Salmonellosis is a common disease in animals, birds, and humans. Supervisory authorities are constantly fighting this disease, but periodically there are new foci of infection. If a person falls ill with salmonellosis, then treatment should be started as soon as possible, this will help to avoid complications.
History of the disease
Diseases with symptoms similar to salmonellosis were noted in the 19th century. In 1885, two scientists investigated, as it seemed to them, the causative agent of swine fever - suipestifer. Later it became clear that their conclusions were not entirely true. One of the scientists bore the name Salmon, which gave the name to the new disease.
In 1888, A. Gertner began to study the insidious pathogen. He found it during pathological examination of the tissues of a deceased person. A similar microbe was also found in meat that was consumed by the deceased. Thus, a relationship was found between salmonellosis in humans and animals.
Later, other microorganisms were also identified that very much resembled a pathogen already known to scientists. They were combined into a group of salmonella bacteria.
What is salmonellosis
A disease called salmonellosis has an infectious origin. It affects birds, animals and humans. Pathogens from the genus Salmonella cause it. With the disease, the gastrointestinal tract is mainly affected.
When poultry farms or private farms are infected with salmonellosis (salmonellosis avium), a large number of young animals die. Surviving chickens noticeably lag behind in growth, their content becomes economically disadvantageous. In addition, an ill bird will forever remain a carrier of salmonellosis and is able to infect others. These chickens are reduced immunity, so secondary infections begin to stick to them.
The economic losses after the epidemic on the farm are huge. It is necessary to re-form the parent flock, because a sick bird and eggs from it serve as sources of the causative agent of salmonellosis. But this must be done, otherwise the economy will face more and more epidemics that will ultimately ruin the farmer.
How is salmonellosis infection more common in birds? The disease can go on to healthy individuals from brethren; poor nutrition and seeded equipment are also dangerous. How to feed ducklings and chickens to reduce the risk of infection? The diet should consist of quality grains and proven vitamin supplements.
The incubation period of the disease
The causative agent of salmonellosis has many variations, so the incubation period depends on the type of strain diagnosed in an animal or bird. Most often, the first signs of the disease begin to appear 3-5 days after contact with an infected relative, infected meat, or seeded equipment. In the chronic course of the disease, the carrier can serve as a source of salmonellosis for many years.
The ideal temperature for the life and reproduction of the pathogen is considered to be 37-38 degrees Celsius. The bacterium does not belong to the class of particularly resistant, but in the ground and excrement of birds or animals can live up to 10 months. In cottage cheese and butter, the virus persists for up to six months, in smoked or salted meat - up to 12 weeks. In drinking water, the source of salmonellosis can last up to 4 months.
To combat the contamination of inventory, you can use fluids with chlorine and peroxide. Also, scalding with boiling water for 15-20 minutes gives a good effect.
Signs and symptoms of the disease
Salmonella often penetrate into the body along with food, they move along the gastric tract to the intestines. It is here that pathogens overcome the epithelial barrier. Bacteria penetrate into the thickness of tissues, where they begin to multiply intensively. They spread with lymphatic current throughout the body.
In the process of infection, some pathogens die, this contributes to the occurrence of intoxication. The bird begins to grow lethargic, it can refuse to feed, spend more time in a lying position. Discharges from the eyes and beak appear. In the acute course of the disease, sometimes the bird dies very quickly and without any symptoms at all. In this case, it is desirable to conduct a postmortem examination of deceased individuals. The chronic course of the disease, in which the bird becomes a lifelong carrier, can also be asymptomatic.
At autopsy, dead chickens and ducklings show necrosis on the internal organs, brain damage, pulmonary edema. In recently hatched individuals, after a pathological study, an unresolved yolk is found. In an adult bird, damage to the oviducts and inflammatory processes in the abdominal cavity are observed.
Chicken Salmonellosis
Chickens are most often affected by the strain of the disease that is most dangerous to humans. In a salmonellosis-poor household, 10–15 percent of chickens usually die in the first days after birth. An adult bird dies less often, but ill individuals throughout their lives remain carriers.
In chickens, inflammation of the internal organs begins, tissue necrosis. Over time, the symptoms of salmonellosis in the bird intensify, treatment is required. If the chicken’s immunity is strong, then the disease becomes chronic, otherwise it dies. The death of a bird almost always occurs due to dehydration and sepsis.
The disease most often affects chickens that receive traditional nutrition, that is, eggs, cottage cheese, crushed grain. Birds that eat industrial feed are less likely to get sick.
Salmonellosis in turkeys
Turkeys are very sensitive to the causative agents of salmonellosis, especially at a young age. Many chicks affected by the disease die soon after birth. Survivors lag behind in growth and development, often later they die anyway later. An adult bird most often survives, but its disease becomes chronic. Such individuals become lifelong carriers of infection.
In young animals, a few days after infection, lethargy begins to grow, the bird becomes drowsy and inactive. The excrement of a diseased turkey becomes whitish or yellowish in color, and subsequently it develops diarrhea. Without treatment, inflammation of the cloaca and even gluing it with feces is possible.
Afflicted turkeys lose their interest in food, they either completely refuse it or take food with reluctance. The bird begins to feel very thirsty, its water consumption increases. After turkeys have heart damage, they have shortness of breath. Before death, seizures begin in the bird.
