Most of the fanciers consider this as a result of too high doses of medication, or even normal dosages of anti-worm medication. But again, why the nest brother and other birds are fine? It might be a genetic problem or the bird was more sensitive to treatments than the others.

DESCRIPTION:
Salmonella are gram negative bacteria that infect pigeons, other birds and even animals or humans. There are about 2000 species. Free-ranging birds can be sub-clinical carriers and so they simply are a reservoir of Salmonella. It is known that also mice and rats (and even flies) may be vectors of Salmonella. Various Salmonella species vary with geographic location and the types of food consumed. Imported birds may serve to introduce different Salmonella species to the local birds and  can cause a devastating outbreak. This is what experts say when they refer to Salmonella in general, but if we consider our pigeons and think about the one loft races or other situations when many pigeons from different lofts are put together, we understand that this doesn’t really apply to pigeons, maybe they are pretty immune to it.

TRANSMISSION:
Transmission is done primarily through the air. The bacteria is in the nasal and or ocular secretions, fecal material, and feather dust. Salmonella outside the body dries as a dusty substance. This dust contaminates the air that can be inhaled by another bird. Susceptibility and the amount of contamination determine whether or not the new bird becomes infected. Contaminated feed and water can infect the bird too. Transmission of the bacteria to an egg can occur. The embryo may die if bacteria levels become too high. I guess this is why we sometimes find those “black” eggs with a dead chick inside. Youngsters fading away, going light, not growing like they should ca be signs of an infection with Salmonella, Paratyphus.

SYMPTOMS:

There are several types:

- the “hiden” LATENT type: usually found in adults that apparently are healthy. There’s no desire to fly, they might have reproduction problems and the chicks in the nest get sick and might die. These pigeons are vectors that can infect the other birds any time.

- the INTESTINAL type: excessive thirst, diarrhea, depression which all weaken the bird – it becomes light weight, has watery droppings which sometimes are green and have a bad smell.

- the ARTICULAR type: is the most common type in a chronic disease. The articulations of the wings or legs are affected, being swollen and hurt when you touch them. Sometimes the bird can’t fly, and the wings even touch the floor hanging.

- the CEREBRAL type: this is pretty rare, and appears when the infection gets to the brain or when the internal ear is affected – the bird is disoriented and its movement mimics a Paramyxovirus infection sometimes.

- the MIXED type: it has a mix of the symptoms described above.

HOW TO PREVENT Salmonella infections:
Proper hygiene is the best way to keep Salmonella away from the loft. Flies and mice or rats should also be kept away. Don’t overcrowd! The disease has a greater chance of spreading in overcrowded conditions and stale air environments. Overcrowding also lowers immunity by stressing the birds.

TREATMENT:
Treatment of salmonella infections should be based on laboratory tests so that the appropriate antibiotic can be administered. You collect some droppings samples from the birds for several days and send them to a laboratory where, after a bacteriologic culture and an antibiogram, the right antibiotic will be prescribed. Make sure the pigeons didn’t receive antibiotics before the test for several weeks…or the test might be useless.

Enrofloxacin / Baytril is usually prescribed for treating Salmonella, but only the lab test will confirm what exactly you need for your pigeons. A treatment with thrimetoprim (1 gr / 4 liters of water) takes a long time… if the weather is cold, the treatment should last 2 weeks, because the birds drink less water. DO NOT forget to give probiotics to the pigeons after the treatment because the antibiotics destroy ALL the bacteria in the intestines including beneficial bacteria. I’m amazed to see that often probiotics are forgotten, although they are extremely important in the fight against salmonella and for the well-being of the bird.

Vaccines can be used to prevent the disease. Before you vaccinate against Salmonella you must be sure that there is no Salmonella infection in the loft and this can be checked only by a lab test. If you vaccinate pigeons that already have Salmonella, you can have some serious vaccination reactions and many pigeons die because of this. Should I use vaccines for Salmonella? Well, some are good, some are no effective at all.

I also have pigeon lung and I created this page for all the fanciers with this allergy to exchange tips and ideas. Let’s help each other to easily manage pigeon lung and keep our pigeons and beloved hobby.

Below is a list of resources about PFL. I will update this list every time I find interesting and useful information. Please contribute with your knowledge.

LOFT PROJECTS

Loft project #1

This is the first anti-dust loft project I designed. What do you think about it? It sucks, doesn’t it? :)
What I tried was to create a dust free environment – the dust will be carried away through the floor, lateral walls and even under the roof. I would have a solid ground under the loft and would wash away all the droppings felt to the ground. The loft’s floor would be 2 or more meters far from the ground. I would use a removable ladder to access the loft and this would also prevent cats and other predators from entering the loft.

Click on the picture to enlarge it:

Loft project #2

I think this second model isn’t so good at keeping the loft environment dust free… I was trying to find a way to make the loft look nice from outside, and not be surrounded by feathers and droppings.

Click on the picture to enlarge it:

Of course, there are other options like the rabbit hutch lofts described on the pigeon-lung.co.uk website.

RESPIRATORY PROTECTION MASKS

The pigeon bloom, which is the main source of inhaled pigeon protein, is an extremely small dust particle (<5 microns). The mask must filter out particles down to 5 microns, the size of pigeon dust; bloom, feather particles and droppings.

