Intestinal Parasites of Poultry

TURKEY INTESTINAL
COCCIDIOSIS
Etiology- Eimeria meleagridis, E. meleagrimitis,
E.adenoeide
Economic importance/Distribution
 Occurs world-wide
 Major cause of mortality and suboptimal growth
and feed conversion efficiency
 The cost of anticoccidial feed additives and
treatment is estimated to exceed $40 million
annually in all poultry producing areas of the world.

Mode of Transmission
The sporulated oocyst is the infective stage of
the life-cycle. Infected, recovered chickens shed
oocysts representing a problem in multi-age
operations. Oocysts can be transmitted
mechanically on the clothing and footwear of
personnel, contaminated equipment, or in some
cases, by wind spreading poultry-house dust and
litter over short distances.
TURKEY INTESTINAL
COCCIDIOSIS

Clinical Signs
Severity of the disease depends on the
number of oocysts ingested. Little pathogenicity is
attributed to E.meleagridis, whereas E.
Meleagrimitis and E. Adenoeides may be quite
harmful. Generally the disease is most often seen
in young birds.
 Infected birds stop eating
 Huddle together
 Pass fluid droppings which may be
brown or blood tinged.
TURKEY INTESTINAL
COCCIDIOSIS

Lesions
 E. Meleagrimitis- lesions appear about 4 days after
infection
 jejunum becomes thickened and contains colorless
fluid and mucus, small amounts of blood, and other
cellular material.
 On the 5th or 6th day the duodenum becomes
involved, the blood vessels are engorged, and a
necrotic core may develop. The small intestine
becomes congested and has petechial
haemorrhages throughout.
TURKEY INTESTINAL
COCCIDIOSIS

Lesions
TURKEY INTESTINAL
COCCIDIOSIS

Lesions
 In E. Adenoeides a severe enteritis with petechiae
may occur about the 4th day postinfection. Feces
may be fluid and blood-tinged, and contain mucous
casts; occasionally caseous plugs are found in the
ceca.
 Other species such as E. gallopavonis parasitizes a
similar region but primarily infects the rectum, with
limited involvement of the caecum.
TURKEY INTESTINAL
COCCIDIOSIS

Diagnosis
 Clinical signs
 Response to treatment
 Postmortem exam
Differential Diagnosis
 Salmonella
 Blackhead (caecum)
 Necrotic enteritis (Clostridium perfringes)
 Hemorrhagic enteritis
TURKEY INTESTINAL
COCCIDIOSIS

Treatment (if possible)
 Sulphonamides
 Amprolium.
Control/Prevention
 Good management and sanitation
 Coccidiostatic medication in feed or water
 Young birds should be raised apart from older birds.
 If deep litter is used, it should be mixed well, and kept
dry.
 Feeders and waterers should be thoroughly cleaned
weekly and kept on wire platforms to prevent fecal
contamination.
TURKEY INTESTINAL
COCCIDIOSIS

Etiology
 Eimeria necatrix
 E. acervulina
 E. maxima
 E. mitts
 E. praecox
 E. hagani
 E. mivati
 E. brunette
E. Necatrix is usually
located in the anterior or
midportion of the gut.
E.brunetti is found in the
lower small intestine,
rectum, cecum, or cloaca.
E. acervulina, E. mivati, E.
hagani, E. mitis, and E.
praecox are all found in the
upper half of the small
intestine.

Eimeria maxima, oocyst Eimeria brunetti, oocysts

 Worldwide
 Even low levels of infection causes ill thrift and loss of
production.
 Ingestion of contaminated food or water.
Clinical Signs
 Decreased feed intake
 Increased water consumption
 weight loss
 fall in egg production

Lesions (Gross/Histopathology)
 Catarrhal enteritis
 Thickened intestinal wall
 The intestinal lumen maybe filled with clotted or
unclotted blood
 Petechial haemorrhages
 Intestinal epithelium may slough and be replaced by
connective tissue that interferes with intestinal
absorption.
 Circumcumscribed white spots may be seen
through the mucosa
 On microscopic examination, these are seen to
contain developing coccidial forms

Gross lesions of E necatrix with frank hemorrhaging into the midgu

Gross lesions of E acervulina with white longitudinal plaques in
the duodenal loop of a broiler chicken.

Gross lesions of E brunetti in small intestine of a broiler chic

Diagnosis
 Demonstration of coccidial forms from characteristic
lesions in specific locations in the intestine.
 Salmonella (caecum)
 Necrotic enteritis (Clostridium perfringens) (small
intestine/ileum)
 Capillarisis (small intestine)
 Salt poisoning (small intestine)
 Mycotoxicoses (small intestine)
 Cannibalism (blood in feces)

 Sulfonamide
 Amprolium
 Pyrimidine
Control/Prevention
 Similar to the procedures suggested for E.
Tenella
 Vaccination
 Continuous use of anticoccidials in feed and
water.
 sulfonamides, nitrofurazones, nicarbazin,
pyrimidine derivatives, and others.

