Cannibalism, High mortality and Drop in Egg Production Associated with Low Sodium in the Feed

Canadian Poultry Consultants Abbotsford

Flock Information• Type of Birds: Commercial Layer Chickens

• Age:23 weeks old• Flock Size: 6096

Barns are divided by Wall

• Second Flock Age: 44 weeks• Flock Size: 6030

Housing System

• Barn Dimensions: 30 X 190 Feet• Farmers Automatic• 2 Rows• Multi-deck i.e., 3 Tier

Bird Density

• Capacity: 8 birds per cage• Actual: 6-7 birds per cage

Ventilation System

• Pad Cooling System• Ceiling Ventilation• Two 52 Inch Fans• One 40 Inch Fan

Manure Removal System

• Automatic Manure Removal Belt• Once a week

Feeding System

• Chain Feeding System• Type of Feed: Mash• Frequency of Feeding: 7 times/day• Separate Silos for each barn• Chore Time Feeding System

Lighting

• Fluorescent 15 watts Light Bulbs at 60%• 3 Rows• Spaced at 8 feet• 20-25 Lux at top tier• 16 hours a day• 8 hours of darkness

Water

• Well water• Thorough Cleaning and Disinfection during

Downtime• No continuous water treatment• Two nipple drinkers with a splash cup for each

cage

Vaccination Status

• Marek’s and ILT at the Hatchery• Live Bursal • Live AE • Live ILT (TCO)• Live and Killed ND and IB Coverage

History• Two Commercial Layer Flocks at one Location• Major Complaint: Cannibalism , High Mortality

and Drop in Egg Production• Field Call was requested

Differential Diagnosis

• Management: out of feed , out of water , lighting (too dark or too bright) , temperature extremes

• Improper Nutrition• Mycotoxins• Infectious causes: • Fowl Pox• Coccidiosis

Differential Diagnosis

• Infectious Bronchitis• Newcastle Disease• Avian Influenza• Avian encephalomyelitis• Fowl Cholera• Mycoplasma gallisepticum Infection• Infectious Coryza

Field Call

• Analysed the production data• Walked through the barn• Measured light intensity• Collected Feed Sample• Blood Sampling was done on that Day• Brought fresh dead birds back to CPC for PM

Post-Mortem Findings

• Necropsy revealed the following•Weight Ranged from 1.14 kg to 1.44 kg in

barn # 5•Weight ranged from 1.11 kg to 1.37 kg in

barn # 6• Pecking wound around vent areas in 6

birds• Egg in oviduct in 3 birds

Post-Mortem Findings

• Toneless ovarian follicles in barn # 6 birds• Thin Keel bone in 4 birds•Moist feed in the crop

• Empirical Diagnosis: Cannibalism

Serology Results• Satisfactory titers for following• AE• IBV• NDV

Negative for following in barn # 5:• MG• MS

• MS positive flock in barn # 6 confirmed by HI

Daily Mortality in Barn 5 & 6

Barn # 5: 2.1% in two weeks• 10• 6• 8• 8• 15• 11Barn # 6: 5.2% in two weeks• 13• 20• 26• 20• 20• 35• 22

Drop in Egg Production in Barn # 5

• Barn # 5:• 94.64%• 86.34%• 96.34%• 93%• 94.30%• 90.99%• 92.61%• Egg production before the start of the problem: 94.45%• Minimum egg production:91.14%• 2-3% loss in egg production

Drop in Egg Production in Barn # 6

• Barn # 6:• 97.37%• 89.13%• 88.01%• 82.21%• 74.35%• 74.28%• 64.27%• Egg production before the start of problem: 97.37%• Minimum egg production: 53.17%• 44.19% drop in egg production within 13 days period

Feed Sample Results

Ingredient Barn # 5 Barn # 6• Protein 21.4% 20.3%• Sodium 0.10% < 0.10%

• Standard Na Levels: 0.14% to 0.17% based on daily ration allowance

Precedents

• Low sodium for 28 days- 64% drop in egg production ( Dilworth and Day, 1976)• 0.017% Na in feed-complete cessation of

egg production in 21 days (Nesbeth et al 1976) • 0.13% Na in feed- drop in egg production

from 60 to 15%

Food For Thought

•What changes are triggered in the bird with low sodium diets?•What happens to different hormones i.e.,

Prolactin , Corticosterone , Ovarian Steroids ( Estradiol , Progesterone) , Thyroid Hormones , Adrenal Gland Hormones, Pituitary Gland Hormones?

Hyponatremia in Humans

• Effects on Nervous System • Sodium imbalance results in water retention and

cerebral edema • Headache• Confusion• Irritability• Seizure• Decreased consciousness• Coma

Thank You

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