EXTERNAL AND

INTERNAL
PARASITES OF
POULTRY

Eva Wallner-Pendleton, DVM MS ACPV

Animal Diagnostic Laboratory-PADLS
Pennsylvania State University
 External Parasites Have
Always Been Common But
Incidence of serious infestations on
the rise.
Breeders
Floor layers, organic birds with
outside access.
Exposure to wild birds such as
starlings and house sparrows
 Most Common External
Parasites
Northern Fowl Mite
Ornithinyssus sylviarum (black mite)
Poultry Lice
Red Roost Mite (more in
backyard birds)
Other pests more common
in the Southern US.
Chiggers
Fleas
Bed bugs
Stick-tight fleas
Fire ants
 Northern Fowl Mite Life Cycle
Life cycle can be completed in 1 week
and spent mostly on the host.
Spread by contact with other birds:
pigeons, starlings, house sparrows,
their nestlings, new breeder pullets
equipment (egg racks, trucks, etc.)
and people
They can survive 3 to 4 weeks off host
without feeding.
Emptying a house no guarantee
you will be mite-free
Northern Fowl Mite Impact
Most severe cases often coincide with
peak production.
Can reduce egg production by 10-15%!!
Can reduce egg weights by 2.2%
Can reduce weight gain and feed
intake.
In male breeders can reduce semen
production and flock fertility declines
Birds can develop anemia
Birds often develop dermatitis with
secondary staph infections
Worker complaints!!
Birds should be checked for mites at least
twice a month to catch early infestations.

Look for birds with

dirty vents.
Mites (and lice) more
common in sickly/cull
birds initially (lower
immune system)
In severe cases, the
mites are everywhere.
 Case report from ADL
Birds submitted to
lab because they:
Dropped 10%
production
Mortality beginning
to go up.
Birds losing weight.
A percentage of
birds looked dirty
and anemic.
Feathers dirty from mite excrement, crusty
staph dermatitis, makes treatment
difficult
Prevention and treatment
Keep wild birds out, Males may need
especially their nests. sprayed or dipped as
House treatment they do not reliable
inbetween flocks as use the dust boxes.
mites can live a time Treat underneath egg
without feeding. belts, hiding places.
Treatments may need
to be repeated as new
parasite eggs hatch.
Check newly delivered
pullets.
Products (Approvals change so double-
check before use)
Check with organic supplier
Yellow Jacket
wettable sulfur
For placement in the
boxes, litter, can be
used to dust birds
Pyrethrins
Carbaryl (Sevin)
Diatomaceous earth
Can be placed in litter,
nest boxes
Poultry Shield FG
Feed at 3-4 lbs/ton for 3
weeks
Also reduces ammonia
production in a house
Tetrachlorvinphos
(Rabon)
organophosphate.
Can be sprayed on
birds.
Cage-free hens and pullets: Using
elemental sulfur
Use one, 2x 4 x 6 to 2x 8 x 6 dust box
per 1000 hens
Wooden or cardboard
Add 25 to 50 lbs. Yellow Jacket WP per box
Add another 25 lbs. to each box after 3 days
if depleted
Repeat treatment as needed
Add 3 - 4 lbs. Poultry Shield FG per ton of
feed continuously to aid in control of mites
Dust boxes in cage-free
birds
Caged Layers

Add 3 to 4 lbs. of Poultry Shield FG per ton

feed continuously through peak.
Add intermittently after that according to
monitoring findings.
Elector PSP (newly approved
for mites)
Spinosad (fermentation product of
Saccharopolyspora (a type of bacteria).
Single use controls all stages of mites.
Also kills flies, beetles, agricultural insect
pests.
Can be used directly on laying hens and to
spray buildings.
Application of Elector PSP

Dilute 3 fl. oz of product in 10 gallons of

water
1 gallon coarse spray per 100 birds directed
at the vent.
Is not labled as organic.
Important to rotate products. Continuous
use may result in insect resistance.
 Other External Parasites
Chicken or red mite
-A grey to red mite that
usually feeds on bird at
night, then hides during the
day to lay eggs and
completes life cycle in 5
days.
-Can survive up to 8 months
without feeding.
-Spreads diseases, causes
anemia, egg production
drops, weight loss
-Need to thoroughly treat
environment as well as bird
to get under control.
Poultry Lice (Menacanthus stramineus)
or chewing louse

