Friend's birds may have fowl pox.

[CrazyFowlFreak]

A farmer friend of mine has four birds that look like they have fowl pox. I can't bring it home to my birds, right? Also, he wanted to know if he could eat them and their recent eggs since he decided to cull them. It's so sad, they are such nice birds

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

I think fowl pox can be carried home to your flock- but I'm not 100% positive on that. I would practice good biosecurity. I, personally, wouldn't eat the sick birds or the eggs. But I do believe fowl pox is a bird specific illness. Hopefully someone with more experience with this disease will chime in.

 

[CMV]

Don't let him cull those birds! Fowl pox is a nuisance virus carried by mosquitoes which runs its course and then the birds are fine. Dry pox looks awful, but is really no big deal. Wet pox is more dangerous and can result in some losses, but is not really "contagious" per se. It is carried by and spread via mosquitoes.

 

[Judy]

Quote:
x2

I was kind of glad when my flock got it a couple of years ago, because they all had it, so they are now immune. I never had one get wet pox -- evidently it is a lot more unusual.

I did treat them, once, with dabs of Neosporin or Betadine on the spots, but probably was wasting my time. Of course it does nothing for the pox itself, being a virus, but the idea was to prevent secondary infection.

 

[Sonoran Silkies]

Quote:
X2 Also, other biting bugs can spread it, but mosquitoes are the usual vectors. http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/204801.htm

Suggest to your friend that he spray his coops with a good pesticide that targets mosquitoes, and is safe for animal premises (he may need to move the birds out before spraying--it depends on the particular insecticide). Also remove or treat all open water sources such as puddles, pet water bowls, etc. that can be mosquito breeding grounds. You can individually treat the birds with mosquito repellant or cover open skin with vasoline or oil to prevent or lessen chances of mosquito bites.

For birds affected with dry pox, apply iodine and/or listerine and/or neosporin to the lesions. The iodine or listerine will help dry the scabs, and all of htese will prevent secondary infection of the scab. Consider giving an antibiotic in their water to ward off secondary infections.

The only difference between wet and dry pox is where the infection is located. If the mucous membranes are infected, the bird is more ill. Treatment for a bird with wet pox is to swab the throat with original listerine (bluecote will also work) twice daily, removing as much of the thick white gunky mucus as possible. It will bleed, and it will hurt, so you cannot do it all at once. It will get easier each time you swab to get more and will hurt less. This does not cure the pox, but does help keep food and airways open while the bird recovers. Both listerine and blu-cote have antiviral properties.

 

[CrazyFowlFreak]

You all are awesome! If you don't mind, I'm going to copy and paste this info and print it out for him. He doesn't have a PC. Thank you so much!

 

[Chris09]

Fowl Pox --
Fowl Pox, also known as Avian Pox, is a mild to severe, slow developing disease of birds caused by an avipoxvirus and three common strains have been identified. The three strains are fowl pox virus, pigeon pox virus and canary pox virus. The strains vary in their virulence and have the ability to infect other avian species. However, many of the strains are group specific. Approximately sixty species of birds from 20 families have been diagnosed with avian pox. The strain seen in wild turkeys is the fowl pox virus. Avian pox lesions (wart-like growths) occur on the unfeathered parts of the bird's body and, in some cases, the mouth, larynx, and/or trachea.
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Distribution --
Avian pox has been observed in a variety of avian hosts worldwide. The disease is most common in the temperate (warm and humid) parts of the world and is usually observed in relation to seasonal mosquito cycles. Avian pox has been diagnosed in upland game birds, songbirds (mourning doves and finches), marine birds, pet birds(canaries and parrots),chickens, Turkeys, occasionally raptors and rarely in waterfowl. It is a viral disease and most all North American cases have been recent.
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Clinical Signs --
here are two forms of fowl pox.These two forms are either cutaneous (dry) or diphtheritic (wet). In the cutaneous form (dry pox) clinical signs include the development of proliferative lesions, ranging from small nodules to spherical wart-like masses on the skin of the comb, wattle and other unfeathered areas. It is the most commonly observed and is a self-limiting infection with the lesions regressing and forming scars. In the diphtheritic form (wet pox), clinical signs include slightly elevated white opaque nodules develop on the mucous membranes of the mouth and trachea. They rapidly increase in size to become a yellowish diphtheritic membrane. A diphtheritic membrane forms and may restrict air intake and result in labored breathing and possible suffocation.
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Pathology --
Lesions will occur on the mucous membranes of the mouth, esophagus, larynx, and trachea.
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Diagnosis --
Raised whitish colored bumps on comb, wattles, face, and eyelids that turn yellow, and eventually scab over before healing up.
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Treatment and Control --
Isolate infected birds, but there is no treatment except removing scabs around the mouth, and eyes, so the birds can see to eat. You have to just let this run its course.
If you have wet pox, you may need to clean any kind of discharge that interferes with breathing.
To prevent secondary infections, treat with Terramycin, and Vitamin Supplements.
This can be vaccinated against if it is prevalent in your area.
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Sources --
http://www.poultryhub.org/ and Ultimatefowl Wiki


Chris

 

[dawg53]

Quote:
x 3. Additionally the eggs are safe to eat. I've dealt with fowl pox too and all the info provided in this thread is right on the money.

 

[CrazyFowlFreak]

Afternoon ing pics and searching here, I'm not sure if it is fowl pox. One of the hens was sitting on some eggs and she had no spots on her comb. The food was kept in that coop for those birds, so I'm wondering if she was just pecking and trying to keep the others out? Terence is another coop that is next to the one that has the birds with the black spots, and none of those chickens have anything like this, Tom said. Also, is it too early for Mosquitos? I haven't seen any here at our farm, but his is down the mountain from us so it may be warmer there? I'll have to go over there and take some pics.

 

[kuntrygirl]

Do the birds look like this? We have terrible mosquitoes in South Louisiana and this is what my birds look like when they have fowl pox. It only lasts a couple of weeks and they never get it again. They are immuned to it. I agree with others that have said not to cull the birds and it is safe to eat the eggs. Her birds will be fine.