3 chickens died in a week

[Pompona]

Hi everyone,
Last week, 3 of my bantams died (2 sebrights were put down by the vet and the last one just died after a couple of days of being sick). We are pretty sure it's Marek's due to symptoms, but still waiting for necropsy results.
My flock is a mix of vaccinated and unvaccinated chickens (There are 5 normal fowl, 7 pekin bantams and some smaller breeds like serama, dutch bantam and sebright, some pictures attached) half vaccinated, half not.
Unvaccinated chickens mostly come from a vaccinated broody that I let hatch chicks, others I hatched in an incubator. I tried to get the vaccine before they hatched but here in Spain they only sell it to production farms. So they ended up unvaccinated and they are now 5-6 months old.
So, one of my questions is, in your experience, do you think I will loose all my unvaccinated chickens? I am so sad. Many of them, especially the bantams are pets to our family.
How do you cope with loosing your chickens one by one? It's just disheartening, I have been trying to save the chickens as soon as I see they are not well, treating for coccidiosis, deworming, even giving antibiotics in some cases. I know Marek's got no cure, but still, I try to do everything I can just in case.
The last couple of months, since they started dying, has been no fun
I appreciate any insights
Thanks!

 

[coach723]

I'm so sorry. If it does turn out to be Marek's then it's very difficult to predict how many may be lost. Some strains of the virus are more virulent than others, some breeds are more susceptible than others, silkies are very susceptible. Many of us that have dealt with this found that initial losses were heaviest, then things start to taper off and it's not as bad. That could take a year. Some birds may never show symptoms at all, including unvaccinated. Every bird and every immune system is different. If you have a very virulent strain, then losses may be higher. If it turns out to be Marek's then your flock have all been exposed, are all considered carriers, and you should run a closed flock. Whether to add vaccinated birds in the future, or unvaccinated, is a personal choice. Since the vaccine doesn't prevent them from getting the virus, or transmitting it, it only prevents the formation of the tumors associated with it, thus reducing mortality, there are many different opinions on it's usefulness. There is at least one study that says the vaccine is not effective against all strains since the virus continues to mutate (same reason the flu vaccine is not always effective). So as far as the future, you need to educate yourself, read as much as you can, and then decide what is best for you and your flock. Marek's is much more common that many people realize, some flocks may have it for quite some time before it's recognized. I also have some fairly old birds that have never shown symptoms. I have a 12 year old roo that has never had any signs of it, none of mine are vaccinated.
I will attach to a good article by another member here who has also gone through this.
I personally decided to try to breed for resistance rather than depend on the vaccine. Honestly, neither decision is "wrong". You have to do what you are comfortable with. There are people in both camps. Vaccine or no vaccine, most of us are trying to hatch from non symptomatic birds and end up with birds with more resistance to the disease. There are many current scientific studies that are also doing that in a far more controlled way. I know it's heartbreaking, but it isn't your fault. I've cried many tears over much loved birds. I lost a beautiful roo this year to it, he will be very hard to replace. It's just a nasty, nasty virus. It doesn't present exactly the same in every bird. I've had some seem fine and then pass very quickly and necropsy shows them just full of the visceral tumors. I've had others with only occular symptoms and they tend to live longer, but eventually can be blind.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...-i-learned-to-deal-with-mareks-disease.76944/

There are also a couple of very long threads/articles, links below, that you might want to check out when you have the time:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq.66077/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...ding-for-resistance-to-mareks-disease.894589/

 

[Pompona]

Thanks a lot for replying, coach723. I'm pretty sure it is Mareks, so I'm hoping that at least some unvaccinated birds survive. So far I've had a couple of birds waste away and die despite all treatments, a bunch of chicks die at around 6 weeks, a couple of sebright cockerels that just kept getting sick again and again so I ended up their misery and one pullet with neurological symptoms that the vet euthanized (the one sent for necropsy). But it's been really hard.
I will surely look at the threads you mention. Thanks again!

 

[Pompona]

Update: a necropsy confirmed we do have Marek's. Sincd ghe last post, I have lost my two Houdan roosters ( both became paralyzed and emaciated) and 2 black pekin bantams (emaciated and diarrhea, no neurological signs, quick death). One of my sebright roosters, a pretty silver rooster, was sick but then miraculously recovered (after a lot of care..tube feeding, vitamins, etc). He was plump and he started crowing again (a lot of crowing and chasing after hens...). Unfortunately I had to give him away because of all that noise!!( a neighbor complained) I gave him to a friend that only keeps ducks, no chickens. But some of my pullets (a Dutch bantam and a Serama) regularly need to be treated for coccidia. Both are unvacvinated and I think their immune systems are a bit weak..I have added new pullets to the flock, most of them vaccinated. Let's see how this year goes...
The picture below is the survivor

 

[No Coop No Problem]

I would personally recommend against keeping breeds with known susceptibility to the virus. For the most part these consist of ornamental chickens. Silkie and Sebright are infamous for it

 

[coach723]

Sorry you are dealing with Marek's, but glad it's confirmed and you aren't guessing. Some breeds are more susceptible, but individual genetics are very important also. I don't have silkies, and never will, as I know they are much more susceptible. I've lost birds of some breeds that others said were more resistant in their flocks, and vice versa. So the strain of virus matters too, as well as individual genetics. For me, it's kind of been trial and error going forward. I don't breed symptomatic birds, I try to hatch from those that are not symptomatic. After the initial wave of losses, it has calmed down, I still lose birds, but not nearly as many, or as often, as I did. Best of luck going forward, it is possible to continue and enjoy your birds, it's just a matter of accepting that not all of them will do well.