Anyone seeing an increase in deformities?

[Serina81]

I've had about triple the number of deformed chicks this year. With Japan admitting today to complete melt downs of three nuclear reactors, I have to wonder... Anybody else seeing an increase?

 

[Thegrayeyedgirl]

I'm not hatching..but as someone interested in the medical field (for humans), I do keep tabs on the deformities in chickens phenom. There are a lot of posts about leg deformities lately. I've done a little research both on BYC and online about the chicks that are born without eyes and die soon after hatching. I can't find a lot of veterinary literature about the condition, no names or research papers or anything. The chickens hatched with their brains exposed are especially fascinating. I wonder why there isn't more research into chicken deformities, since this condition especially seems to bear similarities to anencephaly (brain tissue exposed and mostly absent) and exencephaly (brain outside) in human babies. There is one page, and I think it was posted here on BYC somewhere, about the percentages of different types of deformities in chickens. Apparently the eyeless and exencephalic chicks are some of the most common! Have you been getting a lot of chicks with these types of deformities? I'll see if I can find those statistics.....

 

[Serina81]

Eyeless, eyes in the wrong place, twisted beak, twisted legs, horrible hatches...it's been an awful year. I'd love to see those statistics.

 

[Thegrayeyedgirl]

http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/vm095

This is a page that was posted on another thread about chick deformities it seems that 1.8% of hatches, or at least of hatchery chicks, have some sort of deformity. What percentage of deformity are you seeing in your chicks?

 

[ultasol]

I have not experienced any more problems than usual, and I hatch quite a lot. I would imagine more of the problem can be attributed to inbreeding, linebreeding a little too closely, problems during incubation (recognized or not), etc.

Of all the ducks this year, only one minor problem (slightly curled foot), which I think was likely an incubation issue.

Of all the chicks this year had a couple cross beaks with and without associated facial deformities, a couple splay legs, no more than normal.

 

[LeafZoo]

It would be interesting to look at where y'all live on the prevailing winds route. If more deformities are being seen where more of the radioactive particles might have fallen.

 

[Fay at Frizzled Feathers]

No,Not at all.

I've hatched out hundreds of chicks so far this year and have had only a handful of splay leg chicks ,nothing else so far.

 

[Serina81]

I'm seeing probably 5-10% deformities. It could be the incubator I spouse because I got a me one this year. It's definitely not in breeding. I had another one hatch this morning that can't straighten up and has a big ulcer under its beak

 

[MetalSmitten]

all the deformities mentioned though are KNOWN deformities, usually caused either by incubation errors or by nutritional factors. even the exposed brain, it's #24 on this list: http://www.natureform.com/kb/index.php?article=1011 and has known causes. personally, i'd more blame any increased deformities this year not on japan, and more on the number of crazy storms and power outages happening... those have got to mess up some incubators. now, show me a glowing chick or a chick with five eyes, and i'll be more concerned about the fallout factor