Resources:
I personally use www.aircap2.com : the great thing about it is that it filters the air and also covers your hair (the hair would collect a lot of dust).

WEARABLE PERSONAL AIR PURIFIERS

- Minimate
- Ion Wind Personal Air Purifier
- Airogard

MANGOSTEEN JUICE
Mangosteen is a tropical fruit with natural anti-inflammatory properties, and I found articles claiming that it is good for pigeon lung. The articles are by Rick Tozier, btw.

AIR FILTRATION SYSTEMS INSTALLED IN THE LOFT

Thanks to Mr. Larry Lucas, I found a device that seems to be the perfect solution for all of us who have pigeon lung. The great thing about it is that it filters 98-99% of all particles, five microns in size and 85% of particles one micron in size!

I think that my loft project above + this air filter will be the perfect dust killer.

You can read more about it here. Does anybody use this?

SYMPTOMS WORSE IN WINTER, LESS OR ABSENT IN SUMMER

I noticed that several fanciers with pigeon lung say that their symptoms are worse during cold months and they feel better or even don’t have symptoms during summer. Exactly the same happens for me! This really is interesting and must be studied more, maybe we find an useful connection.

FAT IN THE DIET

This is a very interesting thing I remember I saw online somewhere. Jim Jenner was saying that a fancier told him that when he had a big change in his diet, starting a “no fat” diet, his allergies got very bad and he had to give up his birds. It seems like saturated fat is a critical part of the body function, especially for the surface of the lungs. He went back to a more normal diet, whole milk, butter, etc. and was able to keep pigeons again. Research book: “Eat Fat Lose Fat”.

I was also found another VERY INTERESTING information, somehow related to the above: fanciers with PFL that started to take tablets for cholesterol (Statins) reported that they have seen great improvement in their PFL symptoms.

Maybe somebody with a medical background can connect these and come to a conclusion?!

WHAT KIND OF SYMPTOMS DO YOU HAVE

How does the pigeon lung allergy affect you? What problems do you experience?

The biggest problems I have are when I am away from my pigeons for more than 2 weeks, and then I get back. When I return, I always get high fever and chills that night. This may happen the next day again if I am exposed to the pigeon dust, but then, I don’t get anymore fever or chills. I rarely get a tight chest. As my body gets used to the dust again, I only have a productive cough every morning, and if I continue to be exposed for months on a daily basis, even the cough eventually stops or becomes mild.

I think this is the “acute intermittent non-progressive” version of the allergy, as they describe it in this article. I must say that these happen when I do not use any kind of respiratory mask. After the first fever days are gone, I can even clean the loft myself (no mask) without having any problems, although I am sure this isn’t really smart.

However, I am not going to play hide-and-seek with my lungs on a long term. I intend to get used to wearing a mask and also build a dust free loft.

I am sad that the medical world does too little for this. I rarely see new info or articles about pigeon lung. All they know is: get rid of pigeons. Easy to say, hard to do.

Please share your thoughts and tips below. Thank you!

Roy Fuller: “There is a tendency to regard all micro organisms as harmful; to equate bacteria with germs. Nothing could be further from the truth. The number of non pathogenic species far exceeds the number of pathogenic species and many of the none pathogens are infact useful, even essential for the continued existence of life on earth. One example of a beneficial group of micro organisms are those which inhabit the gastrointestinal tract of animals.

Animals with a deficient flora can have their resistance restored by administration of a faecal suspension from healthy adult animals of the same species. A good example of this effect is the faecal dosing of day old chickens hatched into a clean environment without the opportunity to acquire their protective flora from the mother hen. These chicks are more susceptible to colonisation with Salmonellae but after dosing with a faecal suspension from an adult chicken they become resistant.”

PREBIOTICS: specific substances that stimulate the growth of desirable bacteria already present in the gastrointestinal tract.

PROBIOTICS FACTS:

pro-bios = for life

Beneficial bacteria produce substances toxic to salmonella.

Before we use the probiotics for birds, we must make sure the water IS NOT chlorinated. We can do this by boiling it or by letting it in a large open pot for at least 24 hours.

The old birds introduce small amounts of trichomonads to the nestlings while feeding them, and so they develop immunity.

Signs of canker:

• Repeated swallowing movements can be a sign of canker. I usually notice this after the birds land on the loft, after the training
• yellow stuff in the throat and beak of the bird
• ruffled plumage
• apathy of the bird
• weight loss and weakness
• increased water intake – this also produces the so called “wet nests” when the parents having canker pump a lot of water in the nestlings
• the birds are reluctant to fly

Trichomonas, being a flagellate, can propel itself in fluids. So, usually “clean” pigeons get it very easy during the transport when hundreds of pigeons drink from the same place.

The disease has several forms:

Pharyngeal Form is the most common. Fanciers will usually notice yellow stuff in the throat of the bird. In severe cases, the yellow stuff can inhibit feeding and even breathing.

Umbilical canker passes from the infected nest box into the body of the young bird still in the nest.

Organ Form: In the most severe cases, canker will attack internal organs. It is often found in the liver. Some signs might be apathy, ruffled plumage and diarrhea. Most of these birds die of liver failure.

Ronidazole is the most used drug in treating the canker in pigeons. Lately, dimetridazole and metronidazole were removed from the market being risky for health.