Doxycycline use Doxycycline is a widely used antibiotic in pigeon health management. There are however some special aspects about its use . Doxycyline medicated water turning purple Fanciers in some areas will notice that water medicated with doxycycline will change from the normal pale yellow to pale pink then red and finally deep purple. This colour change occurs if there are minerals in the water that react with the doxycycline. This change is unlikely to be seen where mains water is used, but is quite common where bore water and other sources of mineral rich waters are used.As the water changes colour the antibiotic is being inactivated. Solutions for fanciers in affected areas include using either bottled water (not mineral water), distilled or rain water. Alternatively, smaller volumes of medicated water can be prepared that are changed more frequently as the pink colour appears. The whole process is accelerated by heat and UV light. In one interesting situation, a fancier observed that the pink colour appeared less rapidly in his white drinkers than in his black drinkers (that absorb heat). Using lighter coloured drinkers placed out of the direct sun will further help in affected areas. Concurrent calcium supplementation Doxycycline absorption from the bowel is reduced if the pigeons ingest supplements that contain calcium, concurrently. To improve uptake of the drug, fanciers should therefore remove grit, pink powder and mineral blocks during medication with doxycycline. Water acidification during doxycycline medication Doxycycline absorption from the bowel can be improved if the doxycycline is provided in a weakly-acidic solution. Simultaneously medicating the water with a weak organic acid;, for example, citric acid or acetic acid, will not only enhance the effect of the drug but also make the somewhat bitter doxycycline more pleasant tasting for the birds. Both citric acid (available as a white powder and dosed at the rate of 3gm/6L) and acetic acid (available as apple cider vinegar and dosed at the rate of 5ml/L) are available from most supermarkets. Doxycycline use and the choice of drinker Drinkers made from galvanised metal or unglazed pottery will inactivate the doxycycline in medicated water. Drinkers should be made from stainless steel, glass, plastic, enameled metal or glazed pottery. Mixing other medications with doxycycline It is sometimes an advantage to treat birds simultaneously with several medications. Doxycycline can be safely mixed with all of the canker medications and also toltrazuril (for coccidia). It is best, however, not to combine doxycycline with enrofloxacin ("Baytril"), wormers (for example, moxidectin) and multivitamins. Doxycycline should not be mixed with sulphur-based antibiotics as these directly interfere with the effectiveness of the doxycycline. Also if doxycycline is mixed with probiotics then, like other antibiotics, the doxycycline will interfere with the function of the probiotics before they exert their beneficial effect. Giving doxycycline combined with bacteriocidal antibiotics such as penicillins (for example, amoxycillin) and fluoroquinolones (for example, "Baytril") Doxycycyline is a bacteriostatic antibiotic (eliminates infection by stopping bacteria replicating) while amoxycillin and "Baytril" are bacteriocidal antibiotics (eliminate infection by actually killing the bacteria). Giving bacteriostatic and bacteriocidal antibiotics together does not work well. This is because the bacteriostatic antibiotics stop the bacteria from replicating and it is when the bacteria are replicating that they are vulnerable to the bacteriocidal antibiotics. As an example, most authorities agree that giving doxycycline with "Baytril" reduces the effectiveness of the "Baytril" by 50%. Giving doxycycline with other bacteriostatic antibiotics such as tylosin and spiramycin Like doxycycline, spiramycin and tylosin are both bacteriostatic antibiotics. They do not interfere with the action of each other. In pigeons they are commonly used together when combined infections, (such as those that occur with respiratory infections ) are suspected. Doxycycline compared to other tetracyclines Doxycycline varies from other tetracyclines, such as chlortetracycline (eg “Tricon” ) and oxytetracycline ( eg “Oxymav’), in its therapeutic activity, in a number of ways. The three most important ones are : 1. Longer activity in the blood after a single dose – if a pigeon is dosed in the drinking water with doxycycline, each dose persists in the blood and exerts a therapeutic affect for up to 20 hours. Other tetracyclines only provide effective blood levels for about 4 hours. As pigeons rarely drink every 4 hours and certainly don’t drink through the night this means that doxycycline provides more consistent effective levels in the blood which, in turn, means the birds respond to medication and recover more quickly. 2. Disruption of normal bowel bacteria – doxycycline causes less disruption to the normal bowel bacteria than other tetracyclines. 3. Concurrent calcium supplementation – the effect of doxycycline is less affected by concurrent calcium supplementation. 4. Rapidly absorbed from the bowel. Because of these benefits doxycycline is the preferred tetracycline prescribed by many avian vets. Doxycycline compared to enrofloxacin ("Baytril") "Baytril" is used by some fanciers to treat respiratory infection due to chlamydia. Doxycycline is a more effective treatment. "Baytril" stops the Chlamydia organism replicating itself and leads to a clinical improvement in the birds; that is, they appear to get better, but while treatment with "Baytril" improves the birds, it may not clear the carrier state. Relapses are therefore common. Doxycycline not only stops the Chlamydia organism replicating, but also clears the organism, resulting in a more successful and targeted treatment.
