Common Poultry Illnesses and Treatments

Below is a list of common poultry illnesses along with symptoms and how to treat them. Please keep in mind, Meyer Hatchery is not a vet and all we can recommend is what is on the label of any given medication. If you have tried the treatments below and are not seeing improvement, please reach out to your local university extension. View our full Medication, Health and Wellness category.

Illness	Symptoms	Prevention and Treatment
Coccidiosis	Lethargy, diarrhea, low appetite, ruffled appearance	Prevent by feeding amprolium-medicated feed.  Treat with Corid in water.
Fowl Pox	Dry form- lesions on comb and wattles Wet form-lesions around mouth, eye discharge	Prevent with vaccination. No treatment, but nutritional support with Rooster Booster B12 or Poultry Cell in water and Vet Rx to alleviate discomfort from eye discharge.
Infectious Bronchitis	Low appetite, decrease in egg production, eye and nasal discharge	Prevent with vaccination and good husbandry. No treatment for the virus itself, but supportive therapy with Vet Rx to alleviate upper respiratory symptoms.
Marek's Disease	Paralysis, internal tumors, weight loss, blindness.	Prevent with vaccination at day 1 before chicks arrive on your property or vaccinate at hatch.  No treatment, birds that do recover are carriers for life.
Newcastle Disease	Upper respiratory symptoms: coughing, sneezing, labored breathing, low egg production	Prevent with vaccination, keep wild birds away from flock (they are carriers). No treatment for the virus, but supportive therapy with Vet Rx in feed, Rooster Booster B12 or Poultry Cell in water.
Wry Neck	Bird’s head is twisted to the side or under the body	Vitamin deficiency: prevent by feeding only freshly milled feed. Treat with Vitamin E supplement in water.
Avian Influenza	Can be asymptomatic or show mild to severe respiratory symptoms, decreased appetite, low egg production, diarrhea, swollen comb, and wattles	Highly contagious viral disease with no known vaccine or treatment. Can be transmitted to humans. Prevent with good husbandry, keeping wild birds away from the flock.
Bumblefoot	Usually results from a small wound to the footpad that then allows a Staph bacterial infection to develop. Limping, lesion on the bottom of the footpad, severe cases may have swelling between toes and/or discharge	Treatment includes cleaning wound with an antiseptic like Vetericyn Wound Care Spray, apply Hen Healer Ointment, and wrap with Vet Wrap. Change bandage daily. For severe cases, consult a veterinarian for antibiotic therapy.