Before we talk about the disease itself, you need to have an idea of who the puffy eaters are.
Fluff eaters are very small parasites that settle in bird feathers and spoil their plumage.
In the people they are also called "chicken lice". Indeed, the harm they bring is almost the same. Only fluffy eaters do not suck blood, but prefer exclusively bird fluff and feathers.
The defeat of these insects is considered a disease - mallophagus.
In Russia, poultry (chickens, ducks, turkeys, geese) often suffers from this disease, and parrots and other types of decorative birds are much less common.
Who are the puffy eaters and how dangerous are they?
The bird is affected by these insects very quickly, digging in the dirt, eating dirty food from the ground, etc.
It can even be infected by the owner himself, who carelessly brought in parasites from another hen house, for example, on his shoes.
Therefore, you need to carefully monitor how the bird behaves, whether it is engaged in its plumage, as well as for cleanliness in the hen house. Parasites can quickly and easily save you from having to get out there, because all the bird will just die.
Damage caused by lumps cannot be described in words. In a short time you can lose all poultry..
In the first place, naturally, egg production will decrease until it disappears completely. But getting rid of them can be very difficult. For this purpose, a whole range of measures to combat these parasites is used. Term of elimination of the louse can be from 1 month to six months.
Pathogens
The causative agents of this disease are very small and fast insects that look like lice.
The coloring is yellow-brown, on the body there are mobile jaws, with which the parasite bites into the feathers and down of the bird.
It should be noted that the science knows about two and a half thousand different lice, but only sixty of them can parasitize directly on the birds. We can not be afraid that the bird eater can move to humans - this habitat does not suit them.
Most of the feathers eat only birds of one particular species.. For example, feathers from parrots will not switch to poultry, although there have been exceptions to this rule, but very rarely.
The disease is spreading rapidly. If at least one bird is already struck, then almost the next day all nearby birds will be infected.
Particularly affected by parasites are chicks, to whom the disease is transmitted from parents. Birds, watching their plumage, and constantly cleaning it, less often than others suffer from such a nuisance. But naturally, forcing the bird to train to clean the feathers is impossible.
The most common fluffy eaters in Russia are similar in appearance to small black fleas, which is almost impossible to distinguish among the bird fluff. Although there are quite large individuals, reaching a length of four millimeters.
Course and symptoms
For poultry owners, the most important thing in time is to understand that the bird has become infected, otherwise the disease will spread to all birds and it will be very difficult to get insects out.
The neglect of this disease greatly affects the behavior of the bird, exhausts it, exhausts it. The infected bird no longer has the desire to get rid of the insect on its own.
She looks lethargic and sleepy. This happens because insect firmly bites into the skin, causing constant itching, taking blood and hitting the plumage.
The bird tries to somehow end its suffering, but already on the second day the supply of forces is exhausted and the bird becomes sluggish, stops active activities.
Feathers of such a bird also have characteristic features; they become rare; if you look closely, you can see the smallest holes left by insects on them. These are the main symptoms of a puffed-up lesion. If you do not start treatment in time, the whole bird will become infected very quickly.
The course of the disease takes place in two stages. The first stage is active (when the bird realizes that the parasites cause it inconvenience and tries to get rid of them on its own).
Unfortunately, the first stage passes very quickly (literally two days) then the bird already gets used to the new state and ceases to perceive it somehow.
Orpington chickens in their best form resemble a cube. As you may have guessed, they are bred for the sake of meat.We have written a separate article about trichomoniasis in chickens, which is located at: //selo.guru/ptitsa/kury/bolezni/k-virusnye/trihomonoz.html.
If you would like to know about the blooming of orchids at home, then go here.
Most bird breeders discover the disease only when the second stage of sluggish behavior has already begun, when the surface of the plumage is already severely affected, which can be seen with the naked eye. In the second stage, it is very difficult to get the parasite out; an old and weak bird can easily die.
Diagnostics
To diagnose this disease is very simple, just look at the plumage of a bird. If the feathers begin to fall, there are noticeable grooves in the down, long seams on the feathers are gnawed, then you should not doubt - there is a puff of feathers in front of you.
Treatment
In the case of infection of poultry with a louse, you should not treat it yourself. Need to get an appointment to the vet faster, which will determine the extent of the disease, the type of insect and give specific instructions for treatment. It is best to get rid of parasites with the help of various sprays, which are processed feathers.
Drops and other solutions, as shown, are ineffective. The treatment also involves a long quarantine and complete disinfection of the chicken coop or the cage in which the birds are kept.
Prevention and control measures
Prevention of mallophagosis includes a constant cleaning of the hen house and a thorough examination of the birds, putting down the necessary vaccinations, constant consultation with veterinarians and experienced breeders.
You also need to remember that the disease does not appear out of nowhere, most often it is brought by the owners themselves. Therefore, you should try not to visit places with an infected bird, poultry farms, other people's chicken coops.
If this happens, you should completely disinfect your shoes and your clothes before visiting your own home feathered animals.
Experienced poultry farmers know that most often the bird becomes infected in the hot season, when reproduction of these insects occurs. Therefore, in the summer you need to be especially vigilant to monitor the behavior of the bird.
If there is a noticeable violation in the behavior of at least one bird, then it should be immediately quarantined, and the chicken coop should be sanitized. Contact with a free bird should not be.
