CA2416726A1 - Soft gel vaccine delivery system for treating poultry - Google Patents
Soft gel vaccine delivery system for treating poultry Download PDFInfo
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- CA2416726A1 CA2416726A1 CA 2416726 CA2416726A CA2416726A1 CA 2416726 A1 CA2416726 A1 CA 2416726A1 CA 2416726 CA2416726 CA 2416726 CA 2416726 A CA2416726 A CA 2416726A CA 2416726 A1 CA2416726 A1 CA 2416726A1
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- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
- A61D—VETERINARY INSTRUMENTS, IMPLEMENTS, TOOLS, OR METHODS
- A61D1/00—Surgical instruments for veterinary use
- A61D1/02—Trocars or cannulas for teats; Vaccination appliances
- A61D1/025—Vaccination appliances
Abstract
The present invention is directed to a method of treating poultry hatchlings with a therapeutic agent in a hatchling tray. The method comprises providing the therapeutic agent in a soft gel form capable of being dispensed through a spray nozzle, providing a spray dispensing apparatus, the apparatus being capable of delivering a predetermined volume of the gel as a plurality of small beadlets through a spray nozzle, placing the hatchling tray containing the hatchlings beneath the spray nozzles of the dispensing apparatus, dispensing the predetermined volume of the soft gel containing the therapeutic agent as small beadlets into the hatchling tray, and allowing the hatchlings to consume the beadlets. The present invention is also directed to a dispensing apparatus for dispensing a therapeutic agent in a soft gel into a hatchling tray of poultry hatchlings.
Description
TITLE: SOFT GEL VAc~CINE DELIVERY SYSTEM FOR IMMUNIZING
POULTRY
Field of the invention The present invention relates to a soft gel vaccine delivery system fo:r immunizing poultry in the hatchery.
In particular the present invention relates to a delivery system for use in a hatchery conveyor system or as part of a debeaking app<~ratus.
Backcrround of the invention At the preseni~ time, poultry hatchlings, within the first few days of :Life, are required to be immunized against various di:~eases and the type of vaccine used for each disease dictai~es its method of administration.
Attenuated vaccine: are usually administered in the hatchery by injection at the time of sorting of the 2o hatchlings from the hatching incubator into holding or transporting trays. Live vaccines are more commonly administered once the hatchlings are established in their brooding areas in the form of aqueous suspensions either sprayed on feed or added to the drinking water.
One example of a live vaccine is that used to immunize poultry against coccidiosis caused by protozoa of the genus Eimeria. Coccidiosis is a very common disease of poultry and there are several species of 3o Eimeria which are known to cause such disease. The symptoms and severity of the disease are dependent upon the species of Eimeria with which the bird is infected with E.tenella, E.acervulina and E.maxima being three of the most prevalent species in commercial chickens. At the present time, t:he protection of poultry against coccidiosis involves two possible methods - use of anticoccidials as feed additives or immunization using a coccidiosis vaccine with immunization being increasingly the preferred route. Coccidiosis vaccines are at present comprised of an attenuated species of: coccidia in a suitable carrier for administration, the coccidia being capable of causing a mild form of the disease and selected to be ant:icoccidial susceptible.
One common method of immunization against coccidiosis involves the use of on-feed spray administration while the birds are feeding from flats or other containers. A vaccine comprising oocysts of Eimeria species in a water based carrier is sprayed onto the feed to be provided to the hatchlings. The use of on-feed spray administration requires large doses of oocysts and uniform exposure of the flocks to the vaccine cannot always be achieved.
Vaccine may also be administered through the use of water proportioning systems including' automatic fountains and automatic water medicator or proportioners. However, given the particulate nature of coccidiosis vaccines, it is doubtful that the vaccine may actually make it to the distal end of the water line, resulting in uneven exposure of the flock. Additionally, administration of the vaccine through the water proportioning system requires that after administration of the vaccine, the proportioning system be thoroughly cleaned to remove .any residual vaccine.
The administration of vaccine in the drinking water requires that the oocysts remain suspended to provide for 3o even exposure of the flock. One solution to this has been proposed by the present applicant in Canadian Patent 1,204,057, which involves suspending the oocysts in a 1.5o carrageenan solution. While this method has numerous advantage,, such as reduced levels of oocysts necessary to provic!_e immunization as ;cell as ease of administration, there is still a drawback in that the provision of open watering systems to hatchlings could result in the liquid being spilled or wetting the hatchlings which could potentially affect the health of the hatchlings, especially in cold weather and durincr transportation whe:rl hatchlings are vaccinated in the hatchery.
Another method of administering vaccine is through the use of a spray cabinet which is utilized in the hatchery to spray 'the hatchlings with a liquid form of the vaccine. A flat or tray of hatchlings commonly containing about 100 birds is placed in the spray cabinet and a predetermined dose of liquid vaccine is sprayed.
directly on the birds. It is expected that as the birds preen they will ingest the vaccine from their feathers.
This method suffer; some drawbacks ir.~ that uniform exposure of all of the hatchlings may not be easily achieved because constant stirring is' required to keep oocysts suspended. In addition, as the birds are being sprayed with a liquid vaccine solution, then there is a risk that the hatchlings may become too wet which may affect the health of the birds.
A gel form of a coccidiosis vaccine has been described in PCT application WO 96/25,951, published August 29th 1996. The gel form vaccine of this application is a self-supporting or sliceable vaccine which is formed into a cylinder which is in turn sliced to give a proper amount of the vaccine for each tray of the hatchlings. Alternatively the vaccine may be gelled to into a suitable watering trough. While this vaccine overcomes the potential problem of wetting of the birds, it dogs require that the hatchery workers handle the gel form to place it irl the hatchery tray.
There thus remains a need for a simplified vaccine for administration of vaccine to hatchlings in the hatchery, which provides adequate protection of the f:Lock while reducing potential problem areas.
POULTRY
Field of the invention The present invention relates to a soft gel vaccine delivery system fo:r immunizing poultry in the hatchery.
In particular the present invention relates to a delivery system for use in a hatchery conveyor system or as part of a debeaking app<~ratus.
Backcrround of the invention At the preseni~ time, poultry hatchlings, within the first few days of :Life, are required to be immunized against various di:~eases and the type of vaccine used for each disease dictai~es its method of administration.
Attenuated vaccine: are usually administered in the hatchery by injection at the time of sorting of the 2o hatchlings from the hatching incubator into holding or transporting trays. Live vaccines are more commonly administered once the hatchlings are established in their brooding areas in the form of aqueous suspensions either sprayed on feed or added to the drinking water.
