Disease sheet · NEXTEKCI School
Fowl cholera
avian pasteurellosis
A bacterial disease that mainly affects adult birds. Its acute form causes sudden deaths; its chronic form causes swollen wattles and swollen joints. Rats and backyard poultry are its main reservoirs.
Type
bacterium
Severity
serious
Who is affected
Mainly layers and birds kept for a long time; all poultry can be affected.
Most affected age
Mainly adult birds and birds at the end of the growing period.
Signs to look for
- •Sudden deaths of birds that looked healthy the day before.
- •Purplish comb and wattles.
- •Greenish diarrhoea.
- •Fever, dull birds that stop eating.
- •Chronic form: swollen wattles, swollen joints and feet, lameness.
- •In layers: drop in laying.
How it spreads
- •Rats and other rodents, cats and wild animals.
- •Backyard poultry and recovered birds still carrying the bacterium.
- •Soiled water and feed, carcasses left in the house.
Not to be confused with
- •Avian influenza
- •Newcastle disease
- •Infectious coryza (chronic form)
- •Heat stroke
Prevention
- •Constant rat control; spilt feed picked up immediately, store kept closed.
- •No other poultry on the site; no dogs or cats in the houses.
- •Carcasses collected daily and disposed of properly.
- •Single-age flock, cleaning and downtime.
- •Vaccination following the protocol of the vet in your area, if they consider it useful.
What to do if you suspect it
- •Isolate the house and call the vet in your area the same day.
- •Do not sell or move any sick bird.
- •Keep one or two birds that died that day cool, never frozen, for post-mortem.
- •Step up rat control immediately.
- •Respect the withdrawal period for birds and eggs if a treatment is prescribed.
This sheet helps you recognise the disease and react quickly. It does not replace the veterinarian: only they can diagnose and prescribe a treatment. Worried about your flock? Write to us on WhatsApp at +225 05 44 83 27 79.