First, digestive tract inflammation
1. Causes of the disease
The reasons for the occurrence of digestive tract inflammation in centipedes can be as follows:
(1) Feed decay and deterioration. This is the most common cause of centipede digestive tract inflammation, especially in hot seasons. The centipede feed is usually some small animals with high protein content and rich in water and juice. They are generally killed before feeding. If the storage time is too long after killing, it is prone to decay and deterioration. After the centipede ingests the feed, it can cause acute digestive tract inflammation.
(2) Toxicity of feed animals. In general, regular feed animals for centipedes do not produce toxic substances that are toxic to centipedes themselves. The toxicity of feed animals comes mainly from toxic substances in the growing environment that can enter the feed animal's body surface but the feed animal is not sensitive to the toxin or it has not entered the body yet, so it does not cause a reaction in the feed animals, making it difficult for the feeders to notice. After feeding, it can cause centipede acute or chronic digestive tract inflammation.
(3) Improper control of feed feeding. Occasionally, if the feed is fed too little and some centipedes become excessively hungry, and the next day the feed is increased dramatically, these hungry centipedes will eat too much. At this time, if the temperature drops sharply, these overeating centipedes will inevitably have indigestion, and the food in the digestive tract will stay for too long and ferment, causing inflammation.
2. Symptoms and characteristics of the disease
Simultaneous diseases caused by pathogenic factors are the characteristics of this disease. The diseased centipedes first have indigestion, abdominal distension, and weakness, followed by diarrhea and loss of appetite. Then, as the inflammation produces toxic substances that invade the tissues of the whole body, the centipedes suffer from internal poisoning. The head becomes congested and purplish-red, the whole body becomes weak and powerless, movements become slow, the venom hooks are fully stretched, and finally the centipedes become unable to crawl and die under tiles or other hidden places. They rarely die in the rearing soil. Autopsy of the dead centipede can reveal warm and red intestinal mucosa, ulceration, and pale yellow liquid in the abdominal cavity. The feces in the intestine are loose and foul-smelling.
3. Prevention and control
(1) Strictly control the quality of feed. It is best to feed fresh live feed animals to centipedes. They should be killed on the spot before feeding. If there is any remaining live feed, it can be stored, but the dead feed animals should be discarded. If the feed is found to be decayed and deteriorated, it must not be fed.
(2) For feed animals bred on their own, attention should be paid to the breeding environment, feed, and drinking water. Do not use substances that may cause centipedes to become ill, such as heavy metal drugs and certain disinfectant solutions. It is also necessary to ensure that the breeding soil, feed, drinking water, and even air are not contaminated by pathogens. Once infected feed animals are found, the types and possible infection ranges of the pathogens should be analyzed to determine whether the batch of feed animals can be used.
(3) For wild caught feed animals, they should be captured in areas without pollution from pesticides, fertilizers, and other harmful substances. During the capture, it is also necessary to check whether there are deaths of the same kind of animals in the area to determine whether the captured feed animals are diseased.
(4) Clean the pool. Remove all centipedes from the infected pool and place them in several small containers. Based on specific symptoms, separate them into healthy groups, suspicious groups, and diseased groups for isolated breeding. Remove all the rearing soil in the pool and replace it with new soil. All items in the pool, such as drinking trays, water trays or tanks, and tiles, should be thoroughly disinfected and sun-dried before reuse.
(5) In seasons of sudden increase or decrease in temperature, close doors and windows when the temperature drops sharply. If necessary, open the heating facilities appropriately to ensure relatively stable temperature. But when heating, pay attention to not causing smoke or gas pollution in the rearing house.
(6) Drug treatment. For diseased or suspected centipedes, the following prescriptions can be taken as reference:
① 0.5 grams of sulfadimidine, 0.6 grams of multienzyme tablets, and 200-300 grams of feed, mix all three ingredients well and feed once a day for 3 days.
② Dissolve 2 grams of coptis powder, 1 tablet of multienzyme, and 5 grams of full-fat milk powder in 100 milliliters of warm boiling water, mix well, absorb with a sponge, and let the centipedes suck. Feed once a day for 3 days, and remember to replace the sponge every day. This treatment method is mainly for small centipedes.
③ 0.25 grams of chloramphenicol, 0.5 grams of compound vitamins, and 300 grams of feed crushed into powder and mixed well, then feed once a day for 3 days.
④ 0.5 grams of dupont, crushed into powder, mix with 500 grams of feed, and feed once a day for 2 days.
Second, centipede pharyngeal ulcers
This disease is a recently discovered acute and explosive infectious disease in centipedes, which was first reported by experts such as Liang Jiaquan from Guangxi Agricultural University.