One example of a live vaccine is that used to immunize poultry against coccidiosis caused by protozoa of the genus Eimeria. Coccidiosis is a very common disease of poultry and there are several species of 3o Eimeria which are known to cause such disease. The symptoms and severity of the disease are dependent upon the species of Eimeria with which the bird is infected with E.tenella, E.acervulina and E.maxima being three of the most prevalent species in commercial chickens. At the present time, t:he protection of poultry against coccidiosis involves two possible methods - use of anticoccidials as feed additives or immunization using a coccidiosis vaccine with immunization being increasingly the preferred route. Coccidiosis vaccines are at present comprised of an attenuated species of: coccidia in a suitable carrier for administration, the coccidia being capable of causing a mild form of the disease and selected to be ant:icoccidial susceptible.
One common method of immunization against coccidiosis involves the use of on-feed spray administration while the birds are feeding from flats or other containers. A vaccine comprising oocysts of Eimeria species in a water based carrier is sprayed onto the feed to be provided to the hatchlings. The use of on-feed spray administration requires large doses of oocysts and uniform exposure of the flocks to the vaccine cannot always be achieved.
Vaccine may also be administered through the use of water proportioning systems including' automatic fountains and automatic water medicator or proportioners. However, given the particulate nature of coccidiosis vaccines, it is doubtful that the vaccine may actually make it to the distal end of the water line, resulting in uneven exposure of the flock. Additionally, administration of the vaccine through the water proportioning system requires that after administration of the vaccine, the proportioning system be thoroughly cleaned to remove .any residual vaccine.
The administration of vaccine in the drinking water requires that the oocysts remain suspended to provide for 3o even exposure of the flock. One solution to this has been proposed by the present applicant in Canadian Patent 1,204,057, which involves suspending the oocysts in a 1.5o carrageenan solution. While this method has numerous advantage,, such as reduced levels of oocysts necessary to provic!_e immunization as ;cell as ease of administration, there is still a drawback in that the provision of open watering systems to hatchlings could result in the liquid being spilled or wetting the hatchlings which could potentially affect the health of the hatchlings, especially in cold weather and durincr transportation whe:rl hatchlings are vaccinated in the hatchery.
Another method of administering vaccine is through the use of a spray cabinet which is utilized in the hatchery to spray 'the hatchlings with a liquid form of the vaccine. A flat or tray of hatchlings commonly containing about 100 birds is placed in the spray cabinet and a predetermined dose of liquid vaccine is sprayed.
directly on the birds. It is expected that as the birds preen they will ingest the vaccine from their feathers.
This method suffer; some drawbacks ir.~ that uniform exposure of all of the hatchlings may not be easily achieved because constant stirring is' required to keep oocysts suspended. In addition, as the birds are being sprayed with a liquid vaccine solution, then there is a risk that the hatchlings may become too wet which may affect the health of the birds.
A gel form of a coccidiosis vaccine has been described in PCT application WO 96/25,951, published August 29th 1996. The gel form vaccine of this application is a self-supporting or sliceable vaccine which is formed into a cylinder which is in turn sliced to give a proper amount of the vaccine for each tray of the hatchlings. Alternatively the vaccine may be gelled to into a suitable watering trough. While this vaccine overcomes the potential problem of wetting of the birds, it dogs require that the hatchery workers handle the gel form to place it irl the hatchery tray.
There thus remains a need for a simplified vaccine for administration of vaccine to hatchlings in the hatchery, which provides adequate protection of the f:Lock while reducing potential problem areas.
Summarv of the invention The present invention is directed to a method of treating poultry hatchlings with a therapeutic agent in a hatchling tray. The method comprises providing the therapeutic agent in a soft gel form capable of being dispensed through a spray nozzle, providing a spray dispensing apparatus, the apparatus being capable of 1o delivering a predetermined volume of the gel through a metered pump as a plurality of small beadlets through a spray nozzle, placing the hatchling tray containing the hatchlings beneath the spray nozzles of the dispensing apparatus, dispensing the predetermined volume of the soft gel containing the therapeutic agent as small beadlets into the hatchling tray, and. allowing the hatchlings to consume the beadlets.
In an aspect the present invention is also directed 2o to a dispensing apparatus for dispensing a therapeutic agent in a soft ge~'._ into a hatchling tray of poultry hatchlings. Unlike suspension in water, oocysts in the soft gel, after preparation with a mixer will remain suspended without further agitation. The apparatus comprises a receiver for receiving the hatchling tray, the receiver having a top attached along two opposing edges to two side walls extending generally perpendicular to the top, the side walls having a height to space the top above the hatchling tray and being spaced apart a 3o distance to straddle the tray. The top is provided with one or more spray nozzles sized to permit a soft gel to pass therethrough and be dispersed in the form of small beadlets when placed under air pressure. The spray nozzle is connected to a metered pump capable of dispensing a predetermined volume under pressure, and the dispenser is connected to a reservoir for containing the soft gel in a flowable form.
In an aspect the present invention is also directed 2o to a dispensing apparatus for dispensing a therapeutic agent in a soft ge~'._ into a hatchling tray of poultry hatchlings. Unlike suspension in water, oocysts in the soft gel, after preparation with a mixer will remain suspended without further agitation. The apparatus comprises a receiver for receiving the hatchling tray, the receiver having a top attached along two opposing edges to two side walls extending generally perpendicular to the top, the side walls having a height to space the top above the hatchling tray and being spaced apart a 3o distance to straddle the tray. The top is provided with one or more spray nozzles sized to permit a soft gel to pass therethrough and be dispersed in the form of small beadlets when placed under air pressure. The spray nozzle is connected to a metered pump capable of dispensing a predetermined volume under pressure, and the dispenser is connected to a reservoir for containing the soft gel in a flowable form.
Brief description of the drawings Preferred embodiments of the present invention are illustrated in the attached drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a side elevation view of a first embodiment of a delivery system of the present invention for use in association with a hatchery conveyor system;
i0 Figure 2 is side elevation view of the delivery system of figure 1;
Figure 3 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the delivery system of the present invention; and Detailed description of the preferred embodiments The present invention is directed to a soft flowable gel vaccine and a delivery system for delivering the vaccine for the purpose of immunizing poultry in the hatchery. The soft: flowable gel vaccine is capable of being pumped and delivered directly to the poultry hatchling. The soft gel vaccine is dispensed as a plurality of small beadlets which contain the vaccinating organism and which are easily capable of being ingested by the poultry hatc:hling. The gel vaccine beadlets retain their moisture content to maintain the viability of the live vaccinating organisms during the dispensing and consumption of the vaccine. The beadlets do not allow the moisture to escape and minimize the potential wetting of the biraa.
