risk of human infection is higher, since not all birds that carry the infection show symptoms of the disease, and a person can pick up the virus for some time without knowing what.

Ducks are also often carriers of this virus. It is necessary to ensure that the birds are not in contact with the wild brethren and monitor the cleanliness of the room. Rodents are also carriers of the virus.. So at the first appearance of rodents it is worth carrying out deratization.

Vaccination of birds

In these birds, the disease is acute and lasts no more than three or four days. In rare cases, it can develop up to ten days. It is worth remembering that there is no cure for this virus and the only way to prevent the disease is to vaccinate a bird at a certain age, to carry out prophylaxis in the form of ultraviolet radiation.

Newcastle virus in humans

It is worth remembering that a person is able to pick up this virus.

Infection can occur through direct contact with an infected bird, eating food contaminated with a virus and through contaminated dust.

Man on the chicken farm

The incubation period lasts from three to seven days. The victims of Newcastle are people of working age.whose activities are somehow related to the poultry industry.

How to protect yourself?

First, it is necessary to carefully comply with hygiene standards.. Wash and disinfect hands as often as possible.

Second, process foods that you eat. Do not eat raw or under cooked meat and eggs. All products must be thermally processed.

Third, watch your health. As soon as you have symptoms, consult a doctor immediately.

What is infectious bronchitis?

In most sources, you can read that infectious bronchitis of chickens (IB) is characterized by high contagiousness (spreads rapidly). It mainly affects the respiratory system and is especially dangerous for young animals. Indeed, the disease spreads very quickly, especially if there is a violation of the conditions of detention and the recommended density of planting is not observed.

It is believed that for the first time a virus that causes infectious bronchitis was isolated in 1930 in the United States by scientists Schalk and Haun. But then the disease was called the "new chickens respiratory disease" for the similarity of symptoms with the common cold.

The first officially registered case of infectious bronchitis in the USSR was in 1946, it is believed that the virus penetrated along with imported chickens and pedigree chickens. Currently, most outbreaks of the disease occur in Argentina, Canada, Japan, Italy, Australia, France, Holland, Germany, but it is found on all continents and all countries. The virus that causes IBD is quite tenacious and belongs to the family of RNA-containing Coronaviridae microviruses. If in the 1950s only 2 strains of this virus were distinguished, nowadays there are about 30. Of course, this makes it difficult to fight the disease and makes many vaccines ineffective.

Infectious bronchitis is quickly transmitted from one individual to another by airborne droplets, as well as through feed, water, or through clothing and personnel equipment at large poultry farms. At the same time, the disease is not dangerous for a person.

Its main targets are the usual domestic chickens, although signs of this disease have been identified in pheasants and quails. It is also not uncommon for chickens to be born by IBC carriers, if they were bred from an egg laid by an infected layer. After all, the virus develops very well in chicken embryos.

Поэтому врожденный инфекционный бронхит может стать причиной замирания эмбрионов на поздних сроках, падежа молодняка или рождения слабых цыплят. Infectious bronchitis can affect birds of any age, however, small chickens or young hens are at the greatest risk, and their egg production is at risk. The fact is that in addition to damage to the respiratory organs, IB has a very negative effect on the egg production rate of the bird. Therefore, the appearance of IBC in the herd is a serious cause for concern. Due to the disease, egg production can be expected to decrease by 30–40%, broilers begin to slow down significantly in growth and weight gain, and feed conversion significantly worsens.

Remember that the recovered bird remains a carrier of the virus for 100 days. It will excrete the virus along with saliva, droppings, mucous membranes. Most often outbreaks occur in the spring and summer. Infectious bronchitis can complicate the course of other infectious diseases.

There is an opinion that the hen that underwent IBC acquires immunity against the disease in the future, however, how long it remains is not yet clear. Approximately 10 days it is necessary that the bird's body develops antibodies to bronchitis, which, by the way, will be transmitted to the offspring. And then we advise you to watch a video about the most common chicken ailments.

Ways to fight

Treatment of IB is difficult at most because of the diagnosis. After all, symptoms similar to the symptoms of infectious bronchitis, there are a number of such diseases, such as laryngotracheitis, Newcastle disease, respiratory mycoplasmosis. Therefore, in order to ascertain the diagnosis, it is recommended to conduct cytological studies of swabs from the trachea and larynx and blood tests. Scrapes from the trachea, kidneys and oviduct are taken from the dead birds. If an IBV virus is detected, it is recommended to disinfect it first.

By the way, the virus dies under the influence of high temperatures, but freezing does not affect it.

For processing the house recommend such solutions:

3% hot soda, infectious bronchitis virus dies from it within 3 hours,
6% chlorine-containing lime - the death of the virus occurs in 6 hours,
0.5% formaldehyde - the virus must die within 3 hours of exposure.

Also in the chicken coop, which is in quarantine, apply chlorosquidine, Lugol solution, aluminum iodide, glutex. Processing means should be carried out 2 times a week. At the same time, vitamins and minerals are included in the diet of chickens, and the most affected individuals are excluded from the general herd. Vaccination with inactivated vaccines is widely used to warn its chickens against infectious bronchitis. In addition, the farm that is experiencing an IBC epidemic should stop the supply of eggs or birds to other farms and suspend the incubation process for 2 months.

Contraindications

Do not use antibiotics for 5 days after the use of the vaccine during the week, this group includes all groups of nitrofuran and sulfanilamide drugs.
La Sota is not combinable with other bioactive ingredients., and applied in its pure form.
If the chicken is weakened, vaccination should be postponed.

Bor-74 VGNKI (Avivak)

Boron-74 VGNKI is a light yellow or ocher powder, soluble in cold water, without the formation of sediment. Each bottle contains up to 5,000 doses of the substance.