Pigeon diseases
49 diseases with their symptoms, how they spread, how to tell them apart, and prevention.
Telling them apart
- Twisted neck: paramyxovirus vs neurological salmonella vs B1 deficiency - watery droppings and rapid spread favor paramyxovirus.
- Yellow plaques in the crop: canker (they come off, with a foul smell) vs wet pox vs herpes vs vitamin A deficiency.
- Swollen wing joint: salmonella first until proven otherwise.
- Young bird disease: circo + adeno + E. coli - rule out canker, coccidia and salmonella.
See also: pigeon vaccination schedule
Viral
- Paramyxovirus (pigeon Newcastle disease)Green/bluish watery diarrhea and increased thirst (droppings are water around a spot)
- Pigeon poxCutaneous (dry): warts/scabs around the eyes, beak, legs and bare areas
- Adenovirus type 1 (classical)Vomiting/regurgitation and watery diarrhea in young birds (under a year)
- Adenovirus type 2 (necrotizing hepatitis)Sudden death at any age
- Circovirus (pigeon circovirus)Immunosuppression in squabs and young birds -> other infections appear (canker, adeno, sal
- Young Bird Sickness syndrome (YBS)Regurgitation, crop full of water, green/yellow diarrhea, lethargy, weight loss, refusal t
- Herpes (pigeon herpesvirus)Inflammation of the crop and larynx with small white/yellow membranes
- Pigeon rotavirusSudden vomiting and diarrhea with high mortality in a short time
- Avian influenzaPigeons are usually relatively resistant and rarely show symptoms
Bacterial
- Salmonella (paratyphoid)Intestinal: sticky green diarrhea
- Ornithosis (chlamydia)Conjunctivitis and watery eye (often one eye)
- MycoplasmaSnoring/noise when breathing, nasal discharge, swelling around the eyes
- Respiratory complex (ornithosis complex)Sneezing, discharge, swollen eyes, breathing noise, soiled nasal wattles (cere)
- Single-eye cold (one-eyed cold)One watery, swollen eye and wet feathers around it
- E. coliDiarrhea, lethargy, squab deaths, navel inflammation (omphalitis) at hatching
- Streptococcus (Streptococcus gallolyticus)Limping, a bird unable to fly, swelling of the breast muscles, sudden death
- Pasteurella (cat bite)Death within 24-48 hours after a scratch/bite from a cat or rat
- Avian tuberculosisGradual wasting despite eating, diarrhea, limping, swellings
Protozoal
- Canker (trichomoniasis)Yellow nodules/plaques in the mouth, crop and palate (cheesy appearance)
- CoccidiaGreen watery diarrhea sometimes with blood, wasting, ruffled feathers
- Hexamita (spironucleosis)Watery and foamy diarrhea in young birds, wasting, thirst
- Pigeon malaria (Haemoproteus)Usually mild or without symptoms
Internal parasites
- Roundworms (Ascaris)Wasting and loss of performance, diarrhea, dull feathers
- Hairworms (Capillaria)Persistent diarrhea, wasting, anemia, sometimes regurgitation
- TapewormsWasting, white worm segments in the droppings
- Stomach worm (Ornithostrongylus)Green diarrhea, lethargy, death in heavy infections
Parasitic
- Red mite (red tick)Anemia (pale skin and flesh), weak or dead squabs in the nest
- Feather and skin mitesFeather erosion, broken feathers
- Pigeon fly (hippoboscid/flying tick)A flattened fly that runs quickly among the feathers
- Pigeon tickAnemia, weakness, squab deaths
Digestive (non-infectious)
- Sour/slow cropCrop full of fluid with a sour smell
- Crop impactionA hard, full crop that does not empty
- Crop burn (hand feeding)Redness, then a hole/fistula in the crop skin after days
Fungal
- Candida (crop yeast infection)Slow-emptying crop with a sour smell
- Aspergillus (lung fungus)Difficulty breathing, open mouth, weight loss, voice change
Environmental
- Heat stress (heat stroke)Panting with an open beak, wings held away from the body, lethargy, death
- Dehydration and exhaustion after the raceWasting, sunken eyes, dry skin
Nutritional
- Rickets (calcium and vitamin D3 deficiency)Soft bones, limping, thin eggshells, deformed squabs
- Vitamin A deficiencyWhite nodules in the mouth and crop (confused with canker and pox), weak immunity, breathi
Toxic
- Mycotoxins in feedWeakness, diarrhea, liver affected, weak immunity and fertility
- Lead/metal poisoningVomiting, green diarrhea, neurological symptoms
Breeder health
- Pigeon breeder's lung (human allergy)In humans: cough, shortness of breath, fever after exposure, pulmonary fibrosis with chron
- Pigeon-dropping fungi in humans (Cryptococcus/Histoplasma)In humans (especially the immunocompromised): pulmonary/meningeal infection