# Ornithobacterium rhinotracheale



## Dorsey75 (Sep 15, 2012)

Has anybody delt with this? I just got test results back from zoologix and this is what is going through my flock. I think there is no cure. Thinking of culling the whole flock. I dont want to but also I don't want this transferring to the wild birds that drink their water and eat their food in the winter. Any help would be appreciated


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## Energyvet (Jul 25, 2012)

So Dorsey,

Thanks for the diagnosis. Generally people ask about vague symptoms and you just nail it right down. Okay so, apparently it can be found in turkeys, chickens and wild birds so culling isn't going to get you much except a lot of dead birds. If you want to cull the sick birds to put them out of their misery, then okay but I don't think it will solve your problem after you wield your ax. 

There is a vaccination. But the best vaccination program is to vaccinate the hens as they will provide maternal immunity to the young and also be a stronghold of disease free birds to provide "herd immunity" to the flock. (herd immunity is when you vaccinate enough animals in a grouping to allow a high enough percentage of immunity to protect the whole group. It's an odds game.)

Anyhow, this disease is worldwide and ever present. A BIG aspect of what you are seeing clinically is failure in husbandry. Although many birds will get this disease, many will clear it on their own UNLESS they are overcrowded, undernourished, stressed by housing, weather - you know the drill here. You need to clean out the coops thoroughly and disinfect them. And bump up daily rations, thin out your numbers per building, provide superior ration and water. Lower stress levels. These birds are under your care and consequently if they are failing it is being exasperated by their living conditions. 

Sorry of you don't like the answer. :-(. If you want to google this disease, there is a lot of good information on the Internet. That's where I got my information. 

Good Luck and don't be discouraged. This is an opportunity to learn to be a better and smarter farmer.


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## Sundancers (Jun 20, 2012)

Dorsey75 said:


> Has anybody delt with this? I just got test results back from zoologix and this is what is going through my flock. I think there is no cure. Thinking of culling the whole flock. I dont want to but also I don't want this transferring to the wild birds that drink their water and eat their food in the winter. Any help would be appreciated


So you sent a "chicken" to a lab to be tested? (Or is this a on line kind of thing?)

I need a little more info ...


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## TinyHouse (Aug 31, 2012)

When we lost all the CxR last year, there was serious thought given to taking at least a couple of them to a lab to have a necropsy done to see what they died of. But then the people I was staying with just decided to cut them open themselves and see if they saw anything strange. That's when we found the huge, flabby heart surrounded by all the fat. I think the lab charges about $40 where she was. They lost a ewe one Saturday morning - just found her dead in the field. They would have taken her but, because it was Saturday and it was HOT, they decided that waiting until Monday to take it wasn't such a great idea.

How much did your testing cost Dorsey?

http://www.zoologix.com/avian/Datasheets/PoultryRespiratoryPanel.htm


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## Dorsey75 (Sep 15, 2012)

Ok sounds like there is hope then,my wife and I have been trying to figure out if we could keep them or not. We've been reading, but haven't found solid answers. We are new to introducing new birds in our flock, we bought nine new birds from an auction, from 3 different sellers and none seemed sick then later a cochin had one eye that she would keep closed but would open it from time to time. They have lots of room and a nice dry ventelated coop, we only had eleven then added the other nine so twenty total. Now back down to seventeen. The pen is around fifty by thirty so they have lots of space as well also the grass still grows In the pen it's not a mud hole like others I have seen. Our coop and pen are clean. We have always orderd new chicks and introduced them to our little flock. Almost all the chickens are recovering and look healthy. Will they still carry this and pass it to new chicks? Our flock isn't large enough to meet our egg needs. We are worried about introducing new chicks and having to go through this all over again. We have to add to our flock because occasionally our chickens been picked off by coyotes and bobcats in the extreme weather. We aren't sure we can commit to a closed flock of 17 sick birds if they are lifelong carriers of this ORT.


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## Dorsey75 (Sep 15, 2012)

Sun dancer--we went through zoologix using a tracheal swab.


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## Sundancers (Jun 20, 2012)

I have never had a lab to come back with a diagnosis... They would come back with enlarged liver/heart ... unknown cause.

We sent 4 kids goats to labs one year and they all came back with different reason ... (getting a different buck put a stop to that.)

TinyHouse ~ Sorry about the lost ewe.

I'm not saying they don't have it but I would make sure before I did the cull...

JMHO ...


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## Dorsey75 (Sep 15, 2012)

98$ for a respiratory panel. We didn't want to just cull them without knowing. Our oldest hen is about 4 yrs old and has made it through this illness. She seems to be doing fine now. We called the zoologix people and they were very helpful and friendly.


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## Energyvet (Jul 25, 2012)

Then Dorsey, I would suggest your next step is to vaccinate most if not all of the hens. I think your stress came from a lot of new birds from multiple places being added. There goes the sacred pecking order and up went the stress level to sky high. My suggestion would be to vaccinate most of the hens. And then allow them to sit on some fertile eggs and that's where you get your replacements from. These chicks bred from existing inoculated hens will give them the best chance at immunity and they will have a gradual introduction if they are with a broody hen. The only weakness in this plan is the broody hen, I'm afraid. In light of your new details, I would be very optimistic. The worst seems to be over and you have a very doable action plan going forward. This diagnosis is more often false negative than false positive so I would trust your diagnosis and not waste time second guessing yourself. You have a lot of work to do so get going.


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## Dorsey75 (Sep 15, 2012)

Where do I get a vaccine for this?


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## Energyvet (Jul 25, 2012)

If tractor supply or feed store can't order it, then try local veterinarian.


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## Sundancers (Jun 20, 2012)

Never mind ... lol

Research my friend ... research.


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