Texas

[RoosterCogburn7]

Yes, the TVMDL letter says that a vet can test. Agreed that vets don't treat chickens for the most part. If you can buy a POL pullet for $6-$20 -- Would you pay $50 or more to take a sick chicken to the vet? Especially when the chicken, by the time it is showing symptoms, is REAL sick...and most chicken problems can be treated at home OR they are hopeless by the time they are discovered. (such as Marek's) Most sick chickens will HIDE any problems that they have to protect themselves from abuse by flock mates.

My question would be does the vet have the P/T testing supplies on hand. The 'key to the door' is also the P/T certificate. It is supposed to accompany all chicken sales and all hatching egg sales. Testing at a sale or show would mean no paperwork -- so you would lack that key item.

If the first TVMDL training class of private testers is full - that's great -- but if you have someone come and pay them say 55-cents a mile for travel...and if you do port-to-port (round trip) -- and then cover their own expenses for - coveralls, shoe coverings, testing supplies and paperwork (like - portable printer - like the testers from A&M carry to print out your certificate on the spot)-- It could be very expensive to get P/T testing. Free on-site testing is a service that looks like it will no longer be supplied. -- (Like when there were full service gas stations and they checked your oil and washed your windshield -- I remember those days)---

It puts those who want to sell or even share/give poultry to others in a bit of a bind. We shouldn't transfer poultry without an up-to-date P/T certificate. If we don't have a certificate, do we just break/bend the law, or are we shut down?

Once you pay the tester expenses, you may as well go to a local vet if they would be willing to do the test and provide you with certification.

I'm trying to get my annual test ASAP -- but probably everyone else is too.


When I was involved in the cattle business we had a fantastic vet. Horses and cattle were his primary business. MOST vets now-a-days -- except in 'cattle country' don't do large animals. Both our ranch vets had during their practice had severe life-threatening injury from working with cattle. It's more dangerous than you think even for the best professionals.... but back to topic. Our one vet did a fecal smear for me when I brought in some chicken poop -- and was willing to do 'bumblefoot' surgery -- because we were long-time regular customers and friends as well. For the bumblefoot that my chickens had, I ended up soaking feet in tricyde-neo - and that solved the problem.... no recurrence in the intervening 4-years. (My chickens were in another persons care when they got it, I think that they were living in suboptimal conditions )

I wonder what it would take to get your local vet to do the blood test....especially if you are a regular customer and take your dog there --etc.
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Is anyone NPIP? Basically NPIP is P/T testing -- since it is national are there different testers?

My NPIP is still good until next summer. The T/P test was done as normal by TAMU. We weren't even at home, and he did all the birds. He just taped the cleared results to the fence. I wanted A/I testing done by a Vet. But, the rural vet, said they knew how to do it, they just weren't interested in doing it.

 

[ChicKat]

Thanks for the info RoosterCogburn7 --

only P/T testing - plus paperwork and fee is needed for NPIP - but added testing such as AI and MG can be added (As options). I think those tests are more complex and not available in the field like P/T.

Am I understanding correctly?

 

[RoosterCogburn7]

Thanks for the info RoosterCogburn7 --

only P/T testing - plus paperwork and fee is needed for NPIP - but added testing such as AI and MG can be added (As options). I think those tests are more complex and not available in the field like P/T.

Am I understanding correctly?

My understanding it is a blood test similar to P/T testing. The interesting thing about P/T is virtually eliminated as a disease. Things like cocci, Mereks, and predation are far more common. Honestly, I think they have it bassackwards, and they should be testing more A/I as that is what wiped out most of the commercial industry for sometime.

 

[ChicKat]

Yep, you are right -- the gears turn slowly though. Also, if people thought that someone would come, test, find a positive and ultimately and wipe out their entire flock, they may be reluctant to allow that someone on their property.

 

[kpolenz]

Just found this on the tamu website:

Authorized Testing Agent Training Schedule


Thursday, July 27, 2017 | 1-5 PM | Louis Pearce Pavilion, 555 George Bush Drive West, College Station, Texas 77840

• FULL – Due to overwhelming response this training is full.

More trainings to come!

• More training dates and places are being scheduled and as soon as they are confirmed they will be posted.

Don’t see a date that fits your needs? Contact us regarding your interest with TVMDL’s PT Program Office. Be sure to include your name, contact information, and location.

Hi

I have a question on this, what is required to take this training ?

 

[ChicKat]

The letter says:
"For more information contact the TVMDL PT Program Office at 979-845-3414 or [email protected]

If you contact them -- please let us know what you will find out.

ETA - amazing picture in your avatar.

 

[kpolenz]

The letter says:
"For more information contact the TVMDL PT Program Office at 979-845-3414 or [email protected]

If you contact them -- please let us know what you will find out.

ETA - amazing picture in your avatar.

Here is the reply
https://tvmdl.tamu.edu/testing-information/poultry/authorized-testing-agents/

Next question is who is going to sign up for this

 

[kpolenz]

My Avatar is a Sorbet Peony

 

[ChicKat]

Here is the reply
https://tvmdl.tamu.edu/testing-information/poultry/authorized-testing-agents/

Next question is who is going to sign up for this

Thank you. So it looks like 90 people are already signed up to take the training. And more training classes will be scheduled.

Seems that the weblink is still being developed -- so if we revisit it later, there may be more news.....

