Credits: Biovision-Infonet
NEMATODES (worms)
The main problem with geese in EA is that they are susceptible to gizzard worms which kill them if left untreated. Gizzard worms are a very common parasite and geese should be wormed at least twice a year with 1ml Levamisole 7.5% (consult your pharmacist who will advise you of similar products available.
Never use more than the recommended dose as it is easy to overdose and this may prove fatal. This treatment is not suitable for goslings 10 weeks and younger.
Alternatively, use Flubenvet which is a multipurpose wormer and covers gizzard worm. It is a powder which sticks readily to feed. The correct dose (on the pack) should be administered for 7 days.
It is suitable for goslings and it is adviseable to treat a hen when she starts sitting, as well as the gander.
It has been said that nematodes, or roundworms as they are commonly called, constitute the most important group of helminth parasites of poultry.
With geese, Ascaridia are generally not a problem but various species of Capillaria and Heterakis can cause problems. The most common nematode in geese is Amidostomum anseris.
Symptoms
The usual symptom of worm infection in geese is lethargy. The presence of eggs or worms in either the faeces or in any organ, as revealed upon autopsy, will confirm a worm infection. Amidostomum anseris infects the horny lining of the gizzard and sometimes the proventriculus. It causes dark discoloration of the gizzard and a sloughing off of the lining.
Prevention/Treatment
The first principle in controlling nematode infections is to practice good management.
For geese on range, it is essential to rotate pastures 3-4 times a year and to change the pastures every year so as to break the cycle of nematode re-infection.
For geese in confinement, the litter should be changed regularly and the building washed and disinfected with insecticide after each flock of geese. It is important not to mix young and old geese together, nor to follow old geese with young geese who are much more susceptible to nematode infections.
A number of anthelmintic drugs are available to treat nematode infections. For the control of Amidostomum anseris in geese cambendazole, pyrantel, mebendazole and fenbendazole have each been shown to be effective.
The following nematodes have been isolated from the small intestine of the goose: Echinura uncinata, Epomidiostomum uncinatum, Ascaridia galli, Capillaria anatis, Capillaria bursata, Capillaria annulata, Capillaria anseris, Capillaria caundinflata, Capillaria obsignata, Heterakis dispar, Heterakis gallinarum, Strongyloides avium and Trichostronglus tenuis. The nematode Syngamus trachea has been isolated from the respiratory tract of the goose.
TAPEWORMS
Over 1 400 species of cestodes or tapeworms have been noted in wild and domestic birds and for many an intermediate host has been identified. Control of the intermediate host has proven to be the best way of controlling the tapeworm.
Even though geese have been reported infected with numerous species of tapeworms introduced by wild waterfowl, tapeworms are generally not a problem in goose production.
This is particularly so if geese are denied access to natural waterways where they can ingest an intermediate host (most of the time a fresh water crustacean).
At least four tapeworms have, however, been isolated from the intestinal lumen of geese: Fimbriara fasciolaris, Hymenolepis megalops, Hymenolepis compressa, Hymenolepis lanceolata.
Symptoms
Normally geese infested with tapeworms will not perform well, but isolation and identification of the worm is required for an accurate diagnosis.
Prevention/Treatment
As with many other poultry species, it is not easy for geese to contract a tapeworm infection because of the trend towards confinement poultry production systems.
This trend has resulted in a marked decline in tapeworm infections simply because poultry species are now more separated from the intermediate host. For this reason the first step to control tapeworm infestations in geese is to separate the geese from the intermediate host by confining them or by developing an effective pasture rotation system.
The geese must also be isolated from natural waterways. Using only drugs to expel the worm will have a very short-term effect if the intermediate host is not controlled.
Drugs that have been effective in controlling tapeworms in chickens are butynorate, either on its own or in conjunction with piperazine and phenothiazine under the trade name Wormal.
Experimentally, hexachlorophene and niclosamine have also been shown to be effective.