Livestock Disease Tables

Understanding and preventing diseases that can effect your livestock is essential for identifying potential threats. Listed below is an overview of common diseases organized by species.

Poultry

INFECTIOUS DISEASE	POULTRY AFFECTED	CAUSE	SYMPTOMS	TREATMENT	PREVENTION
Brooder pneumonia	Young chicken and turkeys especially	Fungus: Aspergillus fumigatus	Rapid breathing, labored, depression	None	Strict sanitation in brooder equipment
Blackhead or histommoniasis	Turkeys especially	Protozoa: Histoma meleagridis	Listless, ruffled feathers, dark blue head	Carbasone, nitarsone, dimetridazole, ipronidazole, acidified copper sulfate, plus others	Strict sanitation; rotate ground; keep other birds away
Botulism Lembunich	Ducks	Bacteria: Clostridium botulinum (toxin)	Sudden death	None	Sanitation
Coccidiosis	All species	Coccidia, one or more variety for each species of bird	Bloody droppings in chickens	Amprolium, sulfonamides; get the current recommendations	Sanitation
Duck plague	All species	Herpes virus	Sudden death		Keep wild fowl away from flock, and vaccination
Fowl cholera	All	Bacteria: Pasteurella multocida	Rapid death	Sulfaquinoxaline, tetracycline	Vaccination
Fowl pox	Chickens, turkeys	Virus	Poxlike sores on unfeathered areas of body	None	Vaccination, in areas where disease is a problem
Viral hepatitis of ducks (DVH)	Ducks under 7 weeks	Picornavirus	Sudden death	None	Rat and wild duck control; strict iso- lation of young ducks; vaccination of adult breeder stock from older birds
Hemorrhagic enteritis of turkeys	Ducks under 7 weeks	Group II adenovirus	Sudden onset, bloody diarrhea	None	Vaccination (given in drinking water) enteritis of turkeys
Infectious bronchitis	Chickens	Coronavirus	Coughing, tearing	None	Good nursing, vaccination
Infectious coryza	Chickens	Bacterium: Hemophilus gallinarum	Facial swelling may close eyes, discharge	Erythromycin	Buy replacement from clean flock; a bacterin is available
Infectious laryngotracheitis	Chickens	Virus	Gasping, coughing with hock extended	None	Vaccination
Influenza	All	Virus	Signs are those of a cold	None	Reportable disease
(Note: Avian flu–especially the H5N1 strain, which has become such a concern lately–falls into this category, but so far is limited to Asia, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.)
Infectious serositis, “new duck disease”	All	Bacteria: Pasteurella antipestifer	Eye and nose discharge	Sulfaquinoxaline, penicillin, steratomycin	Bacterin available
Newcastle disease	Primarily ducks	Virus	Coughing, sneezing, with nervous system involved in severe cases	None	Vaccination
Pullorum disease	Chickens, turkeys, ducks	Bacteria: Salmonella pullorum	Symptoms inyoung poultry: listless, whitish diarrhea, do noteat	None	Control by testing of breeding flocks; eradication program; vaccination
Pullorum disease	Chickens	Virus. One of the first cancers proven to be caused by a virus	Paralysis, some- times only depression	None	Vaccination

