Ascaridia galli in broiler chickens
Long, P.L.
Veterinary Record 100(16): 342
1977
ISSN/ISBN: 0042-4900 PMID: 867762 Document Number: 113544
In Britain, Ascaridia galli was found in and on the viscera of broiler fowl from a broiler house with an earth floor, capable of holding about 16,000 birds. The incidence of worms and larvae was followed over a 12-month period in which 5 batches of broilers were treated with piperazine in the drinking water at 4 oz/10 gallons of water. The number of worms found in the intestine fell from 110/bird at first examination to one at the time of treatment of the 5th batch. The results indicated that birds acquired infection one to 2 weeks after introduction to the broiler house, and that normal cleaning and disinfection procedures did not eliminate the infection from a house with an earth floor. The possibility that passage of A. galli through young birds over a long period of time might have selected a population capable of early maturation was tested by experimental infection of chickens. The first ova were produced 28 days after infection, i.e. at the normal time.