Microbial contaminants

Potential avian pathogens include bacteria, protozoa, fungi and viruses. The sensitivity of thesevarious microbial contaminants to chemicals and treatments is extremely varied. Sensitivity isfurther affected by the growth stage of the organism and whether or not it is protected by organicmaterial. Agents such as cryptosporidia are particularly resistant to most water sanitisers, IBD virusis resistant to inactivation by many sanitisers, while the Enterobacteriaceae (including E. coli andsalmonellae) are moderately sensitive to most. Fortunately for the poultry industry, AI virus as anenveloped virus is relatively sensitive to the majority of sanitisers. Poor quality water of high salinityand pH’s divergent from neutral are by themselves capable of limiting the persistence of AI virus.

In contrast, EDS is caused by an adenovirus which is more stable than AI virus, able to remainviable even in a pH range of 3 to 10. Sporadic outbreaks of EDS can be associated with inadequatelysanitised surface water to which wild waterfowl have had access.