Rabbits

INFECTIOUS DISEASE	CAUSE	SYMPTOMS	TREATMENT	PREVENTION
VIRAL DISEASES
Infectious myxomatosis	Virus; poxvirus	Milky eye discharge; ear edema; nasal discharge	None	None
BACTERIAL DISEASES
Pasteurellosis, “Snuffles”	Pasteurella multocida	Thin, purulent nose and eye discharge	None	Recovered animals may become carriers
Abscesses		Abscess on any part of body	None
Mastitis (Bluebreasts)	Staphylococci, Streptococci	Hot, swollen mammary glands	Penicillin variants	Good sanitation
Treponematosis, vent disease	Spirochete: Treponema cuniculi	Scabs and/or loss of fur in genital region	Penicillin var., entire herd	Do not use affected ani- mals for breeders
Hutch burn, urine burn	Wide range of possible organisms	Similar parts affected as vent disease	Antibiotic ointment; apply to affected parts	Keep hutches clean and dry
Enterotoxemia	Clostridium spiroforme	Sudden death	Onset usually too rapid to treat	Avoid diets too low in fiber
Mucoid enteropathy	Unknown	Constipation	None	Oral fluids to overcome dehydration
Tyzzer’s disease	Bacillus piliformis	Severe diarrhea	None	None
PARASITIC DISEASES
Coccidiosis: hepatic and intestinal	Coccidia	Young rabbits may be off feed, dull	Sulfaquinoxoline in feed or water	Good sanitation; avoid fecal contamination
Ear mites	Infestation	Scratching at ear	Clean ear withperox- ide, then use ear mite medicine	Good sanitary practices
MISCELLANEOUS CONDITIONS
Wet dewlap (moist dermatitis)	Various	Inflammation of the dewlap	Clip affected area-use antiseptic powder	Useautomaticdewdrop valves; elevatedrinking dishes
Hair chewing	Perhaps low-fiber diet	Chewing of fur	Change to higher fiber diet	High-fiber diet, e.g., good quality hay
Hairballs	Swallowing fur	Indigestion, gagging	None	High fiber diet–mineral oil, etc. of no value
Heat Exhaustion	Overexposure to bright sunlight	Heavy panting, elevated body temperature, and extreme lassitude	Immerse severely affected rabbits in cold water	Construct hutches to allow for good ventila- tion. Provide cold water and sprinkle hutches in hot weather.
Sore hocks (ulcerative pododermatitis)	Direct contact with wire mesh, especially in heavy breeds where there is an accumulation of urine-soaked feces.	Raw, weeping sores on hind legs	Difficult to treat. Affected animals should be culled.	Keep hutches clean
Malocclusion	An inherited characteristic	Failure of teeth to grind against each other, especially the incisors or front teeth.	Affected teeth should be clipped off.	Affected animals should not be used as breeders.

Sheep

INFECTIOUS DISEASE	CAUSE	SYMPTOMS	TREATMENT	PREVENTION
METABOLIC DISEASES Those caused by feed intake or stresses affecting all the body systems due to conditions such as lambing
Grass staggers, grass tetany, hypomagne- semic tetany	Low intake of magnesium; suddenly placing animals on lush pasture in the spring	Erratic behavior after being put on lush pasture	None	Magnesium supplements to fertilize pastures; feed dry hay before turning out
Parturient paresis	Unknown	Sudden onset 6-10 weeks prior to lambing, especially in heavy ewes: muscle tremors; stilted gait; down; death	Calcium solution I.V. or under skin	Good dietary management
Photosensitization	Light colored skin that has a hyperactive reaction to sunlight	Reddening and fluid (edema) in the skin.	Graze at night; steroids	Affected animals should not be used as breeders
Somebreedsofsheep(SouthdownsandCorriedales)haveadefectexistinginlivermetabolismthatpreventssubstancesthatpredis- posetheanimaltophotosensitizationfrombeingeliminatedintheusualway.Sheepofthesebreedsshowingthistraitshouldnotbe used asbreeders.
White muscle disease	Selenium deficiency	Stiff gait, arched back unable to rise	Selenium injections	Selenium supplement in feed
Pregnancy toxemia, ovine ketosis	Any factor that disrupts feed intake in fat ewes carrying twins late in pregnancy	Nervous signs, inability to get on their feet; coma	Propylene glycol, steroids induce abortions, glucose	Induce exercise; feed away from shelter; avoid stressful situations wherepossible
INFECTIOUS BACTERIAL DISEASES
Tetanus	Bacteria: Clostridium tetani	Often follows surgical procedures in early life; “saw-horse” appearance.	None	Administer tetanus antitoxin; later give toxoid
Overeating disease	Clostridium types C, D	Sudden death, especially in weaned lambs on full feed	No effective treatment	Bacterin to those on full feed
VIRAL DISEASES
Bluetongue	Bluetongue virus spread by biting flies	Difficult breathing; reddening of muzzle, lips, ears; ulcer, erosions of mouth	None	Vaccine in affected areas only
OPP (ovine progressive pneumonia)	Retrovirus	Very slowly progressing disease in mature animals; slow, wasting disease	None	Test and slaughter program; isolate lambs at birth, and feed milk from known-negative ewes
Sore mouth, contagious ecthyma	Poxvirus	Lesions on lips, sometimes feet.	None	Recovered sheep highly resistant; vaccine available
Scrapie (Transmissible spongiform encephalopathy)	Prion (structure smaller than a virus)	Loss of wool, intense itching, altered gait; loss of condition in sheep usually over 2 years	None	Test and slaughter
“Black disease” (infectious necrotic hepatitis)	Clostridium novyi	Sudden death; toxin produced by organism, together with liver flukes, which have already damaged the liver.	None	Toxoid (vaccine) in fluke region
Mastitis	Often Streptococcus or Staphylococcus species	Hot, swollen udder; Abnormal secretion	None	Antibiotics; hot packs; frequent stripping
Strawberry foot rot	Fungus (actinomycete): Dermatophilus congalensis	Sores in lower leg	Penicillin variants	Self-limiting
Scours	Escherichia coli	Profuse diarrhea in newborn	Fluids to combat dehydration; antitoxemia drugs, antibiotics	Dip navels in iodine; strict sanitation in lambing pens
Joint ill	Erysipelothis rhusiopathiae	Swollen joints and some- times navel	Penicillin variants	Dip navels, strict clean- liness when castrating or docking
PARASITIC DISEASES There are a wide range of parasites that affect sheep. Some invade various parts of the digestive tract while lungworms settle in the lungs.