Antibiotic use and abuse Some fanciers are keen to buy medications but are not keen to pay for veterinary advice on how to use them. Inadequate dosing, usually through treating for too short a period of time or at doses lower than those recommended, encourages the development of antibiotic resistant bacteria. Easy to kill bacteria are eliminated,leaving only the hard to kill bacteria which then become the dominant population. These resistant bacteria create real problems for attending veterinarians in the face of a disease outbreak. The problems were illustrated in a recent case. E.coli had been diagnosed as a cause of illness in a flock of Showpen Homers. Testing was done to see what antibiotics would offer the best treatment. In initial testing the strain of E.coli was resistant to 4 of 7 antibiotics and sensitive to 3. Further testing against another 7 antibiotics showed resistance to 5 and partial resistance to a sixth. This E. coli was sensitive only to uncommonly used antibiotics, all of which are expensive. It was resistant to all of the antibiotics commonly used by pigeon fanciers. Inappropriate use of antibiotics in the longer term creates problems for fanciers. Antibiotics should only be used under veterinary guidance.
Fancier taken to court after breaking the law regarding animal welfare. In the last Journal it was reported that the ANRPB has decided to commit funds raised from its proposed 2023 auction of birds donated by fanciers to assist in covering the legal costs of a western Australian fancier. The fancier apparently was not aware of the laws regarding animal welfare and had committed a felony . The case was extensively discussed in my update in this Journal about a year ago . Also the new Victorian Welfare Act and its specific impacts on pigeon fanciers has also been discussed and is available on the VRPB site at www.vrpb.org.au. The core matters covered in this legislation affect not only Victorian fanciers but all Australian pigeon fanciers . In summary, the fancier had an injured bird return to his loft. In good faith he took it to a local vet for treatment which involved surgery. The vet summarised what needed to be done and provided a quote. The fancier decided that he would not proceed and advised that he would take the bird home and operate on it ( essentially “sow it up” ) himself. The vet advised that it was unlawful for the fancier to operate on his own bird and that if he would not give the vet permission to do it then the bird should be humanely “put down”. The fancier did not take this advice and took the bird home. The vet sensing that a felony was going to occur and concerned about the bird’s welfare contacted either the RSPCA or police. The police later arrived at the fancier’s home and confiscated the bird. A subsequent RSPCA examination found that an unlawful act of animal cruelty had been committed and took the fancier to court. At some point during the trial the RSPCA decided not to proceed, explaining that although it was beyond dispute that the law had been broken that they did not view the fancier as an inherently cruel person. It is thought that the aim of the RSPCA was not for the fancier to have a conviction recorded against his name and incur a hefty fine but rather use the case to show this fancier and perhaps the sport generally that this act was, in fact, illegal. The ANRPB reported that the fancier was left with a legal bill of $26,000 for which he was liable. It is common in some circles for fanciers to operate on their own birds. Many fanciers would argue that they can “sow up” a pigeon as well as a vet and that even if the bird can feel pain that it is better for the bird to feel some pain and then be given the opportunity to recover rather than being automatically “put down” . Many would argue that it is simply too expensive to take injured pigeons to the vet. So what can be done? The ANRPB could approach the relevant authorities with a view to having the legislation changed so that it would not be unlawful for fanciers