Where prevention is the best medicine for your flock McKillop Poultry Medicine LLC, 5778 Indian Cedar Ct, Frederick, MD 21703 805-441-4737 ! [email protected]! www.mckilloppoultry.com Mycoplasma What is Mycoplasma? Mycoplasmas are small slow growing bacteria-like organisms. They have a narrow host range, and have been found in chickens, turkeys, partridges, pheasants, peafowl, quail, guinea fowl, ducks, geese, finches, and pigeons. There are four different types of Mycoplasmas (see below) that affect poultry, and more than one can cause disease in birds at the same time. Mycoplasma signs usually develop slowly in a flock, and may not cause clinical signs of disease until triggered by changes in housing, management, nutrition, and weather. Other concurrent viral and bacterial infections will make the Mycoplasma infection worse. Mycoplasma species Birds Affected Clinical Signs M. gallisepticum (MG) Chickens, Turkeys, Finches Respiratory signs: coughing, sneezing, snicking, rales, ocular/nasal discharge, sometimes infraorbital swelling. Drop in feed consumption and egg production, poor weight gain. Low mortality unless other bacterial/viral present, birds stressed, or poor husbandry. Finches have swollen eyelids. M. synoviae (MS) Chickens, Turkeys Lameness: Swollen joints and tendon sheaths. Feet, shanks, and hocks most noticeably affected. Joint swelling occurs throughout the year, but is more severe during cold damp seasons, or when the environment is wet. Occasional respiratory signs in chickens and turkeys M. meleagridis (MM) Turkeys Respiratory disease in non-hatching and newly hatched poults M. iowae (MI) Turkeys High embryo loss at 18 days incubation, abnormal growth of legs and spine.
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Where prevention is the best medicine for your flock
Mycoplasma What is Mycoplasma? Mycoplasmas are small slow growing bacteria-like organisms. They have a narrow host range, and have been found in chickens, turkeys, partridges, pheasants, peafowl, quail, guinea fowl, ducks, geese, finches, and pigeons. There are four different types of Mycoplasmas (see below) that affect poultry, and more than one can cause disease in birds at the same time. Mycoplasma signs usually develop slowly in a flock, and may not cause clinical signs of disease until triggered by changes in housing, management, nutrition, and weather. Other concurrent viral and bacterial infections will make the Mycoplasma infection worse. Mycoplasma species Birds Affected Clinical Signs
M. gallisepticum (MG) Chickens, Turkeys, Finches
Respiratory signs: coughing, sneezing, snicking, rales, ocular/nasal discharge, sometimes infraorbital swelling. Drop in feed consumption and egg production, poor weight gain. Low mortality unless other bacterial/viral present, birds stressed, or poor husbandry. Finches have swollen eyelids.
M. synoviae (MS) Chickens, Turkeys
Lameness: Swollen joints and tendon sheaths. Feet, shanks, and hocks most noticeably affected. Joint swelling occurs throughout the year, but is more severe during cold damp seasons, or when the environment is wet. Occasional respiratory signs in chickens and turkeys
M. meleagridis (MM) Turkeys Respiratory disease in non-hatching and newly hatched poults
M. iowae (MI) Turkeys High embryo loss at 18 days incubation, abnormal growth of legs and spine.
Where prevention is the best medicine for your flock
How is Mycoplasma spread? 1. From Other Birds: Contact with other birds that have it, even if they don’t show symptoms of being sick. Hens can pass down Mycoplasma to chicks through the egg, so chicks can be infected when they hatch. It can also be spread from the feces and feathers of infected birds and through dust and droplets in the air. Mycoplasma can also infect pheasants, chukar partridges, peafowl, bobwhite quail, and Japanese quail. Mycoplasma can be carried by ducks and geese, which may not show symptoms of the disease. 2. From other Animals: Although it doesn’t make them sick, other animals such as rats and wild birds could carry Mycoplasma into the area around your birds and they could catch it. Cages, coops and tools, such as shovels, used around birds with Mycoplasma can spread it to other birds, even after the sick birds are removed. 3. From You. Mycoplasma cannot make you sick. You can bring Mycoplasma to your birds on your shoes, clothing, skin and hair, even if you don’t touch the sick birds. Mycoplasma spreads very easily between birds and because the bacteria grow slowly it may take a while before you even notice that your birds are sick. Mycoplasma can live on you and in the environment for up to tree days. If you have been around any other birds –at a show, auction, flea market, or a friend’s or neighbor’s house, do NOT go see your birds without showering and changing clothes first. How can I tell if my birds have it? Remember, healthy looking birds may already have Mycoplasma, it may take up to 3 weeks before birds start to look and act sick or they may never act sick but still carry the disease and infect other birds. Birds sick with MG may have similar signs to what people get with a cold: runny nose, cough or unusual breathing sounds, and swollen or puffy eyelids and face. Birds sick with MS may have problems standing or walking, a pale or discolored comb, blotchy skin, ruffled feathers and swollen joints and blisters. Also, birds may be quieter, eat less and lose weight or lay fewer eggs. You may see only some of these signs in your birds or none at all. Just like the cold or flu in people, Mycoplasma will make some birds sicker than others. If you see these signs in your birds, a poultry veterinarian can test a blood sample, tracheal swab, or eggs to see if it is Mycoplasma. If my birds have Mycoplasma, will it make me and my family sick? No, Mycoplasma does not make humans sick. However, remember that if you’re around sick birds you can spread the bacteria to other birds! If my birds have Mycoplasma, can I still eat the eggs? Yes, the eggs are still safe to eat, as long as the birds are NOT being treated with antibiotics.
Where prevention is the best medicine for your flock
