A Video Message From Me - Culling Complete - Update on Post #1

[Msbear]

PC, thanks for sharing this wonderful video. It really smacks you in the face with the facts. Im so sorry this has happened to you. You are always a good friend to so many on here and a well-respected member who deserves nothing but chicken happiness.

I know you keep standards but, whenever you're ready to begin again, know that my eggies are your eggies.. whichever breed you may be interested in, I'll send you a package pronto! Good Luck and let this be a lesson learned. This has happened to the best of them.. just like you said and you are not an idiot.. you just took a chance... a chance that we all take all the time and most of the of the time, things work out fine.

I can tell you, my biosecurity here in Msbearland just got a whole lot tighter and thank you for that.

 

[WalkingWolf]

I looked up heat treating hatching eggs for MG/MS. What I have been able to find is that the eggs are heated gradually to 114.8F for 11 to 14 hours and then allowed to return to room temperature. This will result in a 10% reduction in hatch rate. I will have to gather some eggs and try it, and return with the results if any eggs hatch. Personally I don't see how a egg can survive that kind of heat for that long.

If it works and is true, then culling a flock all at once would not be necessary but a new flock could be created and kept seperate, and the old flock depleted after a while. Also from what I understand the organism has poor virility outside the host, and dies in three days. I already keep breeds separated in tractors. And as much as I hate it my free ranging birds my have to be reduced in numbers and put in tractors. Breaks my heart to not be able to see them running about freely. But I see no way a free range flock could be kept clean of the disease. My understanding from what I have gathered from a call to a commercial poultry house is that wild birds are common carriers and a free range operation WILL sooner or later become infected.

Maybe I am overreacting but it all seems dismal to me. To be honest if I was aware of the disease I would never have embarked on this adventure. And as my DW and I read and discussed the thread, she warned that if I we had to do what PC has, she will not allow it again.

 

[tazcat70]

I didn't read what everyone else had posted, but I wanted to tell you that what you and SouthernBelle are going through has really opened my eyes to some of the things that I do that could hurt my birds. Thank you for sharing your pain with us. I know that you do not want sympathy, but I am so sorry that you had to go through this.

Tonya

 

[Chicks_N_Horses]

I am so glad I joined this site. I have learned so much about things I normally wouldn't really consider unless something happened.

Sorry about your chickens.

 

[Southernbelle]

Quote:
Keeping a closed flock is absolutely an option.

PC and I both had friends with chickens and didn't want to make thier chickens sick, so we chose to cull. MG is not zoonotic, so eating eggs from MG positive birds is perfectly fine. Eating culled birds is fine, too. You just need to keep all your birds on your property (inculding ones that you hatch) for their entire lives.

Based on those symptoms, I would just assume it's MG and close your flock. IB (Infectious Bronchitis) has similar symptoms, but the recovered birds are not carriers. One of the big clues to IB is the hens laying bizarrely wrinkled eggs during and after an IB outbreak.

Thank you for being responsible!

 

[WalkingWolf]

IB

ohh great another one to worry about

I read up and one of the symptoms of IB is swollen eyes does any of your flock have that? Also it moves extremely fast, incubation only takes hours to a couple days. Just from what I read it appears to be more severe with a higher mortality than MG.

 

[PurpleChicken]

Quote:

I try and be a good friend because so many others here have
been good friends to me.

 

[Mrs MIA]

Good for you for doing the right thing. I'm confident that you will have new babies running around in no time. My heart goes out to you... thank you for sharing your message. I hope that others will learn from it.

 

[Southernbelle]

Quote:
No panicking allowed WalkingWolf!!!! Breathe with me - in, out, in, out

Yes IB has a higher mortality and spreads faster, but when it's gone, it's gone.

It's still worth having chickens! I spent a few sleepless nights myself, but once you get over the panic, it's very calming.

 

[RubberChickenLubber]

Quote:
I think you are worrying way to much. It's much like a pregnancy, you do what you can to have a happy and healthy baby (ie, no smoking, drinking, meds that are harmful, and take the vitamins), there is still a risk you could lose the baby, or have complications, but do you decide to never get pregnant due to the risk? On the otherhand, if you knew you were a carrier of a disorder, you may decide to not get pregnant (I did though, lost 3 babies, have 2 healthy children). You can't let something that CAN happen make you so paranoid and miserable that you never go for it, or are miserable. You just do what you can to prevent it from happening and take the best care of what you have.