to operate on their birds. Quite simply this is not possible. The chance of any government body ever allowing lay people to operate on conscious vertebrate animals is zero. The vast majority of members of the public would think this totally unreasonable. It is important to remember that the local vet, the police , the RSPCA and the court system all proceeded against this fancier. There would be some authorities which would suggest that the ANRPB being “pleased to support” and agreeing to offer financial assistance to this fancier, who had broken the law, was in some way condoning his behaviour. Essentially in 2023 fanciers will donate birds to an auction to raise funds for the ANRPB. The ANRPB will then give this money to the Western Australian fancier. Obviously this would have to be a once -of act and could not occur for every fancier who broke the law in this way. With the benefit of hindsight it would have been good if the fancier had simply paid the vet’s bill. In the longer term a better solution might be for various local pigeon organisations to contact a local interested veterinarian who would attend to injured pigeons for an agreed discounted rate. Any money raised by a sale etc could perhaps be better used this way. This would mean that fanciers are not put at risk of performing an illegal act, the pigeons themselves would be better dealt with and the sport’s reputation would be enhanced through being seen to actively address animal welfare concerns . My understanding is that some horse clubs already do this. When I was still working as a clinician I used to see a lot of pigeons and fanciers. Fanciers would bring injured race birds to me and I used to repair them for cost price just as a service to the fancy . This worked out at about $50 to $100 per bird usually. It is 9 years since I retired so it would be more now. This would be a cost to clubs and fanciers but it may be much cheaper than the cost of not doing it. Anyway, if nothing else the case has highlighted the need for fanciers to familiarise themselves with their obligations under the Animal Welfare Act. As stated above more information can be found on the VRPB site
Pigeon Pox in Central Victoria Several fanciers in central Victoria have reported outbreaks of pox in their birds. They have also reported large numbers of mosquitoes . It is thought that the mosquitoes have been able to increase in number due to the unusually wet season and associated flooding. The birds can be heard stamping and preening throughout the night. Mosquitoes can transmit pox virus from infected to non infected birds through biting . Control of the mosquitoes not only makes the birds more comfortable but also limits the spread of the disease. A variety of insect control products such as misters and sprays are available through the larger hardware outlets. What I do with my birds , if they are bothered, is to use Permethrin 40mg/ml ( an APC product ) , dilute this 10 mls /L and spray out the loft. First the loft is cleaned. The birds are moved out of the section. Spraying is best done on the morning of a warm day. The loft dries in a few hours and the birds are then let back in. The birds can also be dipped in the same solution . This not only protects them against mosquitoes but kills any lice or mites that they may be carrying. Birds incubating eggs or on chicks less than 3 weeks of age should not be dipped. In the face of an outbreak, vaccinating all birds with pigeon pox vaccine controls the disease.
New drug being trialled to treat Pox A new drug, Imiquimod, is being trialled to treat pigeon pox vesicles. The drug is available as a 5% cream. Originally used to treat viral papilloma's in dogs it stimulants the animals own immune system to release a variety of cytokines and has cytotoxic ( tissue destructive ) effects. The drug is applied topically to the worst pox vesicles of more severely affected birds. The hope is that the lesions will become smaller thus making the bird more comfortable while the disease runs its course.