The soft flowable gel vaccine utilizes a suitable setting agent that can form the soft gel at relatively low concentrations to allow the vaccine to contain mostly water. The suitable setting agent is preferably a polysaccharide setting agent which sets rapidly to maintain the organisms in a relatively uniform disper:~ion throughout the soft flowable gel vaccine. More preferably the setting agent is a carrageenan or alginate setting agent which may set either through a change in temperature or through the use of a suitable setting catalyst. Most preferably the setting agent is a kappa or lambda carrageenan setting agent which sets through a change in temperature or through the use of a setting catalyst. If a catalytic based setting is chosen, th.e amount of catalyst and its addition has to be controlled 1o to control the formation of the soft flowable gel within minutes to maintain a uniform gel and a uniform dispersion of the :immunizing organisms throughout the gel.
The soft gel vaccine of the present invention provides for an easy to handle method of vaccinating poultry hatchlings in the hatchery and is, therefore, suitable for general hatchery workers without any special expertise required. The gel form is produced utilizing 2o an edible temperature setting polysaccharide gel, preferably a low temperature setting alginate or carrageenan gel, more preferably a lambda or kappa carrageenan gel and most preferably a water soluble lambda-type carrageenan extracted from the red algae Eucheuma cottonii.
The soft gel vaccine is prepared by dissolving the gel powder in water. at a suitable temperature to effect complete dissolution of the polysaccharide powder. The 3o powder is added to the water at a concentration such that, when mixed with a suspension of immunizing organisms and allowed to gel, a soft flowable gel results. Typically, the dissolved gel powder and oocy;st suspension are then mixed at a ratio of gel powder to oocyst suspension dissolved about 1:1 (V/V) to about 20:1 (V/V) prepare the ~~oft gel vaccine. Suitable such ge:1 forms have been found to have a final concentration o:E
the edible polysaccharide in the gel form of between about 0.6 and 1.5 percent, preferably between about 0.6 and 1 percent, more preferably between about 0.8 and 1.0 percent and most p=referably about 1.0 percent. Thus preferably, where }she ratio of dissolved gel powder to oocysts suspension is about 1s1 (V/V) a dissolved polysaccharide gel solution of about 1.2 to 3 percent, preferably about 1.2 to 2 percent, more preferably about 1.6 to 2.0 percent, most preferably about 2.0 percent, is mixed with an equa:L volume of a suspension of oocysts and the mixture allowed to gel.
The gel form vaccine of the present invention has sufficient levels of the immunizing organisms to provide immunization to the flock. It has been found that for the method of the present invention about 15 to 50 ml of gel for every 100 birds is used, preferably about 20 to 30 ml, more preferably about 20 to 25 ml, most preferably about 25 ml of the gel and the concentration of the immunizing organisr:~s in the gel should be such as to provide sufficient organisms in this typical volume to immunize the hatch7_ings. It has been found that for between about 50 and 1,000 oocysts per bird provides adequate protection and so it is preferred if the soft gel Eimeria has between about 200 and 4000 oocysts pe:r ml of gel, to provide for proper immunization of the flock.
Preferably, the soft gel vaccine contains between abo,at 200 and 400 oocysts per ml of gel, most preferably about 250 oocysts per ml of gel. For a soft gel prepared by mixing the dissolved polysaccharide powder with the oocyst suspension in a ratio of about 1:1 (V/V), one 3o volume of a 1 to 3 % polysaccharide gel solution is mixed with an equal volume of oocyst suspension containing between about 400 a.nd 8,000 oocysts per ml, more preferably one volume of a 1.2 to 2 percent polysaccharide solution with an equal volume of oocyst:
suspension containing between about 400 and 800 oocyst~s per ml, most preferably a 2.0 percent solution of polysaccharide solution is mixed with an equal volume of oocyst suspension containing about 500 oocysts per ml.
The soft gel vaccine may also be prepared by mixing the dissolved polysacc:E~aride powder with a concentrated oocyst suspension at a higher ratio of dissolved gel powder to oocysts ;suspension up to about 20:1 (V/V). For example 2 liters o:f a 1 to 2o polysaccharide solution may be mixed with 120 ml of an oocyst suspension containing a total of about 1.5 to 3 x 106 oocysts to prepare the :soft gel vaccine.
The use of the edible polysaccharide gels of the 1o present invention results in a gel which sets rapidly generally in about 5 minutes or less. This maintains the vaccine organisms in uniform suspension and allows for more uniform exposure of the poultry hatchlings to the immunizing organisms. The low content of the edible gum in the soft gel means that approximately 95 percent or more of the gel is water which can aid in the hydration of the bird and induce the feeding response. The soft gel has other advantages over liquid suspensions in that the gel will not wet the bird as much and therefore will 2o not affect the hea7_th of the chicks, particularly in winter when, if the hatchling becomes wet through exposure to aqueous solution, the exposure may cause death of the hatchling.
The use of the edible polysaccharide gel of the present invention which gels rapidly is also suitable for adding nitrogen nutrients and other additives such as vitamins to the gel form or competitive exclusion products such as "E>ROILACT~~ sold by Orion Corp., Finl<~nd.
This is especially useful with heat sensitive nutrients which, if exposed t.o temperatures over about 50°C, are denatured or inactivated.
The amount of the polysaccharide setting agent i:~
selected to form a soft flowable gel. If too much setting agent is used the gel is not easily flowable and thus is difficult to pump through the delivery system.
If too little setting agent is used the gel form may not maintain the immunizing organisms in a relatively uniform _ g _ suspension. In addition too little setting agent may also not properly trap the moisture and may allow the liquid to escape which can result in reduced viability of the immunizing organisms as well as causing wetting of the birds.
In order to determine the proper' amount of the setting agent to utilize to maintain the oocysts in suspension, carrageenan gel at different concentrations was made up by dissolving carrageenan. powder into tap water at 15 degrees C, blending thoroughly, adding a calcium chloride setting catalyst and allowing it to set for two to three m_Lnutes at room temperature. The viscosity of the gel was measured at room temperature using a viscometer. To measure the oocyst holding ability of different concentrations of carrageenan, 10 ml of each concentrat~_on of gel was added to a test tube and a fixed number of oocysts was added to each tube and mixed thoroughly. Samples from the very top of the gel 2o in each tube were taken every hour and the number of oocysts was counted under a microscope. The following table gives the results of this determination.
Table 1 Time o retention of oocysts T~aT~SPC~ /=~ rcnt-cni-i nn 1 cum - 0 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Concentration From the results presented in the table and other tests it was deterrr~ined that a gel having a viscosity of at least 23 cps is required to maintain the oocysts in suspension. With carrageenan gel, this translates to about 0.6 percent carrageenan gel. The gel may contain more carrageenan than 0.6 percent, however it has been found that greater than about 1 percent gel does not provide any added advantage in maintaining the oocysts in suspension and may cause difficulties in delivery of the flowable gel. For carrageenan, the preferred range of gel is 0.8 to 1.0 percent with 1.0 percent being the most preferred.
