Todayโs path rounds are on ๐๐ซ๐จ๐จ๐๐๐ซ ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐จ๐ง๐ข๐!
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
๐๐ซ๐จ๐จ๐๐๐ซ ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐จ๐ง๐ข๐ is a fungal infection affecting the respiratory system of many bird species, including wild birds.
๐๐ก๐จ ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
This disease primarily affects chickens and turkeys.
๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ?
Brooder pneumonia is caused by ๐๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ข๐ ๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ฌ, which is a common bread mold. The birds inhale spores of the fungus when they are exposed to contaminated feed, bedding or dust. From there, the spores set up shop in the lungs and ๐๐ข๐ซ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฌ (specialized extensions of the respiratory system in birds).
๐๐ก๐ฒ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฅ๐๐ฆ?
Having their lungs and air sacs full of mold is not very good for birds! These birds often develop signs of ๐๐ฒ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐ง๐๐ (difficulty breathing), fever, and stop eating or drinking. In some cases, the fungal spores may spread into the brain, causing tremors. Eventually, affected birds will succumb to their inability to breathe.
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐๐ข๐๐ ๐ง๐จ๐ฌ๐๐?
Typically this disease is diagnosed based on necropsy of dead birds. The veterinarian will be able to see fungal plaques in the lungs and air sacs, to make a diagnosis of a ๐ฆ๐ฒ๐๐จ๐ญ๐ข๐ (fungal) cause of death. To confirm the diagnosis of Aspergillus specifically, the fungus can be sample and grown on a special type of agar.
๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐๐? ๐๐จ๐ฐ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐ฏ๐๐ง๐ญ๐๐?
Unfortunately, there is no effective treatment for brooder pneumonia. So, poultry farmers prevent the disease by ensuring that the birds are not exposed to contaminated materials, and have adequate ventilation in their barns to ensure the birds have clean, fresh air to breathe.
๐๐ก๐จ๐ญ๐จ๐ฌ
1) An example of a possible source of fungusโฆ moldy corn!
2) Lungs with Aspergillus infection.
3-4) Examples of air sacs covered in mold! Kinda looks like when youโve left a loaf of bread sitting on your counter for too longโฆ
5) What a pathologist sees under the microscope! They fungus looks kinda pretty 
๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ๐๐๐ฌ
Kromm M. Aspergillosis in poultry. Merck Veterinary Manual 2020.
Photos 1-4 ยฉ Noahโs Arkive contributors Leighton, Saunders, Davis and Sanders, Schrader licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photo 5 ยฉ University of Calgary Diagnostic Services Unit.
