Oral Fluids - URGENT

[KsKingBee]

Hi Everyone

Thank you for your replies, I was already treated her with Metronidazole and TMPS (for secondary infections), Metronidazole I am giving once daily orally, and TMPS twice daily. I was giving 30mls of oral fluids, so I will increase this. She is still with us and still eating so fingers crossed I am doing something right, that said she is considerably lighter than the other birds, she is down to 3kg at last time of weighing and I suspect she has dropped further since.

I wormed her the other day with Ivermectin (spot on) as this targets roundworms, like the roundworm which carries the protozoa Histomonas (Blackhead). Do you think she would benefit from Fenbendazole on top of this? Or may it be too late anyway?

Many thanks

Charles

Nooo, Blackhead is carried by the Cecal worm, not Roundworms. Ivermec is pretty useless as a dewormer, the pour on works well for lice.

 

[casportpony]

I think that cecal worms are a "type" of roundworm, but when we say roundworm, we actually mean the Ascaridia spp (large roundworm).

http://parasitipedia.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2655&Itemid=2933
Internal parasites (endoparasites, worms, helminths)

Roundworms (nematodes)

• Acuaria spp ~ Dispharynx ~ Synhimanthus spp. $. Gizzard worms. Gizzard, esophagus and proventriculus. Can be a problem in endemic regions, mainly in birds kept outdoors.
• Ascaridia spp. $$$. Chicken roundworms. Small intestine. A serious problem worldwide, also in confined operations.
• Capillaria spp. $$. Hairworms. Crop, esophagus, small intestine, large intestine.
• Heterakis spp. $$$$. Cecal worms. Cecum. Probably the most threatening worms in all kind of poultry operations worldwide.
• Oxyspirura spp. $. Fowl eyeworms. Eyes. Usually a secondary problem in individual birds kept outdoors.
• Strongyloides spp. $$. Threadworms, pinworms. Small intestine. Can be a serious problem worldwide.
• Subulura spp. $. Cecum and small intestine. A secondary problem in birds kept outdoors worldwide.
• Syngamus trachea. $$. Gapeworms. Trachea, bronchi. A serious problem in birds kept outdoors in endemic regions.
• Tetrameres spp. $. Proventriculus and esophagus. Can be a problem in endemic regions, mainly in outdooropertaions.

Tapeworms (cestodes)

• Amoebotaenia cuneata = sphenoides. $. Small intestine. Usually a secondary issue in most poultry operations
• Choanotaenia infundibulum. $. Small intestine. Usually not a major issue in modern poultry operations.
• Davainea proglottina. $. Minute tapeworms. Small intestine. Can be a problem in birds kept outdoors in endemic regions.
• Raillietina spp. $$. Small intestine. The most frequent tapeworm in poultry, however normally not a major problem.

Flukes (trematodes, flatworms)

• Prosthogonimus spp. $. Oviduct flukes. Oviduct, bursa of Fabricius. Can be a serious threat for birds kept outdoors in endemic regions.

 

[casportpony]

@KsKingBee , you're right about the ivermectin, best to treat cecal worms with fenbendazole, albendazole, flubendazole, etc.

-Kathy

 

[Garden Peas]

Charles (@CWJBrice ), you've gotten already gotten excellent advice from @casportpony , @KsKingBee & @DylansMom . In addition to applauding what they've told you, I just want to give you this link to the discussion of histomoniaisis (blackhead) in the Merck Vet Manual, and talk about feed for a moment.

http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/poultry/histomoniasis/overview_of_histomoniasis_in_poultry.html

If your hen is still eating, that's a good sign

You mentioned she has lost weight with the illness. As you try to restore her health & weight, you have several options. Kathy is a big advocate of tube (crop) feeding, and she can give you detailed instructions on how to do that. That's a good way to get a bird over the crisis of illness and start them on recovering lost weight.

Another thing to consider for the longer term recovery is whether to change or supplement whatever diet you are already feeding while bringing her weight back up. The protein content of commercial poultry feeds varies widely. As I expect you know, peas generally do better on a higher protein diet than is typically offered to chickens (at least what is commercially available here in the US). Chicken layer feeds are often 16% or so, while gamebird (also called turkey or showbird) feeds may be anywhere from 18% to 28% protein. There are many strategies for increasing the protein level -- some folks supplement with catfood, which tends to be higher in protein (one has to read the labels to be sure), and other folks use special diets such as fermented feed, which increases bioavailability of nutrients. @KsKingBee can explain the process he uses to ferment feed for his birds -- it's actually quite simple to do. Eggs (either hard-boiled, or mixed in raw) are another way to bump up her protein content. If she likes yogurt, that can help -- and the probiotics in the yogurt may help restore the beneficial bacteria she will have lost with the TMPS antibiotic. Sometimes you can find (at least here) commercial probiotic supplements for poultry -- those can help restore the beneficial bacteria she needs to digest her food.

Here's hoping she continues to make a speedy recovery!

GP