Balantidium Coli-induced grey diarrhoea is a common disease in weaned and pork, which can have serious consequences if not detected and treated promptly.
In order for pig farming to achieve high economic profits and quick capital recovery, the issue of pig health care is important. To achieve that effect, one of the diseases that needs attention is gray diarrhea in pigs, directly attacking the digestive system of pigs, causing the growth rate of pigs to slow down compared to normal pigs, affecting economic efficiency.
I. DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS
– The disease is caused by Balantidium coli (ciliate), they are a type of intestinal single-celled parasite. They cause abdominal pain, diarrhea in pigs and they can also cause disease in humans and mammals.
– The disease often develops in places with poor environmental sanitation conditions. The pathogen can be found in the large intestine of sick pigs, stunted pigs, and livestock waste.
– The disease is common in weaned pigs and swine (4-12 weeks old), can cause intestinal perforation and gastrointestinal bleeding.
Image of Balantidium coli
– B.coli ciliates live mainly in the cecum and are occasionally found in the terminal ileum. They feed on bacteria, undigested starches and sometimes even individuals of the same species.
II. LIFE CYCLE OF BALANTIDIUM COLI
– B.coli is infected through food and drink (infected from food, drinking water, etc.). When the pathogenic oocysts of B.coli are ingested into the intestine, they will go through two stages of development: the cyst stage and the active stage (Trophoziotes), which is the infectious stage of Balantidium coli.
Image of pig farming
– When the cysts are eaten by pigs and pass through the digestive system. The cysts have many layers of hard cyst walls to protect them, so they are not destroyed when passing through the acidic environment of the stomach, reaching the small intestine and forming Trophozoites. Trophozoites live in the cecum and colon of the large intestine. They invade the large intestine, exist in the intestinal lumen and eat intestinal microflora, cell debris, food in the intestinal lumen, and even penetrate the intestinal mucosa, causing mucosal damage.
– Some Trophozoites invade the wall of the large intestine causing damage to the wall and others return to the intestinal lumen.
– In the intestine, Trophozoites turn into cysts when the stool dries. These cysts are formed in the large intestine or outside the body and continue the life cycle.
– Normally, B.coli ciliates live in symbiosis and do not cause disease in pigs. For example, when pigs have a weak immune system, malnutrition, etc., the intestinal mucosa is damaged by infection, food poisoning, typhoid, bacillary dysentery, etc., the ciliates will invade and cause disease in pigs.
– When B.coli becomes active, the ciliates cause tissue necrosis in the cecum wall, where B.coli continues to reproduce and destroy intestinal wall tissue, causing ulcers to become wider and deeper. The destruction of the intestinal wall by B.coli is stronger because of the additional impact of mechanical factors. Therefore, ciliates can penetrate deep into the intestinal wall, causing intestinal perforation, a phenomenon that occurs almost only in the colon.
Image of pig farming
III. SYMPTOM
Pigs may show symptoms such as: decreased appetite, abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea up to 15 times per day, diarrhea with gray, thin stools, and may be thick, watery, stools with mucus, blood.
– If not detected and treated promptly, pigs may die. The cause of death is often due to complications such as intestinal perforation, gastrointestinal bleeding, etc.
– Dysentery syndrome caused by B.coli infection can also become chronic, the duration of the disease can last for years and during this time, acute relapses occasionally occur.
Autopsy of sick pigs can show characteristic intestinal lesions caused by Balantidium Coli in the large intestine with scattered white granulomas.
Image of pig farming
IV. DISEASE PREVENTION AND TREATMENT
– Regularly clean and disinfect the barn such as Iondin @, Dexon Super, etc.
– Feed clean, hygienic food and water, free of mold or spoilage.
– Treat drinking water and domestic water for pigs with Dexon super according to the manufacturer’s recommended dose before use.
– When pigs are sick, farmers can use medicine containing Halquinol to mix for pigs or inject Interflox 100 combined with Intertrim to treat the disease.
Because sick pigs have diarrhea and dehydration, farmers should supplement Cattlelyte electrolytes for pigs to balance electrolytes and help pigs recover quickly.
Supplement Haspro or Chocotic digestive enzymes to balance intestinal microflora
In case of pigs with severe diarrhea and dehydration, farmers can give them IV fluids to help them recover quickly.
Detailed information about gray diarrhea in pigs caused by Balantidium coli will help farmers gain knowledge to make their pig farming more convenient.