Synonyms/Abbreviations- Intestinal coccidiosis
Etiology
 Eimeria tenella
 Worldwide
 Even low levels of infection causes ill thrift and loss
of production.

 Ingestion of sporulated oocysts with food or water
Clinical Signs
 Frequently seen in younger birds of 4-6 weeks
old.
 Frequently an acute disease with diarrhea and
massive cecal hemorrhage.
 Blood is seen in the droppings 4 days after the
initial infection.
 The birds become listless, eat little, and are notably
thirsty.
 If the bird remains alive until the 8th or 9th day

 Extensive epithelial sloughing of the ceca
 Cecum filled with partially clotted blood that
ultimately consolidate s to form cecal cores.
 The wall of the cecum becomes markedly
thickened and enlarged

Gross lesions of E tenella with frank hemorrhaging into cecal
pouches in a broiler chicken.

Diagnosis
 Demontration of oocysts from feces or mucosal
scrapings at necropsy .
 Clinical signs
 Salmonella (caecum)
 Cannibalism (blood in feces)

 Sulfonamide
 Amprolium
Control/Prevention
 Good management and sanitation
 Coccidiostatic medication in feed or water
 Young birds should be raised apart from older
birds
 Feeders and waterers should be thoroughly
cleaned weekly and kept on wire platforms
 Coccidiosis vaccine

Synonyms/Abbreviations- Infectious catarrhal
enteritis
Etiology- Hexamita meleagridis
 Problem in every commercial turkey-producing
area
 Major problem in localized areas during a particular
year

 Ingestion of freshly contaminated food or water.
Clinical Signs
 Adult birds are frequently asymptomatic carriers
 Disease of turkey poults less than 10 weeks
old.
 Nervous
 Stilted gait
 Ruffled feathers
 Lose weight rapidly, become weak and listless, and
die.

 Severe catarrhal inflammation of the intestine
 Intestinal contents are thin and watery; a white
foamy diarrhea is often present

Diagnosis
 Demonstration of the organism in fresh scrapings
from the mucosa of the small intestine, particularly
the duodenum and jejunum.
 Clinical signs

 No effective treatment
Control/Prevention
 Good management
 Strict sanitation
 Poults should be separated from adults
 Feeders and waterers should be on wire
platforms to prevent contamination.

Synonyms/Abbreviations-
 Blackhead
 Infectious enterohepatitis
Etiology- Histomonas meleagridis

 Ingestion of infected egg of H. gallinarum.
 Ingestion of large numbers of infective trophozoites in
very fresh droppings.
Clinical Signs
 Turkeys of any age may be affected
 Most often seen in birds 3-12 weeks old
 The first signs of disease are weakness
and drowsiness; birds stand with heads
lowered, droopy wings, and closed eyes. They
do not eat and lose weight, and the droppings
may be sulfur-colored .

 Concave liver lesions are pathognomic
 saucer-shaped, depressed, yellow-green areas of
necrosis and degeneration.
 Cecal lesions are first seen as pin point ulcers that
enlarge and appear as yellow patches on the serosal
surface.
 The lumen of the cecum may contain a hard caseous
core to which the cecal epithelium adheres .

Diagnosis
 Gross post-mortem lesions
 Stained sections from the periphery of liver lesions
 Identification of living organisms in wet preparations
from caecal lesions
 Pseudoblackhead
 No drugs are currently approved for use as
treatments

Control/Prevention
 Good management.
 The cardinal rule is to keep chickens completely
separate from turkeys.
 Turkeys should be placed in clean runs that have
not been used for at least 10 months and preferably
for 2 years.
 Turkeys must not be placed on ground that
has been fertilized with chicken or turkey
manure.
 Continuous feeding of a ration containing
enheptin or hepzide has proved satisfactory in
prevention of the disease.
 Feeders and waterers should be kept off the
ground and on wire platforms .

Synonyms/Abbreviations- Intestinal roundworm
Etiology
 Ascaridia galli
 A. columbae
 A. dissimilis
 heavy economic losses in form of retarded growth,
reduce weight gain, decreased egg production,
diarrhea, morbidity and high mortality rate

 Ingestion of egg containing infective 2nd-stage larva
Clinical Signs
 Birds are unthrifty
 Weak
 Emaciated
 Egg production drops
 Diarrhea may be accompanied by anemia
 Intestinal obstruction in very heavy infections

 Ascarids may migrate up the oviduct (via the
cloaca) to become enshelled later within the egg.
 A dissimilis (turkey roundworm) may also migrate
out of the intestine, through the portal system, and
into the liver, causing hepatic granulomas.
Diagnosis
 Demonstration of eggs in feces or worms in the
intestine on necropsy.

 Piperazine citrate
 Tetramisole
Control/Prevention
 Good management
 Young birds should be separated from old
 Yards and pens should be rotated and well
drained
 Deep litter in pens must be kept dry.
 Droppings should be removed frequently.