Pigeon Racing In Ukraine. In 1936 Hitler invaded the Rhineland. In 1938 he invaded the Sudatenland. His justification for these invasions was that these areas were occupied by German speakers and were actually part of Germany. In 1938 he then went on to invade Austria . In 1939 he invaded Poland. Once in power Hitler discriminated against minority groups notably the Jews. When Hitler invaded Poland the west and its allies had had enough and World War 2 began. Fast forward 78 years. In 2014 Putin invaded the Crimea. In 2022 he invaded the Donbas. His justification , amongst other things, for these invasions was that these areas were occupied by Russian speakers and were actually part of Russia. Later in 2022 he invaded deeper into Ukraine. Once in power Putin has discriminated against minority groups , in particular the LGBTQI community. Once again the west and its allies have had enough and the war has escalated. One of the reasons that Putin has given for invading Ukraine is to de-Nazify the country. The irony is that the person and the group behaving most like Nazis are, in fact, Putin and the Russian army. This was an illegal, premeditated invasion. The regime in the region that doesn’t support democracy and supports authoritarianism is , in fact, Putin’s own. Ukraine is an independent country occupied by free living people. Putin has invaded a sovereign nation. Ukraine was not a threat to Russia. Ukraine has a democratically elected government which was going about the business of trying to improve the living standards of their population. Ukraine was a great agricultural nation. In Russia, the people had no say about whether to invade. Many are protesting against it. Many families have both Russian and Ukrainians members. Because of this, a lot of people on both sides of the border do not want to fight a war against each other. The United States and most of Europe are on the side of the Ukrainians. They believe Ukraine should be able to decide its own future. And so it is this situation that Ukrainian pigeon fanciers find themselves. Pigeon racing in Ukraine , as in other eastern European countries was experiencing a surge in popularity with fanciers keen to learn about modern racing methods and acquire birds from the current successful lofts in the West. Some of the heaviest fighting in Ukraine's war with Russia right now is in the eastern Donbas region. That's where Russian troops are slowly gaining ground. And yet, in cities and towns that lie in the path of the onslaught, people are still weeding flowerbeds , street sweepers are still at work, and fanciers still keep their pigeons. It is a joke among some fanciers that like the pigeons they will stay. For most fanciers however the solution will be to monitor the fighting and move their birds to nearby villages if necessary. At times it can be hard enough to care for pigeons in Australia let alone in a war zone. One can only admire these fanciers and hope that Ukraine can win the war soon.
World Congress on Pigeon Health The World Congress on Pigeon Health is in Belgium this year. It is on the last Saturday in November. I have been asked if I would be willing and able to do a presentation. The congress is being organised by the International Pigeon Veterinarians Association (IVPA). For interested fanciers the presentations are likely to be on-line after the event.
Respiratory Infection in Young Pigeons Eye colds and respiratory infections are common in young birds now. The usual cause is an unusual intracellular bacteria called Chlamydia. Chlamydia is in the system of most pigeons all the time. As they mature they gradually develop a natural immunity to it. However if the developing young birds come under any stress this can weaken their ability to fight infection and interfere with their developing natural immunity. This leads to disease symptoms appearing. The usual symptoms are “eye colds”, stained ceres, swollen sinuses and an increased level of sneezing. It can hard to identify the stress. Most commonly this is overcrowding, but diets that are nutritionally deficient or low in protein ( essentially those that do not contain enough peas, beans or vetches ) and poor control of the parasitic diseases are also common causes. It does not seem to matter if a loft is dirty provided it is dry without being dusty. If symptoms are mild, identifying the stress ( if possible ) and removing this together with natural tonics will lift the birds general condition sufficiently that they are able to regain their health. By natural things I don’t mean “hocus pocus” things but rather real supplements with recognised quantifiable benefits. Using things like the Australian Pigeon Company’s (APC) Multivite Plus – a multivitamin / mineral supplement and Multiboost –a multivitamin/amino acid supplement are useful. Putting APC Hemp Seed oil with all the natural nutrients like omega 3 and 6 fatty acids that it contains also helps “boost’ the birds. If problems are too established then antibiotics will need to used. A common antibiotic used to treat Chlamydia is doxycycline (brand name “Doxyvet “). Avoid treating well young birds with antibiotics. If just a few are affected then give Doxyvet 50 mg tablets , half a tablet per bird down the throat once daily. If a significant number are affected then use Doxyvet water soluble powder , one level teaspoon to 2L of water mixed fresh each day. Usually a flock water- based treatment is given if more than 10% of birds are affected or there is evidence of spreading disease with more birds being affected each day. Treatment usually continues for 2 days after the birds are all well. If it takes more than 5 days for them to get better, though, then either something more than the common Chlamydial respiratory infection, is present or the stress is persistent preventing a response to the antibiotics. Further information can be found on both the APC and VRPB websites.
