Gout Management in Poultry in winter
- One of the important metabolic disorders associated with kidney damage in poultry is gout in winter.
- The modern day poultry bird has undergone several genetic modifications to upgrade its production efficiency in terms of better meat and egg production.
- Gout in India is still one of the major causes for huge mortality and morbidity in poultry, causing great monetary losses to the producers.
- The external environmental factors like :
a) nutrition,
b) management
c) and health of birds need to be optimum for the bird to express its genetic potential to the maximum extent possible.
Causes of Gout:
- Water intake:
a) Gout due to water deprivation, particularly in the winter season .
b) Too low water pH – leads to water rejection by poultry or irritates the epithelium.
- Improper brooding temperature – too low brooding temperature, chills the water – thereby reducing the water intake and hence increasing chances of development of gout.
- Nutritional including minerals,vitamins and protein .
- Infectious diseases viral as IB, Astro and IBD
- Metabolic as Ascites –
a) Hypoxic conditions increases the production of uric acid.
b) Ascites in initial stages can lead to symptoms of gout.
- Managemental causes:
a) Water deprivation
b) or improper hatchery
management like Improper egg storage ,
c) Inadequate incubation conditions ,
d)Improper conditions in chick holding room ,
e) Chicks held for a long in hatchery .
f) or transported for a long distance without water .
- Mycotoxins,drugs or chemicals.
Treatment includes :
a) No medication alters the course of IBV infection,
b) but we can give antimicrobial therapy to reduce mortalities caused by complicating bacterial infections.
12.Immuno modulators :
Like Immunotech should be administered at 250ml for 1000 birds for two to three days twice a day followed by 100 ml for another few weeks twice a day will considerably reduce the intensity.👍
- Feed need to be supplemented :
a) With good quality Toxin binders like “Toxi free” at 2 kg for ton of feed .
b) Acidifiers like “Aciplex “ at 2 kgs for ton of feed to take care of mycotoxin and microbial (bacterial and fungal) load respectively.
- Supplement with Electrolytes , Vitamins and minerals in drinking water.
- Reducing the protein concentrations in feed and feeding with maize grain particles for three to five days to reduce the exertion of kidneys and to expel uric acid.
- Use of jaggery (concentrated sugar) also seems to be beneficial.
- Any practice that encourages flushing out uric acid crystals should be adopted, the easiest and vital being boosting up water intake, or else the whole effort of providing medications through water can be futile.😊 Subhodayam
Dr V.RajendraPrasad
