Chicken rearing is given importance as a way to bring prosperity to village life, and for many it is a main source of income. But farmers often face losses when their chickens fall sick, especially when white diarrhoea breaks out. Here is how the disease can be prevented.

White diarrhoea mainly affects chicks, and most of the affected chicks die. It later spreads among the hens, and the embryos in infected eggs die. The birds' droppings turn completely white, and they feel great pain when passing them. Birds can also go blind or lame, and the rear of hens and chicks becomes sticky.

Medicine for the disease is available at any veterinary shop, and hens and chicks must be given it according to the dose. If you are treating 5 hens or 20 chicks, dissolve 2 pinches of the medicine in 1 cup of water. Using a syringe, give 2 drops each to sick chicks and 5 drops each to hens for 3 days in a row.

You can also give the medicine dissolved in water. In this method, dissolve about 4 pinches of the medicine in 1 bowl of water and place it in the house of 40 chicks or 10 hens. Keep the medicated water in the container for 2 days straight. Affected chicks or hens should also be made to drink this medicated water.

To prevent the disease, it is essential to keep the chicken house and its surroundings clean. The disease can also be prevented by feeding hens and chicks a minimal amount of tetracycline powder, Lixen powder or Furasol powder.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.