 

[bnjrob]

Yes, the TVMDL letter says that a vet can test. Agreed that vets don't treat chickens for the most part. If you can buy a POL pullet for $6-$20 -- Would you pay $50 or more to take a sick chicken to the vet? Especially when the chicken, by the time it is showing symptoms, is REAL sick...and most chicken problems can be treated at home OR they are hopeless by the time they are discovered. (such as Marek's) Most sick chickens will HIDE any problems that they have to protect themselves from abuse by flock mates.

My question would be does the vet have the P/T testing supplies on hand. The 'key to the door' is also the P/T certificate. It is supposed to accompany all chicken sales and all hatching egg sales. Testing at a sale or show would mean no paperwork -- so you would lack that key item.

If the first TVMDL training class of private testers is full - that's great -- but if you have someone come and pay them say 55-cents a mile for travel...and if you do port-to-port (round trip) -- and then cover their own expenses for - coveralls, shoe coverings, testing supplies and paperwork (like - portable printer - like the testers from A&M carry to print out your certificate on the spot)-- It could be very expensive to get P/T testing. Free on-site testing is a service that looks like it will no longer be supplied. -- (Like when there were full service gas stations and they checked your oil and washed your windshield -- I remember those days)---

It puts those who want to sell or even share/give poultry to others in a bit of a bind. We shouldn't transfer poultry without an up-to-date P/T certificate. If we don't have a certificate, do we just break/bend the law, or are we shut down?

Once you pay the tester expenses, you may as well go to a local vet if they would be willing to do the test and provide you with certification.

I'm trying to get my annual test ASAP -- but probably everyone else is too.


When I was involved in the cattle business we had a fantastic vet. Horses and cattle were his primary business. MOST vets now-a-days -- except in 'cattle country' don't do large animals. Both our ranch vets had during their practice had severe life-threatening injury from working with cattle. It's more dangerous than you think even for the best professionals.... but back to topic. Our one vet did a fecal smear for me when I brought in some chicken poop -- and was willing to do 'bumblefoot' surgery -- because we were long-time regular customers and friends as well. For the bumblefoot that my chickens had, I ended up soaking feet in tricyde-neo - and that solved the problem.... no recurrence in the intervening 4-years. (My chickens were in another persons care when they got it, I think that they were living in suboptimal conditions )

I wonder what it would take to get your local vet to do the blood test....especially if you are a regular customer and take your dog there --etc.
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Is anyone NPIP? Basically NPIP is P/T testing -- since it is national are there different testers?

Actually what is on the website is not the first class. They have a class coming up down at A&M that was full almost as soon as they posted it. And that was way before the letters went out. Some of the folks in breeder groups discovered it a month or two ago and started spreading the word among the breeder/showing community.

The folks in my groups have been discussing it and those that have already checked into getting the basic equipment to do your own flock say it will run about $285, depending on exactly what you get and from which vendor.

Personally, I don't mind this change. We've never been able to get our flock certificate because the tester for our area refused to communicate with us. We left messages and emails and got nowhere. We had contacted that Essler guy in charge and he said to contact the tester directly, and we did that and still go nowhere. That was several years ago when they still gave email contact info for their testers. And it irritated me because my husband is a veterinarian and they told him he was not allowed to do the testing because he was not an official tester. So now they're backtracking and saying that a veterinarian with all the schooling can test birds. Go figure. They only want to let people do things when it is convenient for them. I have very little nice to say about the b.s. that is the P/T testing and NPIP crock of manure that is forced on people because the commercial ag people do not want people raising their own chickens for food. Anyway, now that they will allow a vet to do the testing, we will probably go ahead and do our flock at some point. I am probably going to go to a class when one is close enough and not full, so that I can do it as well though.

There are a few people that take their chickens to vets when they can find a vet to see them. My husband has had several chickens come through where he works. Of course he also is comfortable with exotics and birds, and agreed to see the chickens because we raise poultry and they are not out of his realm of expertise. But it really is difficult for vets to see chickens because there isn't a lot that they can do because of the limitations placed on them by the USDA/FDA in regards to medications. Even though vets can give medications off-label to animals, the gov't doesn't want poultry to be given medications off label because technically they are a food source. And of course because of the fact that few people have ever wanted their poultry treated by a vet, because of cost, and the way the commercial poultry industry is run, there are almost no medications that are approved for use in poultry. So when you have the government threatening to go after vets for administering meds off-label to a pet chicken, that's a problem.

For a vet to be willing to do the P/T testing, they would have to have enough people wanting it done. For one thing, there could be issues of liability for vets working with poultry who do not have knowledge of poultry. Poultry is not something that most vets learn anything about. In fact, most vets don't learn much at all about birds of any kind. So even doing the P/T testing they may be out of their realm of knowledge and they won't necessarily feel comfortable doing it. And then too, they would need to have enough people wanting it done to justify the cost of buying the supplies and keeping any supplies current and not past their expiration date.

NPIP is a bigger crock than just the P/T testing. NPIP is different in every state and each state chooses which diseases they test for in their NPIP. Some states like Arizona don't have NPIP, others only do NPIP testing for flocks of a certain size - so small breeders can't get NPIP. NPIP is just a way for the gov't to make money off of people and to get people on their list of poultry owners so when some big chicken farm claims that a small breeder gave their birds something, the gov't can quickly find who is on the NPIP list and go after them without making much effort to find them. If the diseases and such were a real threat, NPIP would be standardized all over the country and every place would have it and it would be strictly enforced. In TX, you can get NPIP with just P/T testing - you just have to pay the fee for the NPIP certificate, which was at least $100/year for a small flock the last time I looked. Or you can choose to the get P/T and AI NPIP certificate. Which again, if NPIP was really all about preventing disease spread, you wouldn't be having a choice of doing just P/T or P/T and AI. UGH.