Goats

INFECTIOUS DISEASE	CAUSE	SYMPTOMS	TREATMENT	PREVENTION
CAE (caprine arthri- tis and encephalitis)	Lentivirus	Encephalitis in young goats, arthritis in adults	None	Butazolidin in arthritic form; remove kids from doe immediately after birth and feed pasteurized colostrum
Abscesses	Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosi	Abscess formation around head and neck.	None
Urinary calculi (esp. in petwethers)	Metabolic imbalance	Urinate with difficulty or not at all	Surgery to create artificial opening	Feed diet with calcium-phosphorus ratio of2:1;addammonium chloride to diets;keep magnesium levellow
Mastitis	Several different bacteria	Abnormal milk ranging from watery to bloody	Variety of antibiotic preparations infused into udder; may need to run antibiotic sensitivity test to determine the best choice	Strict sanitation during the milking process; clean bedding and in general clean environment
Goatsaresubjecttomuchthesamerangeofdiseasesasaresheep.Themanagementofthevariousconditionsfollowsthelinesfol- lowed insheep.

Pigs

INFECTIOUS DISEASE	CAUSE	SYMPTOMS	TREATMENT	PREVENTION
Metabolic and nutritional iron deficiency	Milk naturally deficient in iron	Symptoms of anemia	None	Administer iron to newborn by injection; keep sod in pen
Hypoglycemia	Any factor that limits piglets’ milk intake, especially during first week of life	Low body temperature; listless; unresponsive	Give glucose intraperitoneally	Be sure sow has enough milk; that all piglets are getting their share; keep warm and dry
MMA or Mastitis- metritusagalactia syndrome (lactation failure in sows)	Not understood at this time, a complex interaction of many factors	Piglets show signs of starvation; piglets depressed; increased temperatures; sows listless; refuse to let piglets nurse	Corticosteroids and broadspectrum antibiotics	Good management practices; place piglets on foster sow if available
BACTERIA, SPIROCHETES, AND VIRUSES
Bacterial brucellosis (a disease transmis- sible to man, especially when handling infected carcasses at slaughter)	Brucella suis	Abortion: temporary or permanent sterility: lameness	None	Test and slaughter
Atrophic rhinitis	A complex disease with many contributing factors	Twisted snout may be end result	Several drugs effective including trimethoprim, tylocin, and tetracycline	Keeping a closed herd; good sanitation
Enteric colibacillosis	Escherichia coli	Profuse watery diarrhea in young pigs	Restore fluid level; antibiotics as determined by sensitivity, previous experience	Avoid chilling and dampness; vaccinations of sows to increase level of necessary antibodies
Enteritis	Clostridium perfringens, Type C	Bloody diarrhea in piglets, 1-5 days	None	Vaccination of pregnant sows is of some value to increase value of colostrum in affording protection
Edema	Escherichia coli	Disease of young pigs 5-14 days after weaning; rapid death; wobbly; paddling of legs; head twist	Antibiotics may help	Gradual change of feedfromcreepfeedto weaningration
Erysipelas	Erysipelothrix rhusipathiae	Several different forms of this disease: (1) sudden death; high temperature, walking stiffly or remain lying down; (2) may show skin discolorations as “diamond skin disease”; (3) arthritis; (4) heart valve involvement	Penicillin variants	Vaccination
Leptospirosis (may act as reservoir to cause infection in man)	Leptospira pomona	Abortions; being off feed; listlessness	None	Vaccinations