As set out above, for Eimeria oocysts which are rather large and dense organisms, a gel having a viscosity of at least 23 cps is required to maintain the oocysts in suspens_~on. If the immunizing organisms in the gel are smaller or lighter, then a lower viscosity gel may be utilized to maintain the organisms in suspension. The proper amount of gel to utilize to maintain the suspension of organisms while also entrapping the moisture within the gel matrix, may be easily determined a_n accordance with the example set out 2 o above .
In order to determine whether poultry hatchlings in a flat would take up the gel beadlets a delivery system for use in associat=ion with a hatchery conveyor system was developed. A f=first embodiment of such an apparatus is illustrated in f=figures 1 and 2 generally indicated by the numeral 10. The apparatus 10 has a receiver 12 for receiving the hatchlings tray and to which the components of the spray apparatus are attached. The receiver 12 has 3o a top 14 attached along two opposing edges to two sidewalls 16 having a height to space the top 14 above the hatchlings tray and being spaced apart a distance to straddle the tray. Attached to the top 14 of the receiver 12 is a spray apparatus to enable spraying o:E
the gel into the ha.tchlings tray. The spray apparatus has a pump means to enable the soft flowable gel to be pumped through tubing and dispensed into the hatchlings tray through one or more spray nozzles. In the embodiment illustrated in the figures the apparatus has four such nozzles to provide complete coverage of the hatchlings tray. However, 1 i~o 4 nozzles are most acceptable. The pump apparatus illustrated in Figure 1 is an air actuated piston pump having a pump chamber with a one-way inlet valve and a one-wa;r outlet valve. Th.e inlet valve is connected to a gel reservoir through suitable tubing and the outlet valve is connected to the spray nozzles through suitable tubing. When the piston makes its out stroke the flowable gel is sucked into the chamber 1o through the one-way inlet valve. Once the chamber is full and it is desired to deliver the gel to the hatchlings tray, the piston pump is actuated and the piston travels on its in stroke pushing the gel from the chamber through the one-way outlet valve and tubing and spraying it into the hatchlings tray in the form of small beadlets. The spray nozzle is selected to produce a spray pattern of small beadlets of the vaccine. This may be achieved by design of the nozzle to disrupt the flow of the gel to form the small beadlets. The disruption 2o may be achieved by physical means such as the design of the nozzle outlet or the disruption m.ay be achieved through the use of air atomization of the gel spray.
This is accomplished by introducing air into the gel spray as it exits t:he nozzle. It has been found that air atomization provides uniform and easily reproduced spray patterns for immunizing a plurality of hatchery trays.
In order to determine whether the hatchlings will ingest the gel uniformly, 1.0 percent carrageenan gel containing oocysts, a blue food coloring was utilized with the above described apparatus. The apparatus was configured to deliver 25 ml of gel to each of the pis~~on pumps to give a total of 50 ml of gel for each hatchl:ings tray containing 100 birds. Day-old Cockrell's were divided into two groups, a treatment group and a posii~ive control group. The positive control group had 11 birds, from which one biro. was inoculated with one ml of gel,, five birds were inoculated with 0.5 ml of gel which was used for gel spray. The remaining five birds were - 11. -inoculated with 0.5 ml water containing about 2 x 105 per ml. The carrageenan gel at 1.0 percent containing approximately 2.5 x 105 oocysts per m:1 of gel was made and mixed with 6.7 percent blue dye. The treatment group of 92 birds was used -for gel spraying. Postmortem examination of the digestive tract of 46 of the gel treated birds was carried out at 15, 30, and 60 minutes after spraying. The remaining birds were examined 5 and 6 days after spray_Lng and lesions were scored from 0 to 4 i0 with 0 being normal and 4 being the maximal lesions.
Positive evidence of vaccination was observed in two ways-colored blue beaks, tongue and esophagi by the blue dye in the gel and the appearance of lesions in duodenum five days after vaccination and ceca 6 days after vaccination. In t:ne postmortem examination of 46 of the sprayed birds carried out at 15, 30 and 60 minutes after gel spraying 45 of the 46 birds or 98 percent picked up the gel as indicated by the blue tongue or blue roofs.
Among the birds positive with blue dye 10 of 16 birds had blue upper esophagus within 30 minutes and 12 of 14 birds had blue crops within 60 minutes.
Postmortem examination carried out after 5 and 6 days of gel spray v,~as done by examining the lower digestive tract, and particularly the duodenal loop and ceca and scoring the lesions observed. After five days 17 of 18 birds were positive with a average, lesions score of 1.1 ~0.6 on the duodenal loop and on the ceca.
3o After 6 days 100 percent of the birds were positive w_~th an average lesions score of 0.7 f0.3 on the duodenal loop and 0.7 X0.4 on the ceca It was observed that the gel sprayed on the chicl~>ens feathers was picked up within about three minutes after spraying and the gel on the floor of t=he tray was cleaned up within 30 minutes. The postmortem examination of t:he upper digestive tract of 46 birds show that an average of 98 percent of the birds ingest the gel within 60 minutes after spraying with 22 of 46 birds examined showed blue esophagus or crop after 30 minutes of spraying indicated the spray gel was effectively carried deeper into the birds digestive tract. The postmortem examination of the lower digestive tract of the 42 birds show that an average of 98 percent of the birds were infected with coccidia. Among the birds examined on day 5, 94 percent were positive with an average lesions score was 1.1 t0.6 and after day 6, 100 percent were positive with an so average lesions score of 0.7 ~0.3 on the duodenal loop and 0.7 ~0.4 on the ceca.
The above spray test was repeated a number of times to determine the uptake of the gel by the birds. The results of these tests are shown the following table.
Table 2 No. of Blrds Sprayed No. of Positive % of Posit we Average 98.7 From these tests an average of 98.7 percent of the birds were positive for uptake of the gel indicating that the spraying method of the present invention is suitable for vaccination for immunization of poultry hatchlings in the hatchlings tray.
