Chicken with injured leg

[ThatCrazyChickenGirl]

If you still want to try the vitamins, nutri-drench is carried by many feed stores. They also have a dosage for immediate absorption which is given orally. I've used it with sick chicks and it's very good.

 

[rebrascora]

I would also certainly encourage you to use a good poultry vitamin supplement as it will support the flock's immune system. One of the side symptom's of Marek's is that it suppresses the immune system, so anything you can do to support it is beneficial.

If a bachelor pad is not an option, then you need to start culling some of those cockerels in the next few weeks before hormones kick in. At 10 weeks there will not be much meat on them, so perhaps keep the better behaved ones a few weeks longer. There is no apparent health risk from eating the meat of Marek's infected birds although one of the many symptoms is muscle wastage, so there may be even less meat on them as a result of that. Often Marek's birds are smaller even before they exhibit any symptoms, so I would select the largest two cockerels with the best temperament and whittle it down to one when their true personality starts to show. The problem with keeping more than one adolescent cockerel in a flock where there is no adult rooster is that they will competitively mate the females and often the lowest pullet in the pecking order will get mated repeatedly by both males one after the other. It can make their lives a total misery as well as cause a risk of injury, so be observant and have a cage available to put one or both in a sin bin if necessary.

As regards bringing in other chicks, it is a risk even if they are vaccinated. Egyptian Fayoumis are supposed to be Marek's resistant and might be worth a shot. Silkies, seramas and Legbars seem to be pretty susceptible, so avoid those. Adult hens might be a better bet than chicks because they are past the most vulnerable age for the virus to manifest, but they could bring with them other viruses that might cause any birds in your flock with compromised immune systems to succumb, so a rigorous quarantine would be necessary and careful integration so as to avoid stress.
There are no right or wrong answers, it's just a question of observing closely and doing your homework and trying to weigh up all the risks and make an informed decision based on your own set up, goals and flock dynamics. Do you have chickens other than these young Icelandics? I had a mixture of breeds and ages when it broke out in my flock (including a mature cock bird), which was probably a benefit as most were past the most vulnerable age and I was able to breed from the healthy ones. Free ranging them also helped, both from the point of view of keeping them happier and also less exposure to the infected dander dust because they were not confined together.....so there are a lot of factors to take into consideration.
From what I have read, the vaccination which is available to buy for back yard flocks is the least effective of the vaccines that have been developed and may in fact be responsible for the more virulent strains of Marek's currently circulating in the states, because it allows the virus to mutate.... Marek's outbreaks seem to be milder here in the UK where most backyard flocks are not vaccinated.... each loss is still devastating of course but at least it is just the odd one or two, rather than the majority of a hatch as some people in the states report. It may therefore be short sighted to vaccinate as it should protect the chicks from the worst of the Marek's symptoms, which cause fatalities providing that strict bio security is observed during the first 2-3 weeks after vaccination, but in the long run it may mean that the vaccine becomes less effective and the virus more aggressive.

 

[tori852]

I've been researching vitamins, I found a website that tells what vitamins chickens benefit from and which supplements have them: https://www.tillysnest.com/2014/03/vitamin-deficiencies-in-backyard-chicks-html/.
Seems like Rooster Booster, Manna Pro Life Lytes, Life Lytes Mega tabs, and Cluck n Sea Kelp have the most vitamins that they need, also ThatCrazyChickenGirl recommended Nutri drench. So long as the supplement has the right vitamins, does it matter which I use? Do some work better and are there any others you recommend? I plan to start giving them vitamin supplement asap so they will have stronger immune systems and hopefully we won't lose as many birds.

How long do you think I can wait to start culling the rude cockerels? We were hoping to get some meat from them. There are 3 or 4 cockerels that are the nicest, and a few that are rude and always pecking the hens out of their way so we know who we want to get rid of first. I definitely don't want our hens to be injured by the cockerels as they start mating and I don't want them to hurt each other fighting. On more than one occasion I've seen the cockerels fluffing up and getting in each others faces, pecking, chasing, and jumping at each other... They sound hilarious when they crow though. Not at all like the classic cockadoodledoo. Our favorite one sounds like EEEEEErrrrrr. Poor boys.

The young Icelandics are our only chickens. They have a 30x8 ft run and 10x8 coop so they have a good bit of space. We want to free range them now because they'd love it but we're going to wait until they get closer to laying age (4-5 months old) because we're worried about predators. We've seen fledgling song birds carried off in the middle of the day by owls so we figure our young chickens aren't much different, and I know there are lots of hawks. Our thought process is that the bigger the chickens are, the better chance they stand of getting away from predators.

I've read in more than one place including you rebrascora about how the vaccines are ineffective and cause more hurt than help. I don't plan on vaccinating future chicks, nor did I vaccinate the current ones.

 

[peeper89]

I'm sorry but that is as classic a symptom of Marek's Disease as you are likely to ever see.

Taking into consideration his age and your over population of cockerels which is a stressor that often triggers an outbreak and the fact that Marek's is such a common and widespread virus which is very easily contracted and I would say that you would be burying your head in the sand to believe it might be anything else.

I would also certainly encourage you to use a good poultry vitamin supplement as it will support the flock's immune system.

so what is point to try tohelp this one that sick. if he has it. seem like everthin is marks so any time one sick just kill it an hope for other not to show sickenss. no point in treating if it come back in future.

 

[tori852]

I absolutely agree with you peeper89, if the bird is sick and obviously has Marek's then they need to be culled which is what we're going to do. I was asking about poultry vitamins in response to rebrascora's suggestion about how the vitamins can help existing flock members that are not showing symptoms yet.

I would also certainly encourage you to use a good poultry vitamin supplement as it will support the flock's immune system. One of the side symptom's of Marek's is that it suppresses the immune system, so anything you can do to support it is beneficial.

 

[sbhkma]

I use Rooster Booster 1 or 2 times a week. Once a week I also mix some Kaytee baby bird food with warm water and 8 drops of Poly Vi Sol with NO iron mixed in.

 

[rebrascora]

I can't advise on brands of vitamins available in the USA. Here there is limited choice and I find Nutri-Drops good which are branded as Nettex. Vitamin B and E and K I think are the ones that are particularly good at supporting the neurological system for symptoms of Marek's but make sure that there is a healthy dose of Vit C in whatever you get as this really gives the immune system a boost.

As regards when to cull the boys, I wouldn't let them go much further than 15-16 weeks and if you have one or two that are being oiks, then perhaps sooner. Only you can decide. I find it is easier mentally/emotionally to butcher them when they start terrorising my pullets..... but that is because I still find the killing part really difficult. You will have to play it by ear as they all mature at different rates. Perhaps you could section off part of the run and put them a little shelter in there to grown them out without having to build a whole new coop and run for them.

I will nurse Marek's sick birds depending on circumstances, particularly pullets and I have had some impressive recoveries. I've nursed sick cockerels too, usually to keep a sick pullet company because they survive better if they are not isolated which often causes depression. I currently have a 4 year old that is lame and uncoordinated with it. Interestingly, since I have started letting her free range outside the pen during the day, she has picked up tremendously and is also more confident now when she is back in with the flock, whereas before she was standing in a corner afraid to get in anyone's way. Grass seems to have a seriously beneficial effect on Marek's sick birds in my experience and this is the 5th or 6th that I have seen one pick up from being able to graze on grass in the sunshine.... which may also be a contributory factor... perhaps Vitamin D is part of the treatment. I know in the horse world it is called Doctor Grass, but it looks like it is also beneficial to poultry too.