Mycotic Diseases of Pet Birds
Mycotic diseases or fungal infections of pet birds often arising from poor environmental conditions, stress, or immunosuppression.
Mycotic diseases of pet birds can affect various organ systems, including the respiratory, digestive, and integumentary systems.
Aspergillosis
Aspergillosis is commonly caused by Aspergillus fumigatus. The disease is mainly contracted by inhalation of spores or hyphal fragments.
Ingestion of large number of spores may also led to the disease. Debilitied, weak and overcrowded birds are most prone to infection.
Affected birds exhibit gasping, labored and rapid breathing, anorexia, and emaciation.
Difficult in mucus movement in the trachea results in gurgling sounds. In later stage diarrhea, ataxia and other nervous symptoms may develop.
Yellow, green or bluish plaques can be seen by naked eye in the lungs, air sac and other organs.
Treatment is injection of fungicides, a mixture of amphotericin B at 1 mg/kg body weight to treat the primary infection. 100000 IU Nystatin can be given daily subcutaneously to combat secondary fungal infection.
When an outbreak occurs, all litter from the contaminated cage should be removed and fungicide spray should be given. Old feed should be discarded and potassium iodine should placed in drinking water.
Candidiasis
Candidiasis is caused by the yeast Candida albicans. Some factors like prolonged antibiotic therapy, feeding high level of carbohydrate, vitamin deficiency can predispose infection.
Clinical signs are initially unthriftiness and listlessness. Young birds are most susceptible to the disease.
The disease is characterized by the formation of necrotic pseudomembranous patches over the mucosa of tongue, pharynx and crop.
Candidiasis may result in beak deformity in parrots and soft bills. These lesions cause difficulty in swallowing food.
Treatment is 10000 IU/kg body weight Nystatin twice a day in feed or drinking water. This should be followed by diet supplementation with an adequate quantity of vitamin A and B, reducing the carbohydrate level in the feed, Amphotericin B lotion may be used for feather infection.
Amphotericin B at 1 mg/day orally, griseofulvin at 125 mg/kg body weight orally once a day and 5-fluorocystosine at 100 mg/kg body weight orally twice a day.
Prophylactic is done by unsanitary housing, over crowding, dirty utensil and litter are all factors that contribute to an outbreak.
All foot wear should be disinfected before visiting an infected flock to prevent spread of the disease. The spraying of 2-5% formic acid at the rate of 20ml/100g food minimizes mortality.
Gizzard Malfunction Syndrome
Gizzard malfunction syndrome fungal mycelia of several species have been found penetrating the koilin layer, the epithelium and even the muscle in small number of Australian parrots and finches.
The gizzard fungal condition may best be attempted by a systemic fungicide such amphotericin at 0.075mg/100 g body weight intravenously once a day for 4 days.
Nystatin and amphotericin are poorly absorbed from the seed eater‘s gut; therefore adequate penetration in the deeper layer of the gut or gizzard is difficult.
Aflatoxicosis
Aflatoxicosis is caused by Fusarium sporotrichiella var. tricinctum commonly found in moldy feed.
Toxicity cause abnormal wing positioning, hysteroid seizures and impaired righting reflex in young chickens.
Treatment is low dose steroids such as dexamethasone at 0.1 mg/100 g body weight once a day for 3 days, supportive therapy with vitamin B complex, reduction of sunflower seeds.