1. Causes of the disease
This disease is caused by the infection of centipedes by a bacterium called "pseudomonas aeruginosa". This disease mostly occurs in hot seasons.
2. Symptoms of the disease
The main manifestation is that the mouth cannot be opened and closed. Mucus flows out of the mouth. The sick centipedes cannot eat or swallow. They become lethargic and eventually die of exhaustion.
3. Prevention and control
At present, the prevention and control technology of this disease is still under research, but strengthening the management of centipede feeding and improving environmental hygiene and not feeding contaminated feed animals are still effective measures to prevent this disease.
Third, powdery mite disease
1. Causes of the disease
Powdery mites are a type of mite animal with a body length of less than 1 millimeter. When they parasitize on centipedes' bodies, it causes centipede powdery mite disease. In hot weather in summer, if the humidity in the rearing room or pool is too high, it is easy for powdery mites to settle and breed here. At this time, if there are centipedes molting or centipede offspring present, because their skin is exposed and unprotected, it is easy for powdery mites to parasitize. After being parasitized by powdery mites, on the one hand, they consume a large amount of nutrients from the centipedes by sucking their body fluids, causing the centipedes to become thin and emaciated and eventually die. On the other hand, powdery mites produce toxins that irritate the centipedes, preventing them from normal feeding and drinking, and at the same time, the powdery mites bite through the centipedes' skin, making them susceptible to secondary infection by pathogens. Therefore, when powdery mite disease occurs, if it is not dealt with in a timely manner, it often leads to the occurrence of other diseases.
2. Symptoms of the disease
Centipedes that are parasitized by powdery mites become extremely restless. They often crawl aimlessly and rapidly on the activity field or the rearing soil. Sometimes they try to lick their backs. Even when they are not crawling forward, some appendages have a "scratching" motion. This phenomenon first occurs in centipedes that have just molted or newly born young centipedes. As the disease progresses, other centipedes also begin to fall ill. The diseased centipedes become thin, emaciated, and die. Sometimes they die from secondary infection by other pathogenic bacteria. Careful observation on the rearing soil can reveal the presence of mite-like animals. By examining the surface of the infected centipedes, mite-like animals can also be found, which are powdery mites.
3. Prevention and control
There is no good drug for prevention and treatment of this disease because drugs that can kill powdery mites are often harmful to centipedes. Therefore, control can only be implemented from a management perspective. The following measures can be taken:
(1) Ensure good ventilation and lighting in the rearing house and do a good job in heatstroke prevention and cooling, maintaining a good breeding environment indoors.
(2) Pay attention to the storage of items and miscellaneous objects in the rearing room. Work clothes should be washed and sun-dried regularly, and high-temperature treatment should be carried out if necessary to kill any powdery mites or mite eggs on them.
(3) If powdery mites are found, all the centipedes in the pool should be removed and the original rearing soil should be removed. Sprinkle the entire pool or house with acaricides such as trichlorfon or tau-fluvalinate, and close the rearing house for a period of time before reusing it.
(4) After removing the diseased group of centipedes, separate the centipedes that are molting, tender ones, and suspected ones from healthy centipedes, put them in separate small basins, and intermittently expose them to the sun to drive away powdery mites. Each exposure time is about 30 minutes, with a break of 30 minutes in between. After exposure, quickly pick up the centipedes one by one into another basin, disinfect the original basin before using it, and place it under a UV lamp for irradiation, which also seems to have some effectiveness. The method is the same as exposing it to the sun.
(5) Place a semi-dried pork bone on the rearing soil or activity field during the day and remove it every 2-3 hours. This method has a good effect on attracting and killing powdery mites. However, this method cannot be used for the prevention of undiseased centipedes, otherwise there is a risk of being counterproductive.
Fourth, parasitic nematode disease
Wireworms, which often parasitize in centipedes, are also called iron worms. This disease mainly comes from feed animals with parasites. The worm parasites in the centipedes' digestive tracts and even penetrate the intestinal walls, coiling outside the intestines like iron wires, hence the name. These parasites suck the centipedes' body fluids, causing the centipedes to lose a large amount of nutrients, which hinders their normal growth and causes them to become small and thin. Although this disease does not occur explosively and does not cause extensive damage to centipede breeding, as people's requirements for animal product quality increase, this disease may become a factor affecting the quality of centipede products. The prevention and control of this disease mainly involves reducing or not feeding feed animals such as grasshoppers and locusts, and instead using juicy feed such as earthworms and tadpoles, and ensuring that drinking water is not contaminated by worms. When frequent occurrences of nematode diseases are found in centipede groups, 0.1 grams of levamisole can be crushed and mixed with 5 grams of whole milk powder, dissolved in 100 milliliters of hot water, absorbed with a sponge, and then fed to the centipedes to drive away the parasites.
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