Williams R B
Wellcome Research Laboratories, Berkhamsted, Herts., UK.
Vet Res Commun. 1996;20(5):437-47. doi: 10.1007/BF00419181.
An investigation was made of the relationship between the water and food consumption of healthy and sick chickens Using coccidiosis as a disease model, and uninfected chickens as healthy controls, male birds of an egg-production breed and males and females of a meat-production breed were found to have simultaneously reduced water and food intakes 4 days after infection with Eimeria acervulina or E. maxima, and from 4 to 6 days after infection with E. tenella. This phenomenon was associated with reduction of weight gains and poor food conversion ratios. Whether birds were healthy or sick, and regardless of the degree reduction of dietary intake, there was a more or less constant relationship between their food and water consumption. The ratio of the weights of water and food consumed had a value of about 1.9, with a range of 1.1-2.4. It is concluded that neither water nor food has an advantage over the other as a vehicle for chemotherapy. However, other factors, such as case and speed of administration, and avoidance of adsorption onto food particles, favour the drinking-water route.
以球虫病为疾病模型，未感染的鸡作为健康对照，对健康鸡和患病鸡的水和食物消耗之间的关系进行了调查。结果发现，蛋用型品种的雄性鸡以及肉用型品种的雄性和雌性鸡，在感染堆型艾美耳球虫或巨型艾美耳球虫4天后，以及在感染柔嫩艾美耳球虫4至6天后，水和食物摄入量同时减少。这种现象与体重增加减少和食物转化率低有关。无论鸡是健康还是患病，且无论饮食摄入量减少的程度如何，它们的食物和水消耗之间都存在或多或少恒定的关系。消耗的水和食物的重量比约为1.9，范围为1.1至2.4。得出的结论是，作为化疗的载体，水和食物都没有比对方更具优势。然而，其他因素，如给药的难易程度和速度，以及避免吸附在食物颗粒上，则有利于饮水途径。