The second embodiment of an apparatus for delivery of a soft flowable gel vaccine according to the present invention is illustrated in Figure 3, generally indicated by the numeral 50. The apparatus 50 has a receiver 52 for receiving the hatchling tray into which the components of the spray apparatus are attached. The receiver 52 has a top 54 attached along two opposing edges to two sidewalls 56 having a height to space the top 54 above the hatchlings tray and being spaced apart a 1o distances that straddle the tray. Attached to the top 54 of the receiver 52 are four air atomizing spray nozzles which are connected to one another through suitable tubing. The air atomizing spray nozzles are preferably external mix nozzles where the air and gel are mixed outside the nozzle. Such nozzles are available from Spraying Systems Co. The tubing in turn is connected to a outlet of a metered diaphragm pump and the inlet of the diaphragm pump is connected to a container containing the soft flowable gel. One such pump is that used for 2o chlorine dosing such as ProMinent gamma Solenoid dosing pumps. The use of a diaphragm pump with chemical resistant parts allows the apparatus to be washed by pumping warm detergent solutions and to be sterilized by pumping chlorine containing solutions through the apparatus. This makes clean up of the apparatus very simple. A suitable source of compressed air is connected to the nozzle such that as the pump pumps the gel through the tubing and out of the nozzle, the gel is mixed with air to provide for the formation of the small beadlets.
Three trays of day-old Cockerels each containing 100 hatchlings were immunized using the apparatus of the second embodiment. The carrageenan gel at 1.0 percent containing approximately 2.5 x 105 oocysts per ml of gel was made and mixed with 6.7 percent blue dye. The apparatus was configured to deliver 25 ml of gel.
Postmortem examination of the digestive tract of 30 of the gel treated birds from each tray was carried out at 15 and 30 minutes after spraying. 20 of the remaining birds were examined at 5 days for duodenal lesions and fecal samples of the final 20 birds from each tray collected 6 days after spraying for the presence of oocysts in the feces. Positive evidence of vaccination was observed one or more of three ways-colored blue beaks, tongue and esophagi by the blue dye in the gel, the appearance of lesions in duodenum five days after vaccination and the presence of oocysts in the feces 6 days after vaccination. The feces was collected for 24 1o hours and any oocysts isolated by salt flotation.
In the postmortem examination of the sprayed birds carried out at 15 and 30 minutes after gel spraying 90 of 90 birds had blue beak and 86 of 90 birds had blue tongue i5 after 15 minutes. &4 of 90 birds or 71.10 had blue crops within 30 minutes.
Postmortem examination carried out after 5 days of gel spray was done by examining the lower digestive 2o tract, and particularly the duodenal loop and scoring the lesions observed. After five days 42 of 58 birds or 72.40 had visible lesions on the duodenal loop. After 6 days 53 of 60 birds or 88.3% had feces with observable oocysts.
The results of these tests are shown the following table.
Table 3 N0. WITH POSITIVE C~OT~OR
BOX# BEAK TONGUE CROP DUODENAL OOCYSTS
LESION IN FECES
DAYS PS
TOTAL ~ 90/90 ~ 86/90 64/90 i 42/58 ~ 53/60 100 95.6 71.1 72.4 88.3 Another way of providing the gel vaccine of the present invention to the hatchlings would be by direct application to the nostrils. A gel containing 1.0 percent carrageenan, 2x105 oocysts per ml and 6.5 percent blue dye was used for the application. 0.2 ml of the gel was placed on the nostrils of 35 Cockrell's. The postmortem examination was performed on 23 of the birds for the detection of color 30 minutes after the introduction of the drops in the nostrils. All of the birds had a blue-colour in one or more of the tongue, roof of the beak, or crop indicating that the gel placed on the nostrils is ingested. Ten nostril vaccinated birds were compared witrl 10 vaccinated control in which the birds were allowed to ingest the vaccine presented as a self-supporting gel prepared in accordance with PCT
application WO 96/25,951. Five birds were maintained as 2o a non vaccinated control. Fecal samples from each of these groups was examined six days after vaccination for the presence of the oocysts in the feces. None of the non vaccinated controls had oocysts in the feces while all 10 of the vaccinated control birds were positive for the presence of oocysts in the feces and 8 of the 10 nostril vaccinated birds also had positive feces.
In order to allow for efficient administration of the nostril application, a debeaking machine has been modified to provide a nozzle to dispense 0.2 ml of flowable gel on the nostril as the bird is being the debeaked. It is standard practice in hatcheries that as the hatchlings emerge, they axe sorted for sex, the debeaked and vaccinated for a number of diseases. As the birds are being debeaked, the application of the flowable gel containing the coccidia provides for an efficient means of vaccinating the birds.
The use of the flowable gel vaccine would also allow for the preparation of multivalent vaccines containing not only the coccidia but other organisms commonly utilized for vaccination against respiratory diseases such as I~Tew Castle virus and bronchitis.
The method and soft gel vaccine of the present invention provides for an easy to use means of immunizing 1o a large number of hatchlings by spraying the vaccine on the hatchlings in the tray. By incorporating the apparatus into a conveyor system, this is easily accomplished.
Although various preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described herein in detail, it will appreciated by those skilled in the art that variations may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.
Figure 1 is a side elevation view of a first embodiment of a delivery system of the present invention for use in association with a hatchery conveyor system;
i0 Figure 2 is side elevation view of the delivery system of figure 1;
Figure 3 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the delivery system of the present invention; and Detailed description of the preferred embodiments The present invention is directed to a soft flowable gel vaccine and a delivery system for delivering the vaccine for the purpose of immunizing poultry in the hatchery. The soft: flowable gel vaccine is capable of being pumped and delivered directly to the poultry hatchling. The soft gel vaccine is dispensed as a plurality of small beadlets which contain the vaccinating organism and which are easily capable of being ingested by the poultry hatc:hling. The gel vaccine beadlets retain their moisture content to maintain the viability of the live vaccinating organisms during the dispensing and consumption of the vaccine. The beadlets do not allow the moisture to escape and minimize the potential wetting of the biraa.
The soft flowable gel vaccine utilizes a suitable setting agent that can form the soft gel at relatively low concentrations to allow the vaccine to contain mostly water. The suitable setting agent is preferably a polysaccharide setting agent which sets rapidly to maintain the organisms in a relatively uniform disper:~ion throughout the soft flowable gel vaccine. More preferably the setting agent is a carrageenan or alginate setting agent which may set either through a change in temperature or through the use of a suitable setting catalyst. Most preferably the setting agent is a kappa or lambda carrageenan setting agent which sets through a change in temperature or through the use of a setting catalyst. If a catalytic based setting is chosen, th.e amount of catalyst and its addition has to be controlled 1o to control the formation of the soft flowable gel within minutes to maintain a uniform gel and a uniform dispersion of the :immunizing organisms throughout the gel.
The soft gel vaccine of the present invention provides for an easy to handle method of vaccinating poultry hatchlings in the hatchery and is, therefore, suitable for general hatchery workers without any special expertise required. The gel form is produced utilizing 2o an edible temperature setting polysaccharide gel, preferably a low temperature setting alginate or carrageenan gel, more preferably a lambda or kappa carrageenan gel and most preferably a water soluble lambda-type carrageenan extracted from the red algae Eucheuma cottonii.