Etiology- C. obsignata
 Ingestion of capillaria egg

Clinical Signs
 Birds lose weight steadily
 May become severely emaciated
 Frequently die
 Severe catarrhal enteritis
 Scattered hemorrhages

Diagnosis
 Demonstration of worms on necropsy
 Identification of eggs in feces

 Haloxon
 Tetramisole
Control/Prevention
 Removal and destruction of contaminated beddings

Synonyms/Abbreviations- Cecal worm
Etiology- Heterakis gallinarum
 Ingestion of an infective Heterakis egg or an
earthworm

Clinical Signs
 In domestic fowl the adult worm is not generally
considered a pathogen.
 Effects of the worm are slight
 Only in heavy infections may there be
thickening of the cecal mucosa.
 In some species of wild birds, a nodular typhlitis
may occur

Diagnosis
 Demonstration of eggs from feces
 Identification of adult worms on necropsy
 Ascaridiasis

 Phenothiazine
 Tetramisole
Control/Prevention
 If birds are penned, routine removal of feces and
litter is important.
 In game farms, rotation of lots and pens should be
practiced.

Synonyms/Abbreviations- Minute tapeworm
Etiology
 Davainea proglottina
 Ingestion of slugs (Limax, Arion, or Agriolimax)
containing the cysticercoids.

Clinical Signs
 Marked emaciation
 General debility
 Loss of weight.
 Intestinal mucosa appears thickened and may be
hemorrhagic because hold-fast organs are heavily
armed
Diagnosis
 Demonstration of the cestodes on necropsy by
examining mucosal scrapings or by opening the
duodenum under water and observing the activity of
the papillaelike, minute tapeworms.

 Di-n-butyl tin dilaurate
 Albendazole
 Febantel
 Fenbendazole
 Mebendazole
 Oxfendazole
Control/Prevention
 Soil may be treated with metaldehyde to destroy
slugs.
 Pens and range should be well drained.
 A sandy soil is preferable.

Synonyms/Abbreviations- Thread tapeworm
Etiology
 Hymenolepis spp.
 Ingestion of the infective cysticercoids in suitable
intermediate host.

Clinical Signs
 Growth retardation
Diagnosis
 Necropsy. If the fresh intestine is opened in a small
amount of warm water, the worms may be seen
actively moving in the water above the mucosal
surface.
 Intestinal scrapings should be examined under the
binocular dissecting microscope.

 Butynorate
Control/Prevention
 Proper disposal of droppings.
 Houses should be cleaned regularly and the
manure spread thinly on arable land where sunlight
and desiccation will soon destroy the parasitic
forms.
 Numbers of intermediate hosts maybe reduced by
using insecticides, molluscicides, and other
appropriate control measures.

Synonyms/Abbreviations- Broad-headed tapeworm
Etiology
 Raillietina cesticellus
 R. Tetragona
 R. Echinobothridia

 Ingestion of the intermediate host containing the cysticercoid
Clinical Signs
 Emaciation
 Stunted growth
 In laying birds, egg production may be decreased or may stop
altogether.
 Conspicuous intestinal nodules in chicken, with
characteristic hyperplastic enteritis associated with the
formation of granuloma.
 Intestinal nodules often result in degeneration and
necrosis of intestina villi, accompanied by anaemia

Diagnosis
 Presence of large numbers of segments or eggs in
the feces
 Demonstration of worms on necropsy
 Di-n-butyltindilaurate (Butynorate ) or Yomesan in
the food
Control/Prevention
 Control of intermediate hosts with insecticides
 Removal and disposal of droppings

Etiology- Echinostoma revolutum
 Ingestion of an infected 2nd
intermediate host
Clinical Signs
 In light infections these flukes cause little injury.
 If large numbers are present, it is claimed they
may cause severe enteritis, hemorrhagic
diarrhea, and progressive emaciation.

 Mild hyperaemia
 Severe catarrhal enteritis.
Diagnosis
 Identification of eggs in the feces or adult worms in
the intestine on necropsy examination.

 Albendazole
 Praxiquanntel
Control/Prevention
 Avoid wet marsh areas
 Snail control should be considered

REFERENCE:
 Alcorn M.J. et al., 2008. Poultry Diseases. 7th Edition. W.B. Saunders
Publishing Inc, New York, USA. Pp. 445-449
 Griffiths H.J. 1978. A Handbook of Veterinary Parasitology. University of
Minnesota Press, United States of America
 Puttalakshmamma G.C., et al. 2008. Prevalence of Gastrointestinal
parasites of Poultry in and around Banglore. Available at
http://www.veterinaryworld.org/2008/July/Prevalence%20of%20Gastroin
testinal%20parasites%20of%20Poultry%20in%20and%20a.pdf
[Accessed last 29th January 2015]
 THE MERCK MANUAL, PET HEALTH EDITION (2011). Overview of
Coccidiosis in Poultry. Available from
http://www.merckmanuals.com/vet/poultry/coccidiosis/overview_of_cocc
idiosis_in_poultry.html [Accessed 29th January 2015]
 http://www.nadis.org.uk/bulletins/diseases-of-farmyard-poultry/part-3-
control-of-coccidiosis.aspx

Intestinal Parasites of Poultry

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