Outbreak of suspect Salmonella in Young Pigeons I had a fancier contact me recently saying that in a batch of about 90 youngsters, all of which had been weaned in beautiful condition, some had become very thin and lost their appetite. One had developed a lump on a joint of its wing. He had noticed that there were mouse dropping in the safflower he was feeding. He was concerned that the birds might have Salmonella, possibly caught from the mouse droppings. When I was a veterinary student we were taught that rodents carried Salmonella in their droppings and were a potential source of infection to pigeons. Since then molecular biology has shown us that this is not the case. The Salmonella that affects pigeons , in fact, only infects pigeons. This is also the case with other species. For example, the Salmonella that affects pigs only affects pigs and the Salmonella that affects cattle only affects cattle etc. Had the young pigeons just been quiet and thin then there would have been many potential causes of their symptoms including viral , parasitic , fungal and other bacterial diseases but the fact that one had a swollen joint made a Salmonella infection more likely. Other things can make joints swell. If they are swollen due to injury the pigeons usually keep eating but these birds were “off their food”. Salmonella can be difficult to diagnose. Often a vet will draw some fluid from a swollen joint for testing or other samples, thought to contain the bacteria, will be collected. Salmonella however is fragile and hard to grow. What this means is that if a test sample is positive then this confirms the disease but a negative test does not necessarily rule it out. How would these birds have caught the bacteria? The usual source of infection is the droppings from a bird that is carrying the infection without showing symptoms or a loft contaminated by the droppings of such a bird. In this case a presumptive diagnosis of Salmonella was made. The normal way of controlling Salmonella is to treat the loft with an appropriate antibiotic eg Sulpha AVS for 10 or more days to clear Salmonella from as many birds as possible and then after stopping treatment for 2 days vaccinate them with the oral vaccine. This is usually done after all the babies are weaned however in this loft in the face of an outbreak this treatment and vaccination was brought forward in order to protect as many birds as possible before they caught the disease ( and potentially had their future racing careers compromised). In addition the birds that had become thin were given 0.4ml Baytril directly down the throat daily. Of these half got better and the others were culled. The full protocol for Salmonella vaccination can be found on the VRPB website at www.vrpb.org.au. Click on “Disease Management” and then “Vaccinations”
VRPB News The VRPB is pleased to welcome as our second VHA representative Andrew Demidowski. Andrew is an experienced fancier with significant IT ability. Andrew joins myself in representing the interests of the VHA on the VRPB. Initial results from the PMV RAT validation process were discussed in the last ( February ) Journal. Funds from the VRPB Veterinary Health Management Fund were not used for this work. The costs involved were covered by 2 local Melbourne fanciers. Work continues . We are now looking for throat swabs from birds that have been confirmed with having PMV. If any fancier has birds that have been confirmed as having PMV it would be appreciated if they could contact me – my number is 0412481239. For now, work on the PMV RAT will continue. Work on the other VRPB projects will proceed as funds and time become available. VRPB Veterinary Health Management Fund As discussed last month , the VRPB is keen to investigate current veterinary issues for the benefit of Australian fanciers. These include : 1/ the high mortality rate and catastrophic losses associated with OLRs 2/ validating PMV vaccination protocols in very young pigeons, aiming to better protect these birds, through a mini vaccination trial 3/ investigate emerging diseases that have the potential to impact bird health and racing generally, notably Herpes virus. 4/ validating PMV RATs in the process making PMV a cheap, easy diagnosis that can be done at the loft by the fancier 5/ To investigate the cause of “fat eye “ and its relationship to Rota virus , if any.