Lice live entire life cycle on host. Survive

perhaps 1 week off host. Live on skin dander,
feather debris.
Species-specific
True insects, yellow straw-colored
Complete life cycle in 3-5 weeks
Highly irritating to the birds. Will affect egg
production and cause weight loss in severe
cases.
Seen in mostly birds with outside access.
Treatment of lice requires
spraying of entire bird.
Internal Parasites of Poultry
Direct lifecycle
Fecal-oral transmission, infected bird sheds eggs in
stool, other bird picks it up.
Example: Ascarids
Indirect lifecycle
Bird sheds parasite egg. Egg is picked up by
intermediate host. Next bird consumes
intermediate host, becomes infected.
Example: Chicken tapeworms
Combination lifecycle
Parasite can be spread by either methods.
Cecal worm, Capillaria, tracheal worms
Prepatent period:
The time from ingestion of the worm egg to seeing
worm eggs passed in the droppings
Roundworms (ascaridia galli)
Ascarids
Direct life cycle, prepatent ~ 5 weeks
Eggs hatch in proventriculus or duodenum
3 larval stages penetrate tissues, cause gut
and liver damage.
Heavy loads cause weight depression.
Turkeys much more susceptible than
chickens.
Chickens fairly resistant to severe disease
after 3 months of age.
Intestinal blockage, can carry reoviruses.
Migrate into oviduct, penetrate the egg!!
Roundworms may become embedded
inside the egg
ASCARID OVA
The younger the bird when infected, the more
damage ascarids (5 week old broilers)
Severe Ascarid infections

Intestinal blockage
Enteritis due to heavy
larval migration
Can be seen on
scrapings
Liver spots: Can be a
problem in processed
birds.
Capillaria spp. (thread worms)

Seen in layers, broiler breeders, game

birds, guinea fowl and quail.
One form infects the oral cavity, esophagus
and crop.
Other forms infect primarily the small and
large intestines.
Direct life cycle, can also be carried by
earth worms.
Life cycle ~ 21 days from ingestion.
Symptoms of moderate to heavy
infection

Weight loss
Huddling
Drooling
Stunting
Reduced egg
production
Capillaria sp. Infection (thread
worm, very tiny!!!)

Thickened esophagus and crop wall. Must

differentiate from crop mycosis.
Capillaria invading upper
gastrointestinal tract tissues
Ova shape very characteristic
Heterakis gallinarum (cecal
worm)
Perhaps the most common worm of floor
chickens.
Can also infect turkeys, grouse, guinea
fowl, partridges, quail, pheasants, ducks
and geese.
Generally not very pathogenic.
Heterakis worms or ova can harbor
Blackhead
Direct life cycle, but earthworms can also
carry the cecal worm eggs.
Heterakis gallinarum (the
cecal worm)

Granulomas in walls of ceca

Ceca may become very gassy,
dilated or nodular.
Control (Not Elimination) of
Nematodes (Roundworms) in Layers
Organic Birds
Diatomaceous earth (OMRI Certified Organic
additive)
Moisture control, pasture rotation, clean-out
Non-organic pullets or layers
Piperazine (pullets); Wazine
Ascarids only, drinking water
Hygromycin B-three day withdrawal prior to
slaughter
8-12 grams/ton
Fenbendazole approved in turkey feed.
 Chicken Tapeworms

Attach to small
intestine.
Flattened, ribbon-
shaped segmented
worms (proglottids)
Each proglottid
contains male and
female reproductive
organs
No digestive tract,
absorbs nutrients from
the host.
Tapeworm life cycle
All tapeworms have
intermediate hosts
Poultry become infected by
swallowing snails, slugs,
beetles, flies that contain the
tapeworm eggs.
The eggs develop into a cyst
(cysticercoid) in the
intermediate host (infective for
months).
When the intermediate host is
ingested by the chicken, it
attaches to the intestinal wall
and matures in about 3 weeks.
Three main pathogenic species
in chickens:
Raillietina cesticillus (host is the darkling beetle)
Weight loss common. Adult birds less
susceptible.
Choanotanenia infundibulum (house fly, beetle)
Davainea proglottina (slugs, snails)
Poorly drained pastures.
All may have possible relationship to Focal
Necrotic Duodenitis (FDN) .
No effective legal treatments in layers. Must
reduce intermediate hosts.
FDN and tapeworms often found
together portal of entry??
 Diagnosis of Worm Infections
Many can be seen on
necropsy
Adult ascarids, heavy
cecal worm
infestations,
tapeworms
Larvae require
scrapings and direct
microscopic
examination.
Fecal flotation will
pick up worm eggs and
coccidia.
Sensitivity 100
eggs/gram.
Acknowledgements
Dr. Eric Gingerich for sharing slides on mite
control.