Chickythom
Chirping
- May 29, 2017
- 74
- 26
- 53
Hello,
Our sick fluffs have been confirmed to have Marek's. We are still unsure of what strand as those results are still pending. We are now determining what to do. This is our first attempt at raising chickens. We started this to provide food for our family. We purchased from an exceptional breeder and opted for unvaccinated chicks. They appeared to be healthy and thriving. They still do, at least to our inexperienced eyes. I have read many of the threads here about Marek's and I am overwhelmed and confused on how to proceed. My husband has even suggested we abandon the idea of raising chickens but I am not so willing to give up. However, I want to make an educated decision. At this point our vet has advised us to cull the animals and start new with vaccinated chickens on our new land/property. We will be moving from where we are currently raising our infected flock. We are willing to set all chicken tractors aflame if needed. I am simply not sure if we will still be acting as fomites and potentially introducing Marek's from us to our new land. I recognize this is a possibility but seems to give us a better chance at a new start elsewhere. Or do we keep the birds and try to breed for resistance? It is hard to get attached, spend on organic feed, and not be able to eat the birds when time to harvest given they have tumors. I also hate to see them suffer. My thoughts and emotions are all over the place so please forgive me. We have enjoyed raising them so far and now this is just a huge blow. They lived in our dining room for most of their lives. I have housed sick birds indoors, as well as transported them to the vet in my vehicle. I am simply unsure how to proceed and any insight is appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Amanda
Our sick fluffs have been confirmed to have Marek's. We are still unsure of what strand as those results are still pending. We are now determining what to do. This is our first attempt at raising chickens. We started this to provide food for our family. We purchased from an exceptional breeder and opted for unvaccinated chicks. They appeared to be healthy and thriving. They still do, at least to our inexperienced eyes. I have read many of the threads here about Marek's and I am overwhelmed and confused on how to proceed. My husband has even suggested we abandon the idea of raising chickens but I am not so willing to give up. However, I want to make an educated decision. At this point our vet has advised us to cull the animals and start new with vaccinated chickens on our new land/property. We will be moving from where we are currently raising our infected flock. We are willing to set all chicken tractors aflame if needed. I am simply not sure if we will still be acting as fomites and potentially introducing Marek's from us to our new land. I recognize this is a possibility but seems to give us a better chance at a new start elsewhere. Or do we keep the birds and try to breed for resistance? It is hard to get attached, spend on organic feed, and not be able to eat the birds when time to harvest given they have tumors. I also hate to see them suffer. My thoughts and emotions are all over the place so please forgive me. We have enjoyed raising them so far and now this is just a huge blow. They lived in our dining room for most of their lives. I have housed sick birds indoors, as well as transported them to the vet in my vehicle. I am simply unsure how to proceed and any insight is appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Amanda
