Colibacilosis, a scary and economically devastating disease

Very good information on coli bacillosis for all involved in poultry production. Please continue the good work. Look forward to more information. It is true that contamination thru water feed litter air and in contact objects and people working on the premises cause this problem. These causes need to be identified and addressed at the management level. Treatment may or may not work, is expensive and may have to be repeated several times. Surviving birds may become carrier and may become culls or have poor performance
Biosecurity at all levels remains an effective tool.

E.coli is one bacteria is first to acquires resistance against antibiotics and spread to other cohabitant bacterial species. This makes treatment more difficult and expensive. I have tried using bacteriophages against E.coli and Salmonella with great success. Phages are very specific, effective, non toxic and work on resistant bacteria as well. These can also be used along with antibiotics to control E.coli. they donot harm other normal flora present unlike antibiotics which will kill healthy microflora.

Teresa
Yes phages are legally permitted to use in our country.
Dr M S Swami

E.Coli bacteria is omnipresent. it is there everywhere.
people who follow reasonable biosecurity and vaccination program for the common viral diseases know that e.coli lives with us unnoticed.
there is less scope for the presence of e.coli in borewell water drawn from 200ft and deeper, pumped to a good height and dispensed through nipple drinkers without outside contamination.
most of the feed now is steamed and dispensed through bulk tankers and mechanical feeding systems which goes to birds untouched.
sudden climate changes vaccination stress and attack of viral diseases make the bird weak and E.coli precipitates and takes an upper hand.
Farm planning and management systems should take care of sudden climate changes and proper vaccination programs besides reasonable biosecurity policies like all in all-out housing & watching the movement of men and material should keep this omnipresent GOD to be present but at its place.

A very good account on colibacillosis covering all the angles. Yes, ascending infection is a very high possibility especially in breeders under artificial insemination. In India, 95% of the breeding flocks are in cages under insemination. the hen is insemination on every 4th day and the instruments are used daily. if they are not sterilized and handled properly there is a risk of ascending infection for sure. many times this is manifested as egg yolk peritonitis.

Where drugs are abused resistant pathogenic strains emerge. E. Coli is opportunistic pathogens. They become pathogenic when subjected to a lot of predisposing factors that already enumerated. The amino penicillins like ampicillin and amoxicillin are good threat to the pathogens. Areas where m. gallisepticum are recurrent based on poor parental and grand parental raising, makes the disease to be prevalent with disease complexed syndromes. Unfortunately, most of the revised pathogenic strains based on physical and chemical induced mutation subsists in poor sanitary drinking waters. Such strains are very difficult to treat unless with alternate medications. In good discuss biosecurity is the keyword especially in drinking water and feeds. Developing countries are worst hit by this disease because of less advanced poultry technology.