What exactly does breed for resistance mean?

[hallerlake]

Excuse me, but if the experts run off to their advanced boards, who are we newbies supposed to learn from, each other?

There are different levels of people on these boards. There are the folks who raise hundreds of chicks a year, and cull heavily according to specific standards for showing and/or utility. There are the people with a few backyard fowl who can't bear to see even one of them die. Many fall in between. Some of us are simply new to chickens, nothing more, nothing less. I understand the frustration of having to read posts from people you deem ignorant or foolish, but if you segregate yourselves, and withhold your experience and knowledge, where does that leave ME?

I have found this discussion, with it's opposing viewpoints informative and enlightening. It has helped me formulate an approach on how to deal with illness, if and when it hits my small flock. I am richer for the experience.


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Oh, what a great idea. I wonder if that would be a possibility? I guess we could check with Nifty (Rob) and see.

 

[hallerlake]

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Yer playin' absolutes...not all wild birds that get sick, are going to be eaten by wild animals...& the ones that don't get sick are the ones that aren't exposed to the pathogen...

Exposure equals sickness

Exposure can equal death

Therefore any survivors Exposed can & will pass on a stronger immunity to progeny!

THERE! Plain & simple in linear logic...

There are people on this thread, including myself, with decades of experience breeding & raising thousands of chickens. You have, for not very long, had 5 chickens & have actually bred none. Don't you think it's a little presumptuous of you to press on when you actually have no knowledge of the subject at hand?

Gogoalie's pressing on has caused you all to elaborate in ways that have been most instructive.

 

[fowlman01]

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As far as I know, there is no way to breed resistance to Avian Influenza. Right now I would be worried more about Exotic Newcastle Disease. It has been discovered in a commercial flock right across the border of California in Mexico. This happened two weeks ago. END is also a disease that you cannot breed for resistance against. Several years back the state killed 10 million chickens in CA because of an END outbreak.

If END or AI hit Calif, there will be a massive die off and the birds not effected will be killed if they are within miles of the outbreak. There will be no poultry shows and the moving of birds will be prohibited. It is a big deal!

Walt

 

[wolftracks]

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As far as I know, there is no way to breed resistance to Avian Influenza. Right now I would be worried more about Exotic Newcastle Disease. It has been discovered in a commercial flock right across the border of California in Mexico. This happened two weeks ago. END is also a disease that you cannot breed for resistance against. Several years back the state killed 10 million chickens in CA because of an END outbreak.

If END or AI hit Calif, there will be a massive die off and the birds not effected will be killed if they are within miles of the outbreak. There will be no poultry shows and the moving of birds will be prohibited. It is a big deal!

Walt

I heard about this also. Scary stuff. I remember the time they came in and killed off all the flocks. It was one reason I was a little reluctant to get back into poultry. With the amount of time and money and a lot of sentimental reasons, I would hate for something like this to happen.

If there is no way to breed for resistance that what is the alternative? Will all birds be confiscated and destroyed?

 

[fowlman01]

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As far as I know, there is no way to breed resistance to Avian Influenza. Right now I would be worried more about Exotic Newcastle Disease. It has been discovered in a commercial flock right across the border of California in Mexico. This happened two weeks ago. END is also a disease that you cannot breed for resistance against. Several years back the state killed 10 million chickens in CA because of an END outbreak.

If END or AI hit Calif, there will be a massive die off and the birds not effected will be killed if they are within miles of the outbreak. There will be no poultry shows and the moving of birds will be prohibited. It is a big deal!

Walt

I heard about this also. Scary stuff. I remember the time they came in and killed off all the flocks. It was one reason I was a little reluctant to get back into poultry. With the amount of time and money and a lot of sentimental reasons, I would hate for something like this to happen.

If there is no way to breed for resistance that what is the alternative? Will all birds be confiscated and destroyed?

I don't allow anyone with birds on my property and this may help little, but if END or AI
are discovered close by, they will still kill all my birds. We are usually fine here in Norcal. Most of the problems are in Socal. I will post any new info in this thread. I am a California Poultry Health Inspector, so I get this info daily.
I don't believe they have ever "depopulated" a flock as far north as Modesto.

Walt

 

[wolftracks]

That's good to know.

It would be great to get updates. Thank you

Hopefully this thread will continue. It's very informative.

I'm going to keep checking in on it. One more subsctibed thread. Oh Joy! LOL

 

[drdoolittle]

This is a great discussion. I do have some questions, though. I bought some chicks last summer from someone who was NPIP-----I thought this meant their flock was reasonably healthy and vaccinated. Well, some of the chicks became ill----not respiratory (I don't think)----their eyes ended up being "stuck" shut and they basically just wasted away. There were 10 chicks, and any that developed symptoms died---leaving 5 healthy chicks. They were never around any of my flock, except for 3 chicks of about the same age that I had hatched in the house and who never developed any symptoms. I don't know if this means that whatever the new chicks got was something on my property that my chickens were resistant to or what. All the chicks were integrated into my original flock after all the sick ones had died. Now some of my chickens are showing signs of being ill-----nothing that seems serious, just some of them kind of coughing or sneezing---no drainage from eyes or nostrils or even acting ill, just these weird coughs every now and then. I did add apple cider vinegar to their water as well as an antibiotic over the weekend. Do most on here think I should cull all the birds who are sneezing or coughing? I would hate to do that as it doesn't seem serious, but don't want a "sick" flock either.

 

[halo]

This is why NPIP means absolutely nothing to me, and I refuse to participate. All your NPIP number means is that your flock was tested on a certain day, and they were free of sickness on that day. It does not mean they will be healthy the week after that. Only for that day.

It can help, as in monitoring your flock yearly, but as far as putting so much faith in the system, it sure gives people purchasing birds a false sense of security, and people selling birds license to steal. Their flock can be NPIP, and be snotting and sneezing and dieing, but they can still advertise as being NPIP until their date is up.

Phooey.

 

[Judy]

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Which is why I have never gone to a chicken show or auction. Maybe I should....

This is a fascinating thread; I just found it for some reason. Thank you so much to all these experienced chicken keepers who contributed. What a wealth of information and approaches!

 

[fowlman01]

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Pullorum is not an issue here in CA. Hardly anyone belongs to the NPIP Program. It does not protect from other chicken diseases.

Walt