-
Avian Pox/Fowl Pox:
Symptoms: White spots on skin; combs turn into scabby sores; white membrane and ulcers in mouth, on trachea; egg laying stops; all ages affected.
How contracted: Viral disease; mosquitoes, other chickens with pox, and contaminated surfaces.
Treatment: Supportive care, warm dry quarters, soft food; many birds with good care will survive.
Vaccine available: Yes; recovered birds are immune and do not carry the disease.
-
Botulism:
Symptoms: Tremors quickly progressing to paralysis of body, including breathing; feathers pull out easily; death in a few hours.
How contracted: Caused by a bacterial by-product and by eating or drinking botulism-infected food or water.
Treatment: Antitoxin available from vet, but expensive. If found early try 1 teaspoon Epsom salt dissolved in 1 ounce warm water dripped into crop several times a day.
Vaccine available: None; locate and remove source, usually decaying carcass, carcass near water, or insects that fed on the carcass or the water the carcass is in.
-
Fowl Cholera:
Symptoms: Usually birds over 4 months — greenish yellow diarrhea; breathing difficulty; swollen joints; darkened head and wattles; often quick death. Does not infect humans.
How contracted: Bacterial disease; wild birds, raccoons, opossums, rats, can carry. Also transmitted bird to bird and on contaminated soil, equipment, shoes, clothing contaminated water and food.
Treatment: None — destroy all infected birds if recovery occurs the bird will be a carrier.
Vaccine available: Yes, but only your state's agriculture department can administer it.
-
Infectious Bronchitis:
Symptoms: Coughing; sneezing; watery discharge from nose and eyes; hens stop laying.
How contracted: Viral disease; highly contagious; spreads through air, contact, and contaminated surfaces.
Treatment: Supportive care; 50 percent mortality in chicks under 6 weeks.
Vaccine available: Yes. Give to hens before 15 weeks of age because vaccination will cause laying to stop.
-
Infectious Coryza:
Symptoms: Swollen heads, combs, and wattles; eyes swollen shut; sticky discharge from nose and eyes; moist area under wings; laying stops.
How contracted: Bacterial disease; transmitted through carrier birds, contaminated surfaces, and drinking water.
Treatment: Birds should be destroyed as they remain carriers for life.
Vaccine available: None.
-
Mareks Disease:
Symptoms: Affects birds under 20 weeks primarily; causes tumors externally and internally; paralysis; iris of eye turns gray, doesn’t react to light.
How contracted: Viral disease; very contagious; contracted by inhaling shed skin cells or feather dust from other infected birds.
Treatment: None; high death rate and any survivors are carriers.
Vaccine available: Yes, given to day old chicks.
-
Moniliasis (Thrush):
Symptoms: White tacky substance in crop; ruffled feathers; droopy looking; poor laying; white crusty vent area; inflamed vent area; increased appetite.
How contracted: Fungal disease; contracted through moldy feed and water and surfaces contaminated by infected birds. Often occurs after antibiotic treatment for other reasons.
Treatment: Yes. Ask a vet for Nystatin or other antifungal medication. Remove moldy feed and disinfect water containers.
Vaccine available: No.
-
Mycoplasmosis/CRD/Air Sac Disease:
Symptoms: Mild form — weakness and poor laying. Acute form — breathing problems; coughing; sneezing; swollen infected joints; death.
How contracted: Mycoplasma disease; contracted through other birds (wild birds carry it); can transmit through egg to chick from infected hen.
Treatment: Antibiotics may save birds — see a vet.
Vaccine available: Yes.
-
Newcastle Disease:
Symptoms: Wheezing; breathing difficulty; nasal discharge; cloudy eyes; laying stops; paralysis of legs, wings; twisted heads, necks.
How contracted: Viral disease; highly contagious; contracted through infected chickens and wild birds and is also carried on shoes, clothes, and surfaces.
Treatment: None. Birds under 6 months usually die; older birds can recover. Recovered birds are not carriers.
Vaccine available: Yes, but the U.S. is working to eradicate the disease.
-
Omphalitis (Mushy Chick):
Symptoms: Newly hatched chicks — enlarged, bluish, inflamed naval area; bad smell; drowsy, weak chicks.
How contracted: Bacterial infection of naval from unclean surfaces or chicks with weak immune systems. Can spread from chick to chick on contaminated surfaces.
Treatment: Antibiotics and clean housing sometimes help, but most chicks will die. Remove healthy chicks immediately to clean quarters.
Vaccine available: None. Use caution handling — staph and strep that cause this disease may infect humans.
-
Pullorum:
Symptoms: Chicks are inactive; may have white diarrhea with pasted rear ends; breathing difficulty; asymptomatic death possible. Older birds — coughing; sneezing; poor laying.
How contracted: Viral disease; contracted through carrier birds and contaminated surfaces, clothing, and shoes.
Treatment: Destroy all infected birds — birds that recover are carriers. Most chicks infected will die.
Vaccine available: No vaccine, but there is a blood test to find carriers. While the U.S. is trying to eradicate this disease, buy chickens from Pullorum-negative flocks only.