With the VRPB doing all of the veterinary work for no charge, the anticipated costs for this work are $3000, $1500, $4,600, $500 and $2000 respectively. These costs are essentially for unavoidable lab costs. The University of Melbourne has kindly agreed to discount its lab charges to help the VRPB. The VRPB established its Veterinary Health Management Fund so that this work can proceed. The VRPB was pleased to receive a donation of $500 from the ANRPB and hopes that with time the ANRPB may be able to release some funds from their disease fund so that more of this work can proceed. The VRPB veterinary health management fund currently holds $3510 so we have a way to go if this work, that will benefit not only Victorian but all Australian fanciers, is to proceed. The ANRPB currently hold $64,000 that was donated by fanciers to make a Rota vaccine available. After the vaccine became available this money was returned to the ANRPB by the vaccine’s manufacturer, Treidlia Biovet. The ANRPB then decided not to release this money back to the fanciers and clubs that donated it, as the VHA did with money donated to evaluate a PMV vaccine 6 years earlier. The ANRPB decided to keep this money and decided that it was to be used only if a pigeon disease that is new to the world appeared in Australia. As discussed earlier in this magazine this is an extremely unlikely event to occur . I personally find this very frustrating as we have immediate veterinary needs now. As listed earlier in this magazine a pigeon disease new to the world has appeared in Australia just once in the last 100 years and this was Rota virus. In the extremely unlikely event that this occurred again fresh funds could always be raised by something as straightforward as a squeaker sale or through donations in the same way that Australian fanciers have always risen to the occasion in the past. If your organisation would like to contribute to the VRPB Veterinary Health Management Fund please contact VRPB treasurer Eddie Szatkowski. His number is 0418 878 058. All donations will be gratefully received and acknowledged in this magazine. Ask the Vet 1/ What grains form the basis of the Australian Pigeon Company pellets? The grains currently being used as the basis of the APC pellets are wheat, barley , peas and canola seed. However this changes with time depending on the availability, quality and price of the various grains and seeds. It is not that important which grains are used. We know exactly the nutrient levels ie the levels of vitamins, amino acids, minerals, total protein, energy etc of each grain and the pre – mix that is added to the grain blend is adjusted so that the pellets contain everything the pigeons need and in just the right balance. It is quite interesting to watch the nutritionists at work. The computer lists all of the grains and seeds available in Australia and their nutrients. If an adjustment is made to the grain blend - for example if the level of peas is increased by 5% or 10% or if 10% of the barley is replaced with maize then a whole line of adjustments in nutrient levels automatically runs across the computer screen to once again ensure that the composition of the premix is modified so that once again all of the nutrients are at the optimal level. In this way , feeding pellets takes the “hit or miss element” out of fanciers providing a complete diet for their birds. The beautiful youngsters raised on pellets are a testament to the benefits of providing a complete and balanced diet in a nutritious pellet.
2/ I am facing a big problem with my racing pigeons. I have bad return and very late birds from the races. I used some drops called oxygen and the result is like the photo attached. This material came out from the roof slit. I treated with tylodox for a 5 days but still coming out. What shall I do ? The only large structures in the head are the eyes and the brain. The rest of the head , more than half, in fact, is filled by hollow spaces called sinuses . The sinuses are all connected through fine ducts and are lined by a sensitive tissue membrane. The sinuses clean and warm inhaled air before it travels down into the lungs and airsacs. If the membrane lining the airsacs becomes irritated, either through contact with an irritant substance ( such as ammonia fumes from wet droppings or dust), or by an infection, its response is to try and wash these things away by releasing a mucousy fluid. This is what you are seeing in the attached photo. This material will eventually drain out of the sinuses either through the slot ( choana) in the roof of the mouth, down the back of the throat or under the ceres and then out through the nostrils . As the material passes under the ceres it can stain them giving them a dirty brown colour. If the material accumulates in the sinus it can make them bulge out causing soft swellings to form on the head, particularly around the eyes . Swelling around the eyes can interfere with tear drainage making the eyes “wet”. The increased tear production due to irritation and the blockage of the ducts that drain tears from the eye can lead tears to overflow the eyelid margin causing the feathers around the eye to become wet. The associated irritation also makes the birds sneeze. In this way, sneezing, dirty ceres, sinus swelling, water eyes and discharges from the slot and nostrils are all hallmarks of a sinus infection. Antibiotic blends based on doxycycline and tylan will treat most sinus infections but you will need to ensure that any other concurrent health problems are addressed and also that a good diet is provided and a healthy loft environment is maintained to ensure a good response to treatment and prevent relapses. This can be complex. More information can be found on the APC and VRPB websites.
3/ Just after some advice regarding liver cleansing for the race birds. Does it exist and do you stock it? A few guys have recommended it to clean up the birds from meds and toxins etc This is a marketing myth. It is not possible to cleanse the liver with medication. The body does not work this way.
