List of common issues and there symptoms for Animal Control purposes

[otis7]

I recently started a job as an animal control officer in a rural area. We encounter a lot of farm animals in our travels, and although we are well versed with dogs and cats farm animals can sometimes get lost in the mix. I would like to compile a list of common and easily identifiable medical issues with pictures to hand out to my coworkers. I keep chickens myself and in the field have the ability to spot the issues I've personally dealt with or read about. Dealing with chickens is tough, as we can issue a vet notice but the owner has a legal right to break the animals neck if they don't feel like doing anything about it, but either way, we try to get them in a better home. I'd also like to include pictures of a sick chicken vs healthy chicken with various comb styles (floppy pale, bright upright, droopy butt, perky butt, ect). As far as medical issues I was thinking "issue", "picture" easily identifiable "symptoms.". Any help would be appreciated!

 

[dawg53]

It might be best that you contact your local extension office or your state agriculture department to find out what diseases/problems are prevelent in your area. What might be prevelent here where I live, something entirely different could be happening where you live...or nothing at all. Additionally, your own personal experience will be of help to others as well.

 

[otis7]

We aren't so much concerned with disease outbreak as we are the treatment of medical issues in domestic animals. I would think disease outbreak would fall under USDA, but chickens are domestic so their living conditions and common health issues fall under animal control. I was thinking things like mites, sour crop, impacted crop, frostbite, bumble foot, ect. Any conditions that could be a result of poor environment.

 

[dawg53]

As an animal control officer, most likely you'll be a first responder to an animal/livestock complaint, abuse report, birds abandoned by owners etc...having some knowledge to identify possible diseased birds will assist you in reporting to higher authority including the USDA. Take a look at this forum as an example and see how many people start a thread about one of their birds showing a respiratory disease and asking about treatment...at least half. You'll run into these situations in your duties, trust me. I would be more concerned about respiratory diseases rather than mites, impacted crop, bumblefoot, sour crop etc...which all can be treated and cured, but not respiratory diseases which can have a severe and deadly impact in backyard flocks as well as commercial operations. Here's a link for you to read to help you identify potential respiratory diseases while on duty:
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ps044