Salmonellosis in ducks and geese
Salmonella in waterfowl is more difficult than, for example, in chickens. Ducklings and geese are especially susceptible to the pathogen in the first 2-3 weeks of life. If the chick gets infected during the incubation of the egg, then the first signs of the disease become visible after 12 hours. In older ducklings and goslings, the incubation period is longer, usually 2-3 days.
Ill chicks lose their appetite, sleep a lot, and look inactive. Soon they develop lameness, they begin to stagger when moving. Outflows from the eyes and beak appear, diarrhea begins. There is a defeat of the central uneven system, the chicks fall on their side and pull their paws in the air. Within a few days, up to 30 percent of ducklings die. In goslings this indicator is even higher - 20-40 out of a hundred babies will survive.
How to feed ducklings during treatment? It is better to give preference to ready-made industrial diets for young waterfowl. Any eggs, even boiled, curd, suspicious grain mixes, are excluded.
Adult ducks and geese most often survive after a past illness and become carriers of infectious agents. However, with weak immunity, the death of sexually mature individuals is still possible. Sometimes, against the background of damage to the central nervous system, ducks and geese begin to swim backwards. It seems to some that this looks ridiculous, but these are the last hours of the bird's life. This ailment is also called a disease of Changeling.
Salmonellosis in other poultry species
Many species of birds are extremely susceptible to salmonellosis. For example, in Lory and Penguin parrots, the disease most often proceeds in an acute form and ends fatally. Sparrows with salmonellosis almost always develop heart failure. But in gray African parrots, the zhako disease usually goes into a chronic form. Surviving individuals become carriers of the infection for their whole life.
The disease also has common symptoms that can be observed in different species of birds. With salmonellosis, dehydration quickly occurs in affected individuals. Often there are necrosis, deterioration of the quality of the pen and its loss. With a pathological study, purulent inflammation of the internal organs is often detected. Usually the liver, intestines, gall bladder suffer.
Ways of infection of birds
How is salmonella infection more likely to occur? The most common method is fecal-oral. This means that the bacteria that a sick animal excreted through the feces get into a healthy one by penetrating through the oral cavity.
In humans, infection usually occurs through poorly cooked food. Salmonellosis in eggs in boiling water can survive for 3-4 minutes. Undercooked meat also serves as a source of infection. It is impossible to visually recognize infected products, therefore, only a sufficient heat treatment is a preventive measure.
Salmonellosis can be transmitted through unboiled water. This method is often the cause of poultry outbreaks. But doctors are aware of cases when people became infected through unboiled water that has been infected. Common poultry disease with salmonellosis after contact with brothers or seeding equipment.
Salmonellosis Diagnosis
In the diagnosis of salmonellosis, bacteriological and serological research methods are used. Material in patients is best taken at the first sign of infection. The contents of the stomach, excrement, vomit, urine, blood and pus are given for bacteriological examination. Serological studies begin on the 7-8th day of the disease.
The veterinarian can make a preliminary diagnosis based on the symptoms. This usually happens if clinical studies are not possible for any reason. But here it is important not to confuse salmonellosis with other similar diseases: ornithosis, ducklings sinusitis, infectious hepatitis. In addition to these ailments, a similar symptomatic picture can be observed with poisoning by poor-quality feed.
Salmonellosis Treatment
If poultry salmonellosis is confirmed by symptoms and tests, then treatment should be selected individually for each patient. This is due to the variety of pathogens. For each individual strain of salmonellosis, its own special treatment is necessary.
It is especially difficult to help the bird with a gastrointestinal form of the disease. To date, antibiotics are not known that would be highly effective in this kind of ailment. In this case, the main emphasis is on restoring the water balance in the body, removing intoxication and maintaining immunity. At the first sign of disease, affected animals are shown gastric lavage. To stop attacks of diarrhea, veterinarians often prescribe calcium supplements.
In the mild form of the disease, symptomatic treatment is given to infected animals. Sometimes, with good immunity, no drugs are required at all. At the onset of an epidemic of salmonellosis in poultry, symptoms and treatment should be communicated to all farm workers.
Salmonellosis Prevention
To prevent disease in the event of an epidemic, all affected birds must be destroyed. If this is impossible for some reason, then suspicious individuals are isolated. The treated bird is carefully examined and only then released into the general herd.
To prevent salmonellosis, antibiotics are added to drinking water on farms. During the epidemic, the movement of birds and their sale to other farms is prohibited. Any purchased animals must be quarantined before being released into the general herd.
If an epidemic has begun on the farm, then all feeders, drinking bowls and other equipment must be disinfected. Personnel caring for animals should be informed of the working procedures and the danger of infection. In order to avoid an epidemic, a bird should be vaccinated in a timely manner. A good healing effect is achieved by observing hygiene standards and minimizing stress in animals.
Do quail have salmonellosis?
Recently, quail eggs have become increasingly popular among the population. They, unlike carcasses, are affordable. They are added to soups and salads, used in the preparation of dough, and even drunk raw. Quail eggs add considerable popularity to the talk about the fact that it is impossible to get salmonella through them. Is this true or a myth that product manufacturers themselves are spreading?
Unfortunately, infection of quail eggs with salmonellosis is possible, and it is impossible to eat them raw in any case. The myth of their safety was invented to increase sales of goods, which the population at that time had not yet tried. In order to use quail eggs completely safe, they need to be cooked for at least 4-5 minutes in boiling water. The meat of these birds must also be subjected to heat treatment.