COMMOM BREACHES IN POULTRY VACCINE HANDLING AND ADMINISTRATION IN MAKURDI METROPOLIS: A RECURRENT PHENOMENON IN THE TROPICS

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1 Vom Journal of Veterinary Science Vol. 9, 2012: COMMOM BREACHES IN POULTRY VACCINE HANDLING AND ADMINISTRATION IN MAKURDI METROPOLIS: A RECURRENT PHENOMENON IN THE TROPICS BOSHA J.A 1, * and NONGO N.N 2 1 Department of Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology and 2 Department of Veterinary Parasitology and Entamology, University of Agriculture, Makurdi. Benue State, Nigeria. * Correspondence: boshajoel@yahoo.com; SUMMARY Poultry diseases remain the greatest threat to poultry industry and a source of great economic losses to the producer. Vaccination which is considered as insurance is one of the most important tool in reducing this great loss, but often times there are cases of vaccine failure which the vaccine is usually blamed. In some cases the way and manner in which the vaccine and vaccination is handled leave much to be desired, especially in the tropics where there are no infrastructure for cold chain maintenance and the weather is normally high through most part of the year. In this study we tried to look at common breaches involved in vaccine and vaccination handling in Makurdi metropolis a tropical environment through a structured questionnaire to 132 respondents. There were common breaches in the manufacturers recommended ways of transportation, preservation, reconstitution and time of administration of vaccines. It was observed that these common breaches in handling and administration of vaccines are likely responsible for the high vaccine failure in this part of Nigeria and the tropics generally KEY WORDS: Poultry, vaccines, administration, breach, failure, tropics INTRODUCTION In developing economies of Africa and Asia, poultry diseases remain the greatest threat to poultry industry and are responsible for very large economic losses to the producer (2, 5). Several approaches for intervention have been suggested and used to reduce the devastating effect of these infectious diseases in poultry with vaccination as the most important tool (8, 3, 5). Vaccines are used to prevent or reduce the devastating effect of infectious diseases when a poultry flock is exposed to the field disease organism, and vaccination should be considered as insurance (6). It has been reported by many workers that regular and timely vaccinations can reduce the overall effect of infections on the farm or in an area resulting to benefits from improved performance and general productivity of the birds (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 10). As it applies to insurance if the risk of a particular disease is low in an area, it makes little or no sense to vaccinate against such a disease after the cost/benefit analysis. It is therefore logical that not all infectious diseases are being vaccinated against (1, 3, 6, 7). About 80% of the poultry vaccines used in Nigeria are produced and distributed by the National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI) Vom (1, 3, 5). The remaining balance is imported by some Veterinary Pharmaceutical companies and large poultry farms. In spite of the beneficial effects of these vaccines, failure are sometimes reported with attendant loses by farmers. Our experience at the Veterinary Teaching Hospital University of Agriculture Makurdi (VTHUAM) shows that farmers 11

2 Bosha & Nongo: Breaches in Poultry Vaccine Handling and Administration complain of disease out breaks even after vaccinating against those particular diseases especially Newcastle and infectious bursal disease (Gumboro). This study therefore tries to look at the common breaches involved in the distribution, handling, and administration of poultry vaccines within Makurdi metropolis vis-a-vis the manufacturer s recommendation. This was done after a careful preliminary investigation was carried out on the handling and administration of vaccines in the area (9). MATERIALS AND METHODS The data for this study was obtained by administering a structured questionnaire to 132 randomly selected respondents mostly poultry farmers, Veterinarians, livestock superintendents and Veterinary shop owners within Makurdi metropolis in Benue State, central Nigeria. The contact points were the Government and private Veterinary clinics, Veterinary shops, the Veterinary Teaching Hospital and some identified big time organizations and farms. The selected population was believed to be involved in one way or the other in handling and administration of poultry vaccines. The population also varies from small holders (backyard poultry farmers) having birds, up to those that have 10,000 birds or more and those involved in the distribution of poultry vaccines. Basically, they were asked the type of disease they usually vaccinate against, their sources of vaccine, how they transport and preserve these vaccines, the quantity bought and weather they do follow the manufacturer s instructions in handling and administering those vaccines regarding issues like type of diluents used, addition of skimmed milk to doubtful waters. RESULT AND DISCUSSION Fig. 1: Bar chart showing vaccination and vaccination failure Key: TV = Total Vaccination; TF = Total Failure; NCD = Newcastle Disease; IBD = Infectious Bursal Disease; FP = Fowl Pox; FT = Fowl typhoid; Ccd = Coccidiosis; Mrk = Marek s disease. 12

Vom Journal of Veterinary Science Vol. 9, 2012: 11-16 Fig. 2: Bar chart showing percentage complaint with manufacturer s recommendation for various conditions The result showed that 129 (97.

