Quail breeding has recently become a very popular activity. Ease of maintenance, tasty meat and eggs - all these are the advantages of breeding birds. However, severe overcrowding can cause various infectious diseases. What to do if a quail’s eyes are swollen, why this can happen, how to solve the problem - this is what we’re talking about today.
Causes of conjunctivitis in quails
Eye problems in birds can arise due to errors in keeping the livestock, improper feeding of quails, or be of an infectious nature.The disease is contagious, it must be treated immediately after detection, otherwise all birds will suffer, especially if it is of a viral or bacterial nature.
A poorly cleaned cage, residues of droppings and food that stick to the paws or feathers and then get into the eyes are common causes of inflammation. Eye problems in dirty, untidy cages are caused by ammonia fumes released from urine and fresh bird droppings. Keeping in a cold, damp room also causes conjunctivitis.
Quails are active and nimble birds. Mechanical injury to the eye, the ingress of dust or debris into it leads to inflammation. The source of infection with infectious conjunctivitis can be the droppings of sick individuals or contaminated low-quality food. Young animals under 2 months of age most often suffer from infections.
Vitamin A deficiency is another cause of conjunctivitis. A systematic lack of retinol in the diet of birds causes inflammation of the eyes and blindness of quails.
Symptoms of the disease
They appear soon after infection and are visible to the naked eye. Characteristics of conjunctivitis:
- purulent or mucous discharge from one or both eyes of the bird;
- feathers stuck together around the eyes;
- swelling of the eyelids
Quails suffering from conjunctivitis become less mobile and lose their appetite. If these signs are detected, sick birds are isolated from the rest of the population.
Diagnostic rules
Since eye inflammation can be a symptom of dangerous infections, a sick bird must be diagnosed by a doctor.
Conjunctivitis is diagnosed based on the clinical manifestations of the disease; in difficult cases, laboratory tests are prescribed, followed by a course of antibiotics.
How to treat swollen eyes in a bird
The cage with the sick quail is placed in a dry, clean, warm and well-ventilated room. It needs to be slightly shaded so that the bright light does not irritate the bird. She needs vitamin A (they use the oil form of the drug), the dosage is determined by the veterinarian. The eyes are washed with a solution of furatsilin (½ tablet per 100 milliliters of water) or a solution of boric acid (2 grams of the drug per 120 milliliters of water). The feathers around the quail's eyes are also treated with an antibacterial agent.
After rinsing, tetracycline eye ointment is placed behind the eyelid or antibiotic eye drops are instilled in a pediatric dosage. The procedure is carried out 2 times a day, morning and evening. After the symptoms of the disease have completely disappeared, treatment is continued for another 3 days for the bird to fully recover. It is necessary to balance the diet of birds, to avoid a lack of vitamins and microelements.
Prevention
To prevent quails from getting sick, it is necessary to keep the cages clean, remove droppings, and change the bedding. To prepare the grain mixture, high-quality grain without traces of mold is used. There should be a container with shell rock in the cage; quails need salt. Overcrowding of birds should not be allowed.
Birds should always have fresh water, quails are given chalk, finely ground eggshells, grated vegetables (carrots, zucchini), feed yeast, bone meal. Vegetables should be washed and grated. They should not be rotten or frozen.
Drinkers, feeders and trays under cages should be systematically washed with hot water with the addition of a 2% soda solution. The room where the birds are kept should not be damp or cold, it should be well ventilated. Weaker birds should be kept separately from stronger individuals until the weakened quails become stronger, in order to prevent fights. When buying new quails, they are kept in quarantine for several days, only after that they are combined with the rest of the birds.
Good living conditions and a balanced diet, as well as systematic examinations by a veterinarian, will allow you to raise healthy livestock and obtain high-quality products. Quails are easy to care for and have naturally strong immunity, so even novice poultry farmers can quickly gain experience and quickly increase the number of birds in their yard.
