Poultry

Poultry represents the second most commonly farmed animals, producing two important food commodities meat and eggs and having big perspective in further development. New breeds and hybrids as products of genetic selection, with fast fattening cycles, but suffer by the diseases, from which in Europe, but worldwide as well, most frequently treated by antimicrobials are coccidiosis and necrotic enteritis, followed by colibacillosis. Within the European Union antibiotics are authorised as veterinary medicinal products belonging among prescription-only medicines, while anticoccidial substances (namely ionophore antibiotics as well as those chemically synthetised) belong to coccidiostats and being approved as feed additives approaching farms without prescription of vets. Intensive farming of big flocks counting thousands to tens of thousands of birds exist, practically all antimicrobials are administered via medicated drinking water and therefore requiring functional and clean water delivery systems. Individual treatment is hardly possible and if used (e.g. vaccines injections) it is at early life stage. Despite pressure from market and customers as well as risk of antimicrobial resistance led currently to enforcement of prudent use of antimicrobials in many countries worldwide, there are still countries using antimicrobials as growth promoters. On the other hand, trend of responsible use or more and more no use of antimicrobials during life span of birds is coming. To succeed with farming without antimicrobials, complex, holistic approach should be accepted and implemented into practice using alternative tools to improve animal health, working on biosecurity and animal welfare and step by step minimise the need of antimicrobials use. To this improvement can help also precisely and timely performed vaccination programmes tailored for the conditions of grandparents, parents and finally food-producing birds—broilers for meat production or laying hens.