The soft gel vaccine is prepared by dissolving the gel powder in water. at a suitable temperature to effect complete dissolution of the polysaccharide powder. The 3o powder is added to the water at a concentration such that, when mixed with a suspension of immunizing organisms and allowed to gel, a soft flowable gel results. Typically, the dissolved gel powder and oocy;st suspension are then mixed at a ratio of gel powder to oocyst suspension dissolved about 1:1 (V/V) to about 20:1 (V/V) prepare the ~~oft gel vaccine. Suitable such ge:1 forms have been found to have a final concentration o:E
the edible polysaccharide in the gel form of between about 0.6 and 1.5 percent, preferably between about 0.6 and 1 percent, more preferably between about 0.8 and 1.0 percent and most p=referably about 1.0 percent. Thus preferably, where }she ratio of dissolved gel powder to oocysts suspension is about 1s1 (V/V) a dissolved polysaccharide gel solution of about 1.2 to 3 percent, preferably about 1.2 to 2 percent, more preferably about 1.6 to 2.0 percent, most preferably about 2.0 percent, is mixed with an equa:L volume of a suspension of oocysts and the mixture allowed to gel.
The gel form vaccine of the present invention has sufficient levels of the immunizing organisms to provide immunization to the flock. It has been found that for the method of the present invention about 15 to 50 ml of gel for every 100 birds is used, preferably about 20 to 30 ml, more preferably about 20 to 25 ml, most preferably about 25 ml of the gel and the concentration of the immunizing organisr:~s in the gel should be such as to provide sufficient organisms in this typical volume to immunize the hatch7_ings. It has been found that for between about 50 and 1,000 oocysts per bird provides adequate protection and so it is preferred if the soft gel Eimeria has between about 200 and 4000 oocysts pe:r ml of gel, to provide for proper immunization of the flock.
Preferably, the soft gel vaccine contains between abo,at 200 and 400 oocysts per ml of gel, most preferably about 250 oocysts per ml of gel. For a soft gel prepared by mixing the dissolved polysaccharide powder with the oocyst suspension in a ratio of about 1:1 (V/V), one 3o volume of a 1 to 3 % polysaccharide gel solution is mixed with an equal volume of oocyst suspension containing between about 400 a.nd 8,000 oocysts per ml, more preferably one volume of a 1.2 to 2 percent polysaccharide solution with an equal volume of oocyst:
suspension containing between about 400 and 800 oocyst~s per ml, most preferably a 2.0 percent solution of polysaccharide solution is mixed with an equal volume of oocyst suspension containing about 500 oocysts per ml.
The soft gel vaccine may also be prepared by mixing the dissolved polysacc:E~aride powder with a concentrated oocyst suspension at a higher ratio of dissolved gel powder to oocysts ;suspension up to about 20:1 (V/V). For example 2 liters o:f a 1 to 2o polysaccharide solution may be mixed with 120 ml of an oocyst suspension containing a total of about 1.5 to 3 x 106 oocysts to prepare the :soft gel vaccine.
The use of the edible polysaccharide gels of the 1o present invention results in a gel which sets rapidly generally in about 5 minutes or less. This maintains the vaccine organisms in uniform suspension and allows for more uniform exposure of the poultry hatchlings to the immunizing organisms. The low content of the edible gum in the soft gel means that approximately 95 percent or more of the gel is water which can aid in the hydration of the bird and induce the feeding response. The soft gel has other advantages over liquid suspensions in that the gel will not wet the bird as much and therefore will 2o not affect the hea7_th of the chicks, particularly in winter when, if the hatchling becomes wet through exposure to aqueous solution, the exposure may cause death of the hatchling.
The use of the edible polysaccharide gel of the present invention which gels rapidly is also suitable for adding nitrogen nutrients and other additives such as vitamins to the gel form or competitive exclusion products such as "E>ROILACT~~ sold by Orion Corp., Finl<~nd.
This is especially useful with heat sensitive nutrients which, if exposed t.o temperatures over about 50°C, are denatured or inactivated.
The amount of the polysaccharide setting agent i:~
selected to form a soft flowable gel. If too much setting agent is used the gel is not easily flowable and thus is difficult to pump through the delivery system.
If too little setting agent is used the gel form may not maintain the immunizing organisms in a relatively uniform _ g _ suspension. In addition too little setting agent may also not properly trap the moisture and may allow the liquid to escape which can result in reduced viability of the immunizing organisms as well as causing wetting of the birds.
In order to determine the proper' amount of the setting agent to utilize to maintain the oocysts in suspension, carrageenan gel at different concentrations was made up by dissolving carrageenan. powder into tap water at 15 degrees C, blending thoroughly, adding a calcium chloride setting catalyst and allowing it to set for two to three m_Lnutes at room temperature. The viscosity of the gel was measured at room temperature using a viscometer. To measure the oocyst holding ability of different concentrations of carrageenan, 10 ml of each concentrat~_on of gel was added to a test tube and a fixed number of oocysts was added to each tube and mixed thoroughly. Samples from the very top of the gel 2o in each tube were taken every hour and the number of oocysts was counted under a microscope. The following table gives the results of this determination.
Table 1 Time o retention of oocysts T~aT~SPC~ /=~ rcnt-cni-i nn 1 cum - 0 0.4 0.6 0.8 1.0 Concentration From the results presented in the table and other tests it was deterrr~ined that a gel having a viscosity of at least 23 cps is required to maintain the oocysts in suspension. With carrageenan gel, this translates to about 0.6 percent carrageenan gel. The gel may contain more carrageenan than 0.6 percent, however it has been found that greater than about 1 percent gel does not provide any added advantage in maintaining the oocysts in suspension and may cause difficulties in delivery of the flowable gel. For carrageenan, the preferred range of gel is 0.8 to 1.0 percent with 1.0 percent being the most preferred.
As set out above, for Eimeria oocysts which are rather large and dense organisms, a gel having a viscosity of at least 23 cps is required to maintain the oocysts in suspens_~on. If the immunizing organisms in the gel are smaller or lighter, then a lower viscosity gel may be utilized to maintain the organisms in suspension. The proper amount of gel to utilize to maintain the suspension of organisms while also entrapping the moisture within the gel matrix, may be easily determined a_n accordance with the example set out 2 o above .
