I'm bumping this only because I have a question. In what I have read there are only two, or three if you count the case of the pheasant, of game-birds and chickens not coexisting well. I am not claiming to have some sort of PhD sort of knowledge on this topic, but I have yet to read any information or see any citation from PhD based research on this board. I understand the stress on bio-security and am not discounting information provided on this thread.
Coryza, as I have come to learn more about, is like the common cold or flu basically (?). Based on information from the findings of Dr. L. Dwight Schwartz on Infection Coryza it sounds like how the flu can affect people.
Age-wise, Coryza is a disease of juvenile and mature birds or birds 14 weeks of age or older. The incubation period is 1 to 3 days and the course of the disease is 4 to 12 weeks.
Since chickens are namely the carrier, and guinea fowl and turkey are equally susceptible to coryza as quail: what about my flock. Right now I have Beltsville White turkeys with blue-laced red wyandottes, which were hatched and brooded together. On top of that I have raised guinea fowl with d'Anvers, crested Blue Swedish and eventually the other chickens. So far there is no sickness in any of the birds. I realize that carriers will not show signs of the infection, but how many people out there raise their quail in close proximity to their chickens/ducks/turkeys (heck, even WITH them) and show no sign of infection?? In this case, while chickens can be carriers, could some not be?? Thus, one would know if they have it in their flock, right?
My guess is that to honestly be anywhere near effective in terms of bio-security one would need to legitimately keep the two separate as coryza can be airborne and could thus spread into their lungs just by breathing. It could be all over your clothes and skin so you'd almost have to bathe totally and with good antibacterial body wash. So I pose another question: is there a way to test birds for coryza? NPIP flocks are tested in seemingly easy ways (I am considering doing so), so why wouldn't there be a test out there for such a potentially devastating disease.
FYI, I am doing this to play the devil's advocate and question seemingly unfounded claims. I am not trying to downplay the severity of the (potentially) infectious nature disease, and offer my condolences to everyone who has had to deal with it, but regardless I find myself asking what if... Also, I do not intend to run out and rub chickens all over any quail!! Lol, just asking for the sake of asking.
