Respiratory Problem

[casportpony]

I found this photo on the net ... but in a month, one or two of my chicks will die of this disease. At the end they died of Asphyxia !
What is this disease .... how to treat?

There is a disease called "brooder pneumonia", aka aspergillosis, it causes symptoms like this. One might be able to treat it with something like fluconazole, nystatin or both.

-Kathy

 

[zazouse]

There is a disease called "brooder pneumonia", aka aspergillosis, it causes symptoms like this. One might be able to treat it with something like fluconazole, nystatin or both.

-Kathy

-Kathy

What causes this? contagious? preventable?

 

[casportpony]

Quote: I *think* I've seen it at the feedstore in one of the brooders they use and I would have to say that many of the diseases that *they* have are due to over crowding and dirty enclosures. What I just read said that aspergillosis is not contagious, but don't quote me on that and I have read in a couple of other places that treatment is an antifungal (both fluconazole and nystatin were mentioned), but don't quote me on that either. From what little I know about it, it's not as easy to treat as yeast. Prevention is what most articles stress and I'm guessing that means keeping brooders very clean and feeding fresh food.

Another thing I read is that aspergillosis and bacterial infections of the upper respiratory tract can look the same, so this is were having a vet to look at swabs under the scope will come in handy.

-Kathy

Note that I am not suggesting that anyone here raises their birds in dirty or crowded conditions, it's just the feed store that I'm talking about.

 

[casportpony]

Thank you Kathy!

I am having trouble reading the chart on page three. I am assuming that the letters S and R are abbreviations for Sensitive and Resistant? If that is so then there are only four antibiotics that both E-coli and Pseudomonas are sensitive to, some more than the others.

Does anyone know what the numbers mean? and how to interpret them?

The vet recommended tetracycline but that does not make sense to me by the chart, I want to get the right meds this time.

I read it the same way you did and anytime I've had one of those done the antibiotic my vets have chosen had an s next to it. I think you need to call the vet and get some clarification on that. If they were my birds I would treat only the ones that looked sick with Baytril (enrofloxacin) and I'd give them 15-20mg/kg once a day orally for 5 days. Talk to your vet about the importance of weighing and giving an accurate dose of Baytril.

-Kathy

 

[casportpony]

The next time anyone has a a bird with a respiratory problem I'd like to suggest that they take it to a vet and have that vet check a swab under the scope for bacteria (gram stain). That won't tell you what bacteria it is, but it will help in picking an antibiotic, 'cause if it's a gram negative bacteria, like both mentioned in kskingbee's report, a drug like Tylan won't usually work.

To do this my vet charges $45 for an office visit/exam and $30 for the gram stain.

-Kathy

 

[zazouse]

I use sulmet in my babies drinking water if it has been wet and hot it is use to kill of bacteria but make sure you do not worm them when they are on it.
Many many years ago an old timer told me that he always used sulmet in chicks water as a preventive .

 

[KsKingBee]

Still rereading the lab report.

The column titled E-coli says nonhemolytic, so I looked up the word and it means 'not, - the absence of'. So now I think the vet is reading it to mean that only the pseudomonas is the problem and that is susceptible to the tetracycline that she prescribed. If I am reading this right it all makes sense now. However I still do not understand the numbering system, it may be the amount of sensitivity or resistance to a given amount of antibiotic. In short, the lab tested for two bacteria and found one, the pseudomonas, to be the problem.

I am going to see the vet tomorrow to give her a report on the birds and pay for the lab work so I should know more then.

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nonhemolytic

 

[KsKingBee]

I read it the same way you did and anytime I've had one of those done the antibiotic my vets have chosen had an s next to it. I think you need to call the vet and get some clarification on that. If they were my birds I would treat only the ones that looked sick with Baytril (enrofloxacin) and I'd give them 15-20mg/kg once a day orally for 5 days. Talk to your vet about the importance of weighing and giving an accurate dose of Baytril.

-Kathy

Thanks Kathy, I just came in from administering oxytetracycline injections to the visibly distressed birds, four of them. I didn't see your post until after the deed was done. Last fall that is what I used with good results, it wasn't until I started trying to use Tylan that I started getting poor results. Lesson learned. The vet and I talked about using Baytril and she thought that since the report showed sensitivity to tetracycline I should save the Baytril big gun for later if needed.

 

[casportpony]

Quote: Now I'm confused, lol, 'cause to me it looks like only one of the bacteria is sensitive to oxy tetracycline tetracycline. Guess there's more to it than just picking the drug with an "s"? The table in this pdf has some good info on drugs:
http://www.octagon-services.co.uk/articles/poultry/gamebirds.pdf

-Kathy

 

[KsKingBee]

Now I'm confused, lol, 'cause to me it looks like only one of the bacteria is sensitive to oxy tetracycline tetracycline. Guess there's more to it than just picking the drug with an "s"? The table in this pdf has some good info on drugs:
http://www.octagon-services.co.uk/articles/poultry/gamebirds.pdf

-Kathy

Right, only one of the two bacteria tested for is sensitive to tetracycline, pseudomonas, the E-coli bacteria was not present as I read it. Your link would not open for me, I will have to copy and paste to get it to open, stupid computer. Thanks!