Coughing, then sneezing, bubbly eye, splattering blood on wall?

[Guinea Goonie]

I would contact your state agency for infectious diseases in animals immediately. If you really do have ILT you need to read up on this.

Do some research on the WWW. My fellow BYCer, please educate yourself on this one. This is serious.


Depending on which state you live in there may be laws that have been passed to deal with viral diseases of this magnitude.

My heart would sink if I found this problem in my flock because I know I would have to cull the entire flock. There is no way I could pay out the money needed to fix this problem.

Personally, I have never seen this disease or heard of it on this forum.

 

[speckledhen]

What actually is the survival rate with ILT? I was under the impression that it was very low to non-existent. And also that the birds would be carriers, not the ones that are vaccinated with the non-carrier vaccine, but any surviving birds that had the disease.

I would never keep any bird who had ever contracted this disease, personally, even if it could survive it. Nasty stuff.

 

[ThiefPouter06]

Yay eye drops. Sounds like I have a long day after church tomorrow. Probably will have to spray the whole yard since pulling off her head sent blood everywhere.

 

[speckledhen]

Ok, here is an article on this stuff. It is a herpes virus, therefore, will definitely make recovered birds carriers.

Laryngotracheitis (LT)
A highly contagious infectious Herpes viral disease of chickens and pheasants. Characterized by SEVERE respiratory distress and bloody tracheal exudates. Chickens 14 weeks and older are more susceptible than young chicken. Most LT outbreaks occur in mature hens. Can become a problem within an endemic or localised area. Chickens that recover carry the virus, so farms tend to stay infected for a while after outbreaks. Transmission is direct bird-to-bird contact, or bird contact with bird-tissue, dead infected birds, infected buildings or unattentuated vaccines. Can be spread on clothing, shoes, tires.

Chickens that recover remain carrier for as long as 24 months. Clinical signs first noticed are water eyes, then the birds remain quiet because breathing is difficult, coughing, sneezing, and shaking of the head to dislodge exudate plugs in the windpipe. Birds extend head and neck to attempt open mouth breaking (gasp), and inhalation produces a wheezing sound. These birds are called "callers". Blood tinged exudates and serum clots are expelled from the trachea of affect birds. Many birds die of asphyxiation. No nervous symptoms as in NewCastle Disease. Egg production drops sharply.

Gross lesions are usually confined to the respiratory tract. Tracheal hemorrhage is common, including blood clots. Treatment is difficult at best. Quarantine the farm, tighten farm security and have separate caretaker for sick birds, stop cross traffic to other poultry buildings. Administer antibiotics and vaccinate the remaining flock. Administer vaccine by eye or nose drop methods. Delay vaccination until birds are at least 6 weeks old. Vaccination with LT is not as successful as for other diseases, but is an excellent preventative measure for use in outbreaks and in epidemic areas.​

 

[ThiefPouter06]

I am so sad. I just rescued a hen friday from living her whole life alone in an apartment. 55 pigeons (8 worth around 100 $ each)

 

[speckledhen]

So sorry, Matt.

 

[chicknmania]

Quote:
Honestly, I don't remember how many died in our flock. But all I can tell you is, the rest are not carriers, and it is because we used the vaccine. Don't ask me why, ask Peter Brown. Offhand I think we lost seven or eight birds. It was very much worth it for us to fight it and win. We could not bear to cull the whole flock we had about thirty at the time. It did not cost us a lot of money, WE also treated the flock with antibiotics to combat secondary infection. We were under quarantine by the State b/c of the ILT, and they monitored us closely and allowed us to try the things we did to save our birds; they also gave us a lot of excellent advice. No quarantine signs or anything, we just weren't allowed to buy or sell any, and had to take sanitary precautions if we were gonna be around other birds, or if we were going to allow visitors. Remember though, some states have a mandatory cull for reportable illnesses like ILT. Ohio did not when we had it, and still doesn't, as far as I know.

 

[speckledhen]

Thanks for telling your story. And I'm really sorry you went through that. I have never heard that vaccinating a bird with ILT kept it from being a carrier. I respect Doc Brown tremendously-he's helped me with more than one issue over the last couple of years. What I was referring to was that a bird that just recovered, not necessarily a vaccinated one, would be a carrier. Being a herpes type virus, that never leaves the body. It's just the nature of the virus. In any case, it's a really nasty disease.

 

[chicknmania]

Matt I sent you a PM.

 

[chicknmania]

Quote:
I agree.