9 splay legged chicks!Different ages!uncoordinated!Video!Another died!

[threehorses]

That looks still like it could be nutritional or Mareks as the birds are of different age groups. It's not possible to tell strictly from a video unfortunately. Incidentally, natural light is important in the absorbtion of calcium. D3 is made from another D vitamin via interaction with light. Keeping them in a darkened place could have effected their D3 manufacture causing rubber legs and rickets.

Have you started the nutritional aspects of this treatment yet?

 

[SeramaLife]

Quote:
Yes. They have been getting Tums(crushed), B-complex, and bird vitamins with their chick starter.

 

[threehorses]

But have you been doing vitamin E separately? By the way, the calcium in tums won't be useable if they don't have a good source of vitamin D. that's why the enfamil vitamins were recommended. it's a non-water source of vitamin D. Vitamins A, D, and E are oil based and for them to work they should be given with fats/oils. Vitamin E is a neurological healing vitamin for repairing of neurological pathways in a compromised animal. it's also oil based and won't be as effective in a vitamin water based package. Just FYI.

 

[pips&peeps]

Ondra's Seramas :

They are not seramas.
Questions:
How contagious is it?
Will they be carriers for life?
Can older chickens be affected?
Can younger chickens be infected?

Marek's disease is very contagious.

Yes, they will be carriers for life.

Some older birds can be affected, usually if they are over a year old they will not.

Yes, younger chicks will be infected.

I personally would not keep a bird and try to nurse it back to health if it had marek's. The disease spreads in feather dander. You could contaminate tons of other people's flocks just by going to the feed store with your "chicken clothes and shoes" on.

I would immediately get some vaccine and vaccinate the whole flock.​

 

[threehorses]

pips&peeps :

Ondra's Seramas :

They are not seramas.
Questions:
How contagious is it?
Will they be carriers for life?
Can older chickens be affected?
Can younger chickens be infected?

Marek's disease is very contagious.

Yes, they will be carriers for life.

Some older birds can be affected, usually if they are over a year old they will not.

Yes, younger chicks will be infected.

I personally would not keep a bird and try to nurse it back to health if it had marek's. The disease spreads in feather dander. You could contaminate tons of other people's flocks just by going to the feed store with your "chicken clothes and shoes" on.

I would immediately get some vaccine and vaccinate the whole flock.​

Here's an article that you might find of interest:
http://www.firststatevetsupply.com/poultry-health/mareks-disease.html

Incidentally, the earliest incubation time for this disease is usually 4 weeks. But there's one or two sites that list it as 2 weeks. That would include your babies. So really it's your choice. Either you hit this very hard with very effective vitamins and supplements (oil based, I'm afraid - water isn't as effective) or you call is Marek's and cull. If the nutrition with the most effective oil based vitamins and the B complex doesn't work in 2 weeks, again cull.​

 

[Glenda L Heywood]

first may I say that older birds can and do get mareks

as high stress from heat and severe cold causes mareks also.
the best time is to vaccinate at day one of their life
but older birds can be vaccinated

You also need to get on the high content of Vit's that is suggested.

you might read this exserp from Peter Brown's discussion of mareks

http://www.firststatevetsupply.com/poultry-health/mareks-disease.html


and apply the thought here

Peter Brown said

Can older birds be vaccinated for Mareks Disease ? The answer to this question is ,yes. The age of the bird really does not matter as long as the bird has not been exposed to the Mareks Virus prior to vaccination.

If a bird that has not been vaccinated for Mareks Disease comes down with the obvious symptoms of Mareks it may be of value to vaccinate anyway. There is some research to show that some birds may recover after vaccination.

This would possibly work on birds whether or not they were vaccinated before. Some research has suggested that re-vaccination 4 to 6 weeks after the initial vaccination was of value in preventing new cases of Mareks disease in high risk areas.

It is important to keep in mind that birds that have been infected are shedding this virus at a very heavy rate from their follicles and it would be of value to keep feathers about your coop cleaned up.

Regular spraying with oxine will go a long way in keeping this disease as well as other diseases under control. Concerning the use of bleach as a disinfectant: go ahead and use it if you so desire but be aware that to my knowledge there are no studies to show the effectiveness of bleach against any disease organism.

Oxine has reams of test data against a wide range of Pathogens and is designed to be used specifically for disinfection purposes. Consider this: during the anthrax scare of a few years ago, The Hart Senate Office Building in Washington,D.C. was heavily contaminated with Anthrax.

The disinfectant of choice (although it was used in its Gaseous Form) was Oxine. I don’t recall them using bleach as an alternative. Remember that you get what you pay for . My Dad once told me that if you want good clean quality Oats that they come at a price,and that if you want the Oats after they come through the horse they come a bit cheaper. Nuf said.

email with any questions

 

[Glenda L Heywood]

I looked at the video and I am thinking it is a genetic possiblity
why so many have the bad or splay legs

Splayed Leg in Chicks Once in awhile, you may experience a chick that hatches with splayed legs. It looks like they are doing the sideways splits and can't get their legs up ...
www.silkiechickens.com/splayed_leg_in_chicks.htm - Cached - Similar

I read this information and do know that silkies do have bad genetic problems as they can be too inbred

even though yours are not silkies I feel with so many struck with the same problem you need to consider that the whole lot of them are defective genetically

also what was the idea of not having them in a lighted area?
chicks need light 24-7 as they need to eat and drink
Do as "threehorses" says and the Vit D can be added to the wet mash probiotic with Vit's I gave you
crush the Vit' D pill and add to the wet mash
with the other vit's

give some thoughts to the fact they are defective chicks

have you seen any improvement in them since feeding high content in Vit's?

keep us posted
email any questions

 

[speckledhen]

You need to know if it's Mareks' with this many affected. If it is, you really cannot ethically sell any of the birds, etc. I'd have one or two tested at your state poultry lab.

 

[threehorses]

Agreed on testing. This would be an ideal time (before you're too attached). Then you'd know exactly what to do.

Also, if it's not Mareks or a transmittable disease, I also agree on lines. There could be a genetic predisposition towards these faults or inability to thrive. My experience is that if you continue to breed those birds, they get worse.

But it still sticks in my mind that this happened to birds that were kept without a lot of light during a very formative period of time. I think that (and possibly the fact that it happened under someone else's care) are keys to this puzzle that should not yet be dismissed. They may not be of any consequence.

 

[SeramaLife]

I am looking into testing. The chick that I was going to put down is SO much better! It is almost completely coordinated and strong. All the others except two are like that too!
The things that make me think it is a nutritional deficiency:
The two older chicks feathers were very undeveloped, they had only wings and little buds of tails. The younger chicks, 3 weeks , also had their feathers growing slowly.
In The Chicken Health Handbook by Gail Damarow, it says that chicks with both legs paralyzed from Mareks have one leg pointing forward and one pointing back.
The only contact with each other was through me walking between buildings
ALL (except the one that my caretaker rightfully put down) the younger chicks are almost completely healed.
The things that make me think it is Mareks:
They weren't vaccinated
Their were another 2 chicks coming from the younger group, taken away at day old, who were in the dark eating layer feed, who weren't infected. The only thing different was they were not housed on wire.
Their was another chick in each group that was not affected.

What do you think?