In order to determine whether poultry hatchlings in a flat would take up the gel beadlets a delivery system for use in associat=ion with a hatchery conveyor system was developed. A f=first embodiment of such an apparatus is illustrated in f=figures 1 and 2 generally indicated by the numeral 10. The apparatus 10 has a receiver 12 for receiving the hatchlings tray and to which the components of the spray apparatus are attached. The receiver 12 has 3o a top 14 attached along two opposing edges to two sidewalls 16 having a height to space the top 14 above the hatchlings tray and being spaced apart a distance to straddle the tray. Attached to the top 14 of the receiver 12 is a spray apparatus to enable spraying o:E
the gel into the ha.tchlings tray. The spray apparatus has a pump means to enable the soft flowable gel to be pumped through tubing and dispensed into the hatchlings tray through one or more spray nozzles. In the embodiment illustrated in the figures the apparatus has four such nozzles to provide complete coverage of the hatchlings tray. However, 1 i~o 4 nozzles are most acceptable. The pump apparatus illustrated in Figure 1 is an air actuated piston pump having a pump chamber with a one-way inlet valve and a one-wa;r outlet valve. Th.e inlet valve is connected to a gel reservoir through suitable tubing and the outlet valve is connected to the spray nozzles through suitable tubing. When the piston makes its out stroke the flowable gel is sucked into the chamber 1o through the one-way inlet valve. Once the chamber is full and it is desired to deliver the gel to the hatchlings tray, the piston pump is actuated and the piston travels on its in stroke pushing the gel from the chamber through the one-way outlet valve and tubing and spraying it into the hatchlings tray in the form of small beadlets. The spray nozzle is selected to produce a spray pattern of small beadlets of the vaccine. This may be achieved by design of the nozzle to disrupt the flow of the gel to form the small beadlets. The disruption 2o may be achieved by physical means such as the design of the nozzle outlet or the disruption m.ay be achieved through the use of air atomization of the gel spray.
This is accomplished by introducing air into the gel spray as it exits t:he nozzle. It has been found that air atomization provides uniform and easily reproduced spray patterns for immunizing a plurality of hatchery trays.
In order to determine whether the hatchlings will ingest the gel uniformly, 1.0 percent carrageenan gel containing oocysts, a blue food coloring was utilized with the above described apparatus. The apparatus was configured to deliver 25 ml of gel to each of the pis~~on pumps to give a total of 50 ml of gel for each hatchl:ings tray containing 100 birds. Day-old Cockrell's were divided into two groups, a treatment group and a posii~ive control group. The positive control group had 11 birds, from which one biro. was inoculated with one ml of gel,, five birds were inoculated with 0.5 ml of gel which was used for gel spray. The remaining five birds were - 11. -inoculated with 0.5 ml water containing about 2 x 105 per ml. The carrageenan gel at 1.0 percent containing approximately 2.5 x 105 oocysts per m:1 of gel was made and mixed with 6.7 percent blue dye. The treatment group of 92 birds was used -for gel spraying. Postmortem examination of the digestive tract of 46 of the gel treated birds was carried out at 15, 30, and 60 minutes after spraying. The remaining birds were examined 5 and 6 days after spray_Lng and lesions were scored from 0 to 4 i0 with 0 being normal and 4 being the maximal lesions.
Positive evidence of vaccination was observed in two ways-colored blue beaks, tongue and esophagi by the blue dye in the gel and the appearance of lesions in duodenum five days after vaccination and ceca 6 days after vaccination. In t:ne postmortem examination of 46 of the sprayed birds carried out at 15, 30 and 60 minutes after gel spraying 45 of the 46 birds or 98 percent picked up the gel as indicated by the blue tongue or blue roofs.
Among the birds positive with blue dye 10 of 16 birds had blue upper esophagus within 30 minutes and 12 of 14 birds had blue crops within 60 minutes.
Postmortem examination carried out after 5 and 6 days of gel spray v,~as done by examining the lower digestive tract, and particularly the duodenal loop and ceca and scoring the lesions observed. After five days 17 of 18 birds were positive with a average, lesions score of 1.1 ~0.6 on the duodenal loop and on the ceca.
3o After 6 days 100 percent of the birds were positive w_~th an average lesions score of 0.7 f0.3 on the duodenal loop and 0.7 X0.4 on the ceca It was observed that the gel sprayed on the chicl~>ens feathers was picked up within about three minutes after spraying and the gel on the floor of t=he tray was cleaned up within 30 minutes. The postmortem examination of t:he upper digestive tract of 46 birds show that an average of 98 percent of the birds ingest the gel within 60 minutes after spraying with 22 of 46 birds examined showed blue esophagus or crop after 30 minutes of spraying indicated the spray gel was effectively carried deeper into the birds digestive tract. The postmortem examination of the lower digestive tract of the 42 birds show that an average of 98 percent of the birds were infected with coccidia. Among the birds examined on day 5, 94 percent were positive with an average lesions score was 1.1 t0.6 and after day 6, 100 percent were positive with an so average lesions score of 0.7 ~0.3 on the duodenal loop and 0.7 ~0.4 on the ceca.
The above spray test was repeated a number of times to determine the uptake of the gel by the birds. The results of these tests are shown the following table.
Table 2 No. of Blrds Sprayed No. of Positive % of Posit we Average 98.7 From these tests an average of 98.7 percent of the birds were positive for uptake of the gel indicating that the spraying method of the present invention is suitable for vaccination for immunization of poultry hatchlings in the hatchlings tray.
The second embodiment of an apparatus for delivery of a soft flowable gel vaccine according to the present invention is illustrated in Figure 3, generally indicated by the numeral 50. The apparatus 50 has a receiver 52 for receiving the hatchling tray into which the components of the spray apparatus are attached. The receiver 52 has a top 54 attached along two opposing edges to two sidewalls 56 having a height to space the top 54 above the hatchlings tray and being spaced apart a 1o distances that straddle the tray. Attached to the top 54 of the receiver 52 are four air atomizing spray nozzles which are connected to one another through suitable tubing. The air atomizing spray nozzles are preferably external mix nozzles where the air and gel are mixed outside the nozzle. Such nozzles are available from Spraying Systems Co. The tubing in turn is connected to a outlet of a metered diaphragm pump and the inlet of the diaphragm pump is connected to a container containing the soft flowable gel. One such pump is that used for 2o chlorine dosing such as ProMinent gamma Solenoid dosing pumps. The use of a diaphragm pump with chemical resistant parts allows the apparatus to be washed by pumping warm detergent solutions and to be sterilized by pumping chlorine containing solutions through the apparatus. This makes clean up of the apparatus very simple. A suitable source of compressed air is connected to the nozzle such that as the pump pumps the gel through the tubing and out of the nozzle, the gel is mixed with air to provide for the formation of the small beadlets.
Three trays of day-old Cockerels each containing 100 hatchlings were immunized using the apparatus of the second embodiment. The carrageenan gel at 1.0 percent containing approximately 2.5 x 105 oocysts per ml of gel was made and mixed with 6.7 percent blue dye. The apparatus was configured to deliver 25 ml of gel.