4/ The APC advert in the Journal advises the high performance pellets can be used exclusively as the only food necessary for pigeons. No need for anything else. Is that correct? Do you think I can use APC pellets as an exclusive complete food for race birds? Yes, the APC pellets are a complete food. They can be fed exclusively. My stock birds have essentially eaten nothing else for over 15 years. They rear beautiful babies, have no soft shelled eggs or other calcium/mineral deficiency issues, have no problems with obesity through winter and I have had some hens lay until they are 14 years old. I do not however recommend that the pellets be fed exclusively to race birds. Although the pellets provide all the necessary nutrients they do not work well in this setting because of the fluctuating calorie and protein requirements associated with exercise. I think however that they are good to include as part of a race bird ration as a vitamin/ mineral/ high quality protein booster. I give them to my race birds as about 10% of their mix.
5/ Please see the attached photo . I got this out of a youngsters crop. Does it look like canker? Pigeons don’t have the enzymes in their white blood cells to produce liquid pus, so pus in birds is thick and “cheesy” and looks similar no matter what caused the infection. However coming from a youngsters crop , a canker infection would be the most likely.
6/ We have a good friend in England who has just received this report for his birds health. Can you have a look and see if your thoughts are same. It doesn't make sense to me that he has a high individual bird reading then assessed the flock to be lower what are your thoughts mate if you don't mind. Several thought here 1/ Worm count – we want no worms not “less than 100/ gram” . If there were any worm eggs present I would worm them. 2/ Salmonella – hard to grow, easily overlooked even if it is present, finding it in the bowel of normal birds does not mean much, many birds have Salmonella in their bowel, if present this is a potential problem –if the birds get stressed it can invade the bowel wall and cause an enteritis ( inflammation of the bowel ) or penetrate the bowel and then be carried to a number of sites throughout the body. The question is what do you do if this result was positive – very hard to eradicate even with a long course ( of potentially damaging) antibiotics , even if we did eradicate then reinfection is very likely in race units. Fortunately in Australia we have a very effective oral vaccine. If we got a positive we would follow the recommended vaccination protocol. 3/ Coccidia—this results means that the tested bird had a level higher than the average in the flock ie many birds had a lower level than the individually tested bird which brought the flock average down. Coccidia is not eradicable. And, in fact, very low levels in the bowel are beneficial and maintain immunity. During racing more than one egg per x 100 microscope field is the usual indication for treatment ( usually 2 days Toltravet 3ml /L in the drinker). Levels of coccidia less than this will not affect race form.
7/ I noted in the recent APJ your suggestion that the inherited mitochondrial DNA might be a factor in that your hens performances are on average better than your cocks. This Theory of linking hens performance to Mt DNA has become popular around the world in recent years. Therefore my question is how the mitochondria DNA being such a tiny part of the total genome compared to the 99.9% of the Nuclei DNA could have that much influence over performance. In discussions with friends around the world and my own experience I believe this difference in performance between the sexes in more often to do with the racing system employed and motivation. With the exception of racing cocks on traditional Widowhood all other racing systems such as natural(nesting), round about, total Widowhood, chaos and celibate, tend to favour hens. I suggest the reason is cocks don’t seem to have the same motivation as hens except when driving, feeding a big youngster or raced on Widowhood. In terms of inheritance it seems to me that winning genes are received approximately 50% from the sire and dam. The only time when one parent dominates is when one of the pair was a highly prepotent breeder that produced high quality young with different partners. It may be a cock or a hen, in my 60 years of breeding pigeons I have only ever had two such pigeons, one a cock the other a hen. Similarly I was watching a video on Serge Van Elsacker’s loft the other day where he mentioned he had only ever had one highly prepontent breeder, his cock number 23 from 1984. So my conclusion is the mitochondria DNA plays little if any part in determining which sex will be winners. Thank you for this very thorough and well thought out question. You may well be right. A small amount of DNA can, however, make a huge difference. Apparently about 99% of human DNA is the same as a chimpanzee. Physical differences associated with sex and differing motivation methods will all have their roles to play in determining whether a pigeon can win. Just how much influence mitochondrial DNA has on a pigeons ability to win is not really known. All we can do is make logical suggestions and as the science of molecular biology advances see what can be learned.