Cannibalism, High mortality and Drop in Egg Production Associated with Low Sodium in the Feed Canadian Poultry Consultants Abbotsford

Flock Information Type of Birds: Commercial Layer Chickens Age:23 weeks old Flock Size: 6096 Barns are divided by Wall Second Flock Age: 44 weeks Flock Size: 6030

Housing System Barn Dimensions: 30 X 190 Feet Farmers Automatic 2 Rows Multi-deck i.e., 3 Tier

Bird Density Capacity: 8 birds per cage Actual: 6-7 birds per cage

Ventilation System Pad Cooling System Ceiling Ventilation Two 52 Inch Fans One 40 Inch Fan

Manure Removal System Automatic Manure Removal Belt Once a week

Feeding System Chain Feeding System Type of Feed: Mash Frequency of Feeding: 7 times/day Separate Silos for each barn Chore Time Feeding System

Lighting Fluorescent 15 watts Light Bulbs at 60% 3 Rows Spaced at 8 feet Lux at top tier 16 hours a day 8 hours of darkness

Water Well water Thorough Cleaning and Disinfection during Downtime No continuous water treatment Two nipple drinkers with a splash cup for each cage

Vaccination Status Marek’s and ILT at the Hatchery Live Bursal Live AE Live ILT (TCO) Live and Killed ND and IB Coverage

History Two Commercial Layer Flocks at one Location Major Complaint: Cannibalism, High Mortality and Drop in Egg Production Field Call was requested

Differential Diagnosis Management: out of feed, out of water, lighting (too dark or too bright), temperature extremes Improper Nutrition Mycotoxins Infectious causes: Fowl Pox Coccidiosis

Differential Diagnosis Infectious Bronchitis Newcastle Disease Avian Influenza Avian encephalomyelitis Fowl Cholera Mycoplasma gallisepticum Infection Infectious Coryza

Field Call Analysed the production data Walked through the barn Measured light intensity Collected Feed Sample Blood Sampling was done on that Day Brought fresh dead birds back to CPC for PM

Post-Mortem Findings Necropsy revealed the following Weight Ranged from 1.14 kg to 1.44 kg in barn # 5 Weight ranged from 1.11 kg to 1.37 kg in barn # 6 Pecking wound around vent areas in 6 birds Egg in oviduct in 3 birds

Post-Mortem Findings Toneless ovarian follicles in barn # 6 birds Thin Keel bone in 4 birds Moist feed in the crop Empirical Diagnosis: Cannibalism

Serology Results Satisfactory titers for following AE IBV NDV Negative for following in barn # 5: MG MS MS positive flock in barn # 6 confirmed by HI

Daily Mortality in Barn 5 & 6 Barn # 5: 2.1% in two weeks Barn # 6: 5.2% in two weeks

Drop in Egg Production in Barn # 5 Barn # 5: 94.64% 86.34% 96.34% 93% 94.30% 90.99% 92.61% Egg production before the start of the problem: 94.45% Minimum egg production:91.14% 2-3% loss in egg production

Drop in Egg Production in Barn # 6 Barn # 6: 97.37% 89.13% 88.01% 82.21% 74.35% 74.28% 64.27% Egg production before the start of problem: 97.37% Minimum egg production: 53.17% 44.19% drop in egg production within 13 days period

Feed Sample Results Ingredient Barn # 5 Barn # 6 Protein21.4% 20.3% Sodium0.10%< 0.10% Standard Na Levels: 0.14% to 0.17% based on daily ration allowance

Precedents Low sodium for 28 days- 64% drop in egg production ( Dilworth and Day, 1976) 0.017% Na in feed-complete cessation of egg production in 21 days (Nesbeth et al 1976) 0.13% Na in feed- drop in egg production from 60 to 15%

Food For Thought What changes are triggered in the bird with low sodium diets? What happens to different hormones i.e., Prolactin, Corticosterone, Ovarian Steroids ( Estradiol, Progesterone), Thyroid Hormones, Adrenal Gland Hormones, Pituitary Gland Hormones?

Hyponatremia in Humans Effects on Nervous System Sodium imbalance results in water retention and cerebral edema Headache Confusion Irritability Seizure Decreased consciousness Coma

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