3 Vom Journal of Veterinary Science Vol. 9, 2012: Fig. 2: Bar chart showing percentage complaint with manufacturer s recommendation for various conditions The result showed that 129 (97.7%) of the respondent vaccinate their birds. It also showed a high failure rate of 69 (53.5%). In poultry practice, whenever vaccination fails, the natural inclination is to blame the vaccine (6, 7), though in some instances, it might be the fault of those administering the vaccine (2, 3). The finding in this study have shown that a lot of poultry farmers are aware of the importance of vaccination but lack the basic knowledge of vaccines and how it should be administered to protect their birds against diseases pointing to the serious gap existing in poultry extension services (2, 3, 10). A lot of them depend on what they are told by the shop attendants at the shop where they got their vaccines. Good poultry vaccination is always expected when a farmer knows exactly the disease he want to vaccinate against and when and how to carry out the vaccination. In this study, a high percentage of the farmers knew the importance of vaccines and vaccination 129 (97.7%) but the way the vaccine are 13 handled and administered left much to be desired. Out of the total number of respondents, 30 (22.7%) transported the vaccines as ordinary drugs. Also 9 (6.8%) keep the vaccines in drug kits. This does not maintain the cold chain which is vital to keep the viability of the antigenic material according to the manufacturer s recommendations (3, 6, 9). The same number 30 (22.7%) that transported the vaccines as ordinary drugs also stored the vaccines in the deep freezer as against the manufacturer s recommendation of storing the vaccines in the fridge. Live vaccines are not suppose to be stored in the deep freezer because the low temperature (-20 o C) will cause shock and subsequent death of the viruses which will affect the antigenicity of the vaccine. It was also observed that 48 respondents (35.4%) purchased the vaccine in small fractions. It is believed that the process of dividing the vaccines and repackaging can contaminate them, thus affecting their antigenicity and making them not to protect the birds. Most of those who purchased the vaccine in small fractions were small

4 Bosha & Nongo: Breaches in Poultry Vaccine Handling and Administration scale holders (20-50 birds) who feel buying large quantity (a complete vial) may be a waste to them. For this group of small scale holders, producing the vaccine in small doses may be of benefit and will enhance their productivity. Another breach in the administration of the vaccine noticed here was that 21(15.9%) of the respondents do not vaccinate on the date of purchase and 9(6.8%) store them on the shelf without proper preservation. Poultry vaccines lost their potency very fast after reconstitution. Most manufacturers recommend the administration of vaccines within one hour after reconstitution (3). Pox vaccine can lose 50% of its potency after one hour when reconstituted (7). So considering the large number of those that purchase the vaccines in small fractions, it is observed that this is also a major breach in the handling and administration of vaccines in this area which can likely cause vaccine failure. Manufacturers recommend that poultry vaccines should be reconstituted in chlorine free water or water free from anti-microbials, but if the source of water is doubtful skimmed milk at the rate of 2g/L be added to it (3, 8, 10). A good number of the respondents used doubtful sources of water like tap water which we believe is likely to contain chlorine that is used for public water treatment. Only 45 (34.1%) added the skimmed milk as recommended out of the total number that carried out vaccination. This is also a serious breach that can affect the antigenicity of the vaccine and cause vaccine failure. Stress is another factor that may cause vaccine failure by reducing the ability of the chicken to mount immune response. It is always advised that birds should not be vaccinated during stress periods. This stress can be in form of environmental (extreme temperature and relative humidity) inadequate nutrition, parasitism, concurrent infections (2, 6). In practice, steps are always taken to minimize the stress before, during and after vaccination. One of the ways is to avoid vaccinating sick birds. Vaccination of sick birds or those incubating the disease can also lead to vaccine failure. There is a poor vaccine response in sick birds. Vaccination of such birds can lead to high morbidity and mortality (6). This was not properly observed as some of the farmers feel vaccination of sick birds will rather make them recover from the disease. Also anti-stress in form of vitamins and minerals are usually administered before, during and after the vaccination (3). In this study only 45 (34.1%) of the respondents attempted to minimize stress by way of adding vitamins and minerals in their drinking water, a greater population 84 (64.6%) did not take this factor into account. This can also result to vaccine failure in this area. Vaccine failure was experienced by 69 (53.5%) respondents. The diseases with high vaccine failure rate according to the respondents were Newcastle disease 33 (25.6%) and infectious bursal disease (Gumboro) 33 (25.6%). There are common breaches in the recommended handling and administration such as purchase and packaging of subvial fragments, preservation of the vaccine on the shelf, failure to add skimmed milk to dubious waters used as diluents. It is also observed here that both Newcastle disease and Gumboro disease vaccines are given in water and in most cases by the farmers themselves hence the likely chance of abuse of normal protocols as indicated above. On the other hand, the pox vaccine is usually given through the wing web and by experienced 14