Postmortem examination of the digestive tract of 30 of the gel treated birds from each tray was carried out at 15 and 30 minutes after spraying. 20 of the remaining birds were examined at 5 days for duodenal lesions and fecal samples of the final 20 birds from each tray collected 6 days after spraying for the presence of oocysts in the feces. Positive evidence of vaccination was observed one or more of three ways-colored blue beaks, tongue and esophagi by the blue dye in the gel, the appearance of lesions in duodenum five days after vaccination and the presence of oocysts in the feces 6 days after vaccination. The feces was collected for 24 1o hours and any oocysts isolated by salt flotation.
In the postmortem examination of the sprayed birds carried out at 15 and 30 minutes after gel spraying 90 of 90 birds had blue beak and 86 of 90 birds had blue tongue i5 after 15 minutes. &4 of 90 birds or 71.10 had blue crops within 30 minutes.
Postmortem examination carried out after 5 days of gel spray was done by examining the lower digestive 2o tract, and particularly the duodenal loop and scoring the lesions observed. After five days 42 of 58 birds or 72.40 had visible lesions on the duodenal loop. After 6 days 53 of 60 birds or 88.3% had feces with observable oocysts.
The results of these tests are shown the following table.
Table 3 N0. WITH POSITIVE C~OT~OR
BOX# BEAK TONGUE CROP DUODENAL OOCYSTS
LESION IN FECES
DAYS PS
TOTAL ~ 90/90 ~ 86/90 64/90 i 42/58 ~ 53/60 100 95.6 71.1 72.4 88.3 Another way of providing the gel vaccine of the present invention to the hatchlings would be by direct application to the nostrils. A gel containing 1.0 percent carrageenan, 2x105 oocysts per ml and 6.5 percent blue dye was used for the application. 0.2 ml of the gel was placed on the nostrils of 35 Cockrell's. The postmortem examination was performed on 23 of the birds for the detection of color 30 minutes after the introduction of the drops in the nostrils. All of the birds had a blue-colour in one or more of the tongue, roof of the beak, or crop indicating that the gel placed on the nostrils is ingested. Ten nostril vaccinated birds were compared witrl 10 vaccinated control in which the birds were allowed to ingest the vaccine presented as a self-supporting gel prepared in accordance with PCT
application WO 96/25,951. Five birds were maintained as 2o a non vaccinated control. Fecal samples from each of these groups was examined six days after vaccination for the presence of the oocysts in the feces. None of the non vaccinated controls had oocysts in the feces while all 10 of the vaccinated control birds were positive for the presence of oocysts in the feces and 8 of the 10 nostril vaccinated birds also had positive feces.
In order to allow for efficient administration of the nostril application, a debeaking machine has been modified to provide a nozzle to dispense 0.2 ml of flowable gel on the nostril as the bird is being the debeaked. It is standard practice in hatcheries that as the hatchlings emerge, they axe sorted for sex, the debeaked and vaccinated for a number of diseases. As the birds are being debeaked, the application of the flowable gel containing the coccidia provides for an efficient means of vaccinating the birds.
The use of the flowable gel vaccine would also allow for the preparation of multivalent vaccines containing not only the coccidia but other organisms commonly utilized for vaccination against respiratory diseases such as I~Tew Castle virus and bronchitis.
The method and soft gel vaccine of the present invention provides for an easy to use means of immunizing 1o a large number of hatchlings by spraying the vaccine on the hatchlings in the tray. By incorporating the apparatus into a conveyor system, this is easily accomplished.
Although various preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described herein in detail, it will appreciated by those skilled in the art that variations may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.
Claims (8)
1. A method of treating poultry hatchlings with a therapeutic agent in a hatchling tray, the method comprising:
providing the therapeutic agent in a soft gel form capable of being dispensed through a spray nozzle, providing a spray dispensing apparatus, the apparatus being capable of delivering a predetermined volume of the gel as a plurality of small beadlets through a spray nozzle, placing the hatchling tray containing the hatchlings beneath the spray nozzles of the dispensing apparatus, dispensing the predetermined volume of the soft gel containing the therapeutic agent as small beadlets into the hatchling tray, and allowing the hatchlings to consume the beadlets.
providing the therapeutic agent in a soft gel form capable of being dispensed through a spray nozzle, providing a spray dispensing apparatus, the apparatus being capable of delivering a predetermined volume of the gel as a plurality of small beadlets through a spray nozzle, placing the hatchling tray containing the hatchlings beneath the spray nozzles of the dispensing apparatus, dispensing the predetermined volume of the soft gel containing the therapeutic agent as small beadlets into the hatchling tray, and allowing the hatchlings to consume the beadlets.
2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the gel form is dispensed through an air atomizing spray nozzle.
3. A method according to claim 2 wherein the predetermined volume of the soft gel is between about 15 ml and about 50 ml per tray.
4. A method according to claim 3 wherein the therapeutic agent is an immunizing dose of a live organism.
5. A method according to claim 4 wherein the live organism is oocysts of one or more strains of Eimeria sp.
6. A dispensing apparatus for dispensing a therapeutic agent in a soft gel into a hatchling tray of poultry hatchlings, the apparatus comprising a receiver for receiving the hatchling tray, the receiver having a top attached along two opposing edges to two side walls extending generally perpendicular to the top, the side walls having a height to space the top above the hatchling tray and being space apart a distance to straddle the tray, the top being provided with one or more spray nozzles sized to permit a soft gel to pass therethrough and be dispersed in the form of small beadlets when placed under pressure, the spray nozzle being connected to a dispenser capable of dispensing a predetermined volume under pressure, and the dispenser being connected to a reservoir for containing the soft gel in a flowable form.
7. A dispensing apparatus according to claim 6 wherein the dispenser is a metered diaphragm pump.
8. A dispensing apparatus according to claim 7 wherein the spray nozzle is an air atomizing nozzle and the apparatus further includes a source of compressed air connected to the air atomizing nozzle.
Priority Applications (2)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2416726 CA2416726A1 (en) | 2003-01-20 | 2003-01-20 | Soft gel vaccine delivery system for treating poultry |
| CA 2427907 CA2427907A1 (en) | 2003-01-20 | 2003-05-05 | Soft gel vaccine delivery system for immunizing poultry |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2416726 CA2416726A1 (en) | 2003-01-20 | 2003-01-20 | Soft gel vaccine delivery system for treating poultry |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2416726A1 true CA2416726A1 (en) | 2004-07-20 |
Family
ID=32686715
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2416726 Abandoned CA2416726A1 (en) | 2003-01-20 | 2003-01-20 | Soft gel vaccine delivery system for treating poultry |
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| CA (1) | CA2416726A1 (en) |
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