Not an Emergency...Marek's in the Flock

jerryse said:

Cull all marecks birds.They are shedding live virus.Most likely infected during first month of life and symptoms appear at about 6 months.Hold off on chicks for awhile.After all birds are well past the age symptoms appear then think about chicks.Keep them away from your flock so they do not get infected.Said to be spread by dander from infected birds.After chicks are 2 months or so old it is said they can not be infected.This is from memory.A sure fire way is skip chicks for one year.All carriers are dead by then and no virus should have survived that long without a host.

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Harry Rooster said:

Since you said that after chicks are 2 mo old or so, does that mean that my cockerel (almost 1 yr old) can not catch this from the new pullets we just got that may have this? They are in a seperate pen and he is free range, but he caught something, cause he got respiratory problems with other symptoms. So even if they have Marek's, being he is free range and older, he wouldn't catch this from them just through airborne particles?

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Harry Rooster said:

So sorry for you. I may be having this also, don't know yet, waiting for the necropsy report to tell if it's Marek's of Lymphoma, and then I guess they will tell me what I should do. Personally, I hope they don't tell me to cull. I've never had to do that and I've had chickens for about 7 years now. I know that's a hard decision. Sorry I don't know enough to give you input, just kind words of compassion, I'll be looking to see what others may advise you, so I'll know if my time comes around. Sorry.

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jerryse said:

Cull all marecks birds.They are shedding live virus.Most likely infected during first month of life and symptoms appear at about 6 months.Hold off on chicks for awhile.After all birds are well past the age symptoms appear then think about chicks.Keep them away from your flock so they do not get infected.Said to be spread by dander from infected birds.After chicks are 2 months or so old it is said they can not be infected.This is from memory.A sure fire way is skip chicks for one year.All carriers are dead by then and no virus should have survived that long without a host.

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Harry Rooster said:

The new pullets we got are the culprets. No they were malnourished, and ragged looking when we got them. We have had chickens for about 7 yrs or more, and never had any symptoms of any diseases, all free range, only predator problems here, until we got these. I put them in a pen by themselves, but my cockerel (will be 1 yr old on Easter day) was over there nosing around checking out the new chicks a couple of days before he started showing symptoms of diarreha, runny nose, wouldn't eat or drink, just standing sleeping always. I immediately got him into a big cage that day away from everyone and started treating him with Tetracycline, he seems recovered now, other than the worm I saw yesterday on his paper in his cage. I have not returned him to the yard yet due to needing to worm him now and waiting for the cold and rain to stop first. Also been putting ACV in his water, and at the beginning, electrolytes and fed yougart. But the pullets, lost 2 right off the bat, have another in my hosp. still coughing after treating with antibiotics for 2 wks ACV and electrolytes. Then yesterday morn. found another in the pen on her back with legs straight up in the air. Have her now in the cat carrier in my hosp, since I don't have any more cages or space, she can't stand anyway. Drinks excessively, won't eat, shaking her head and slinging fluid whenever she shakes her head, water pooh that just squirts out, almost all water, lots of it. sickly eyes, pale face. She is the only one that has been this bad so far. The other 2 that died ate and drank all the way up until they died (pretty quickly) with no paralysis. I don't know, I've never been faced with this stuff before or anything like it. I first thought they had caught a cold due to the rain and cold. But I noticed that they smelled bad the day they brought them, but I thought that it was because he had been keeping them in a horse pen with a bunch of others. Boy was I stupid. But my cockerel has always been very healthy not even mites or anything that I know of. He never drank their water or ate their food, only looked at them through the wire, had to be airborne, or either transported on my shoes across the yard, I didn't know about biosecurity, or that this was even possible. None of my other free range chickens or cockerel has any symptoms of anything, and they free range same place my other cockerel did. I'm confused.

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Harry Rooster said:

The new pullets we got are the culprets. No they were malnourished, and ragged looking when we got them. We have had chickens for about 7 yrs or more, and never had any symptoms of any diseases, all free range, only predator problems here, until we got these. I put them in a pen by themselves, but my cockerel (will be 1 yr old on Easter day) was over there nosing around checking out the new chicks a couple of days before he started showing symptoms of diarreha, runny nose, wouldn't eat or drink, just standing sleeping always. I immediately got him into a big cage that day away from everyone and started treating him with Tetracycline, he seems recovered now, other than the worm I saw yesterday on his paper in his cage. I have not returned him to the yard yet due to needing to worm him now and waiting for the cold and rain to stop first. Also been putting ACV in his water, and at the beginning, electrolytes and fed yougart. But the pullets, lost 2 right off the bat, have another in my hosp. still coughing after treating with antibiotics for 2 wks ACV and electrolytes. Then yesterday morn. found another in the pen on her back with legs straight up in the air. Have her now in the cat carrier in my hosp, since I don't have any more cages or space, she can't stand anyway. Drinks excessively, won't eat, shaking her head and slinging fluid whenever she shakes her head, water pooh that just squirts out, almost all water, lots of it. sickly eyes, pale face. She is the only one that has been this bad so far. The other 2 that died ate and drank all the way up until they died (pretty quickly) with no paralysis. I don't know, I've never been faced with this stuff before or anything like it. I first thought they had caught a cold due to the rain and cold. But I noticed that they smelled bad the day they brought them, but I thought that it was because he had been keeping them in a horse pen with a bunch of others. Boy was I stupid. But my cockerel has always been very healthy not even mites or anything that I know of. He never drank their water or ate their food, only looked at them through the wire, had to be airborne, or either transported on my shoes across the yard, I didn't know about biosecurity, or that this was even possible. None of my other free range chickens or cockerel has any symptoms of anything, and they free range same place my other cockerel did. I'm confused.

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