Mycoplasma pneumonia	Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae	Coughing, mild pneumonia; greatest problems: poor feed utilization and growth rate	Tylocin, Tetracycline	Establishment of disease-free herds
Pleuropneumonia	Haemophilus pleuropneumoniae	May be very severe with sudden deaths, especially in young pigs; extremely difficult breathing; high fatality rate	Several antibiotics have been suggested, including Tylocin and Trimethoprim	All-in, all-out management (all pigs in a group introduced simultaneously into area where they will be raised and later removed simultaneously)
Salmonellosis	Salmonella cholerasuis	Nursing pigs have diarrhea but die from septicemia;olderpigshavebloody diarrhea	Some antibiotics may be of value, but no drastic changes may be seen	Intensive clean-up after outbreaks
Swine dysentery	Treponema hyodysenteriae (a spirochete)	A mucous, bloody diarrhea is the most common symptom	Do antibiotic sensitivity test and determine best antibiotic, which might include bacitracin, lincomycin, and others	Good sanitation; treatment of carrier pigs
Tuberculosis (a disease transmissable from animal to man)	Mycobacterium species. Pigs are susceptible to three types: cattle, bird, and man	Lymph gland involvement: a wasting disease	None	Good management (e.g. cleanliness, good ventilation)
VIRUSES
Hog cholera (no longer present in USA), now more properly called “classical swine fever” (CSF)	DNA virus	Lethargy; off feed; high temperature	Hyperimmune serum	Vaccinations not always effective; worldwide test-and-slaughter policy in effect for any animals that test positive
Pseudorabies, “mad itch”	Herpes virus. The pig acts as a reservoir for the virus, which is highly fatal in other species such as cattle and sheep	In piglets, may see fever, trembling, convulsions; symptoms become progressively less severe as pig grows older	None	Bring in replacements from disease-free herds; segregation; isolation
Swine influenza, hog flu	Type A influenza virus	Rapidly spread throughout entire herd; high temperature; off feed; coughing; prostration	None	Good management with a stress-free environment
TGE (transmissible gastroenteritis)	Coronavirus	Vomiting followed by profuse, watery diarrhea; highly fatal in very young pigs, much less so in older pigs	None	Vaccinations
PARASITESThosewormsaffectingthestomachandintestinaltractofpigscanbecontrolledbythesametypesofmedicationsusedin otherspecies.Therearesomewormspeculiartoswinethatshouldbementioned.
Kidney worm infestation	Stephanurus dentatus	Pigs tend to be “poor doers”; economic loss from contamination of affected organs and tissues	None	Maintain clean environtment; rotate stock to keep herd young through “gilts-only” breeding program.
Trichinosis	Trichanella spiralis	Primarily a public health problem where insufficiently cooked, infected meat is eaten	None	Garbage containing pork should be cooked at 212° F for 30 min- utes before being fed to swine, or not feed at all

Calves

INFECTIOUS DISEASE	CAUSE	SYMPTOMS	TREATMENT	PREVENTION
Colibacillosis	Escherichia coli	Diarrhea; dehydration; weakness; death	Electrolytes, fluids, antibiotics	Buy calves from reputable sources; avoid stress; keep isolated; draft-free, well ventilated housing (calf hutch excellent)
Pneumonia	Various bacteria and viruses	Cough; difficulty breathing; off feed; fever	Fluids, antibiotics