5 Vom Journal of Veterinary Science Vol. 9, 2012: individuals (Veterinarians and livestock superintendents). This may explain the low incidence of failure of 2.3% for pox vaccines (9). Vaccine failure is said to occur when following vaccine administration the chicken failed to develop adequate antbody titre level and or are susceptible to field disease outbreak. (2, 3, 6). The causes of the failure are majorly from the individual bird, the vaccine itself or the personnel handling or administering the vaccine. Other factors which can also contribute to vaccine failure include maternal antibodies in young chicken. High maternal antibodies in young chicken could interfere with the multiplication of live vaccines there by reducing the amount of immunity produced. Most workers suggested the 11 th day as the minimum age for vaccinating chicks. They concluded that vaccination before this age in the presence of maternal antibodies can inactivate some of the viral vaccines leading to decrease immune response (2, 3, 10). The schedule used by the Veterinary Teaching Hospital University of Agriculture Makurdi suggested day for some common diseases like Gumboro and an earlier date (1-7 th day) for Newcastle diseases but with a repeat dose at day 21. The use of foreign vaccine can also result to vaccine failure. This is so because sometimes the serotype used for the vaccine production is different from the field strain (9). Thus if the field strain is different and of higher virulence the birds will not be protected (3). Since up to 20% of poultry vaccines in Nigeria is imported from other countries with different serotypes this can also be a cause of failure of vaccine. CONCLUSION The success of any vaccination program depends on many variables including the nature of vaccine, the ability of the bird to produce immune response to the vaccine and the observance of the manufacturer s instructions by the handlers of the vaccine. The result in this study indicated high level of none compliance with laid down vaccination protocols. This is a recurrent phenomenon in the tropics and not just in the study area of Makurdi metropolis. There were prevalent breaches in the recommended practices of vaccine handling and administration such as purchase and packaging of sub vial fragments, improper preservation, lack of cold chain maintenance during transportation and storage, failure to add skimmed milk to dubious waters used as diluents, improper management of stress before, during and after vaccination and general lack of adherence to manufacturer s instructions. Other factors like maternal immunity, concurrent infections, and some foreign vaccines may account for vaccine failure, an important one is the inactivation due to compromise in cold chain during transportation, storage and administration of vaccines as observed here. This is majorly seen as a result of lack of infrastructures responsible to maintain cold chain especially electricity supply in most tropical countries and the challenge of hot weather. Efforts should be made to produce thermostable vaccines especially in the tropics where cold chain maintenance is a serious issue especially to small scale famer. The need to produce smaller dose vials for subsistence farmers is also advocated to enhance the economy of their production. Extension services should be strengthened to educate the farmers and other vaccine handlers on the need to observe all vaccine protocols without breaches to minimize vaccine failure in the tropics. REFERENCES 1. Abdu A. Paul (2007). Manual of important poultry diseases in Nigeria 15

6 Bosha & Nongo: Breaches in Poultry Vaccine Handling and Administration 2 nd ed MacChin multimedia designers, Samaru, Zaria. Nigeria. 2. Abdullahi, U.S, Adamu, S.B. and Ahmed, A.F (2009) investigation on some causes of poultry vaccination failures in Bauchi metropolis and environs, Nigeria. Nigeria Journal of Experimental and Applied Biology vol. 10 (1) pp Aliu Y.O (2004) Responsible Veterinary Drug use: Vaccines and Vaccination Failure V C N Continuing Education Paper on Emerging Trends in Veterinary Practice in Nigeria. Held at Merit House, Abuja. August 19 th, Aliu, Y. O (2007) Veterinary Pharmacology. 1 st ed. Tamaza Publishing company Ltd, Zaria, Nigeria. Pp Bosha, J.A and Nongo, N.N.(2012) Investigating Vaccine Handling and Administration in Makurdi Metropolis, Benue State, Nigeria. Proceeding of 37 th Conference of Nigerian Society of Animal Production (NSAP) held at University of Agriculture Makurdi, Benue State, Nigeria on 18 th _ 21 st.march Butcher, G.D and Miles, R.D (2009) Vaccination Failure in Poultry, Factors to Consider http//edis. Ifas. ufl. Edu. 7. Butcher GD and Mojtaba Yegani (2009) Investigating Vaccination Failure in Poultry flocks 8. Horning G, Rasmussan, S, Permin A and Biggard M (2003) Investigation on the Influence of Helminth Parasites on Vaccination Chicken against Newcastle Disease Virus under Village Conditions. Tropical Animal Health and Production 35(5) Kluver Academic Publishers, Netherlands. 9. Nongo N.N and Bosha J.A (2004. Poultry Vaccine Handling and Administration in Makurdi. A preliminary investigation proceedings of Nigerian Veterinary Medical Association held at NVRI Vom th November, Nwanta, J.A, Umoh J.U, Abdu, P.A; Ajogi I. and Egege S.C. (2005). Comparison of the cost of unvaccinated and oral vaccinated local chickens with Malaysian thermostable Newcastle disease vaccine (NDV4HR) in Kaduna State, Nigeria. Bull Animal Health Production Africa. Pp

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