EDUCATIONAL INCUBATION & HATCHING CHAT THREAD, w/ Sally Sunshine Shipped Eggs

[Akrnaf2]

@Fire Ant Farm, then how do I deal with this? Will I be left with any birds in the end? If I have a virulent strain, which yep, I agree, will I see a 100% loss? I'm fearing I have all three strains going. One Ocular one visceral  and yes, the neural also. I've lost more than one bird with weird neuro symptoms, more than one with probable lung or heart involvement and then I have the ones with the ocular symptoms. Looks like a trifecta of Marek's. If it's a virulent strain and I have survivors can I let the survivors produce chicks that may or may not show resistance to what ever is festering on our property. And taking into consideration what you just said about the effectiveness of the vaccine, how can I introduce new birds onto my property as chicks and keep them healthy or is it even possible. I have a hen sitting on 5 eggs right now. She's such a good little mama. I look at her and almost cry because I don't know what to do to protect her chicks when they hatch.

I'm sorry. I didn't realize you are a [COLOR=333333]virologist/microbiologist. My bad and I'm bombarding you with questions because there isn't anyone around me professionally who will even answer my questions for me and I have a ton of them. I really appreciate your kind words though about vaccination vs non vaccination. Hopefully I will get enough surviving hens to keep myself in even a small flock. I'm quickly running out of standard roosters! I'm down to 3 that aren't currently showing signs of disease, 5 counting the two young bantam cockerels. I just can't imagine life on the farm without chickens.[/COLOR]

[COLOR=333333]I'm waiting for things to dry out a bit and DH is going to go out and use his portable examination equipment to check the Ocular problem birds internal eye. He can dilate their pupils and get a good look at them. I'll know more about those three then.[/COLOR]

IMHO 100% or very close to that number, of chicken flock, in back yards if tested serologically will be positive to MDV.....
The eruption of the disease is VERY much depended on the stress levels of the chickens. Fricuent changes in the flock, coops, multy age flock, reaching point of lay, a extra dominant alfa rooster, the presence of dogs and children, not enough feed and clean water ect.ect.. will make some of your flock members prone to the disease.
Reducing the stress levels and practicing the "all out all in " in your flock are a good way to reduce the the chance to get the disease.

 

[BantyChooks]

This is great advice for urbanites. But for people where I live it is pretty useless, sorry.

Most of us up here get 20 plus tick bites a year. You just can't have the entire population on antibiotics.  My wife and I have both had lymes a couple times. Most of my friends have.  Yep it can be terrible, but the Docs up here know enogh to run a screening for it whenever they draw a blood sample or if a disease lyme"s can mimic is suspected.


BTW I have never found a mushroom, grouse, rabbit, pheasant or good fishing area on a well manicured path or sidewalk.  



Edited to add:  They have changed the way they do things here. We use to run to the doc and they would give us an antibiotic when we were bitten by a deer tick. Now they wait until some symptom appear before giving us an antibiotic. They said testing the ticks was a waste of time as 90% carry Lymes here and giving out that much antibiotic was not good.. So if your body cannot fight it off and it causes a problem you get it..OR maybe the next time you get an antibiotic for something it kills it until the next bite..No Idea I just know, no doc here will give us antibiotics for a tick bite.

I now feel imaginary ticks crawling up my neck.... Thanks bunches, y'all....

 

[Akrnaf2]

Even if you've caught said tick within 24 hours of latching on?

Yes, they are still recommending preventative treatment. your chances are less but I've removed all ticks in less than 24 hours and still became infected. Watch for bulls eye redness around the bite. It's not always evident but it common in 'bad' tick bites. In removing ticks, make sure you grasp the tick firmly at your skin level with tweezers or a hemostat and give a sharp tug. Do not lessen your grip on the hemostat or tweezers. Pressing on the tick's abdomen can cause it to regurgitate contents into you and increase your chances for infection. If you are suspicious, plop the bug in a pill bottle with a little alcohol and take it to your doctor to have it tested.

Lyme disease and their co infections are the great silent epidemic in America.

Duluthralphie if your doctors do that where you are you are pretty much getting better care than anyone down here is. Still I recommend caution and yes preventative Doxy at least if you are bitten. As you know from your own experience. You can't take Lyme lightly. I have chronic Lyme and I got on treatment relatively fast. You just never know. And Yep, I pretty much take Mino all summer as a preventative. Doctor insists, Not good to be on antibiotics for long periods of time but it's better than dying.

Do you take probiotic?
Clostridium difficile is not something to take lightly also!

 

[OneMountainAcres]

Hi everyone! Just duping in to share some pics

Ana and Cocoa, both trying to claim the favorite nest

Pebbles adopted this older poult along with her 1 week old chick

These two decided to roost with the big birds though

Sunshine and Lollipop, being to go outside to play. They're getting so big already!

Ana won the battle for the fluffy duck nest lol

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

@Fire Ant Farm, then how do I deal with this? Will I be left with any birds in the end? If I have a virulent strain, which yep, I agree, will I see a 100% loss? I'm fearing I have all three strains going. One Ocular one visceral and yes, the neural also. I've lost more than one bird with weird neuro symptoms, more than one with probable lung or heart involvement and then I have the ones with the ocular symptoms. Looks like a trifecta of Marek's. If it's a virulent strain and I have survivors can I let the survivors produce chicks that may or may not show resistance to what ever is festering on our property. And taking into consideration what you just said about the effectiveness of the vaccine, how can I introduce new birds onto my property as chicks and keep them healthy or is it even possible. I have a hen sitting on 5 eggs right now. She's such a good little mama. I look at her and almost cry because I don't know what to do to protect her chicks when they hatch.

I'm sorry. I didn't realize you are a virologist/microbiologist. My bad and I'm bombarding you with questions because there isn't anyone around me professionally who will even answer my questions for me and I have a ton of them. I really appreciate your kind words though about vaccination vs non vaccination. Hopefully I will get enough surviving hens to keep myself in even a small flock. I'm quickly running out of standard roosters! I'm down to 3 that aren't currently showing signs of disease, 5 counting the two young bantam cockerels. I just can't imagine life on the farm without chickens.

I'm waiting for things to dry out a bit and DH is going to go out and use his portable examination equipment to check the Ocular problem birds internal eye. He can dilate their pupils and get a good look at them. I'll know more about those three then.

I'm so sorry - I just don't know. My issues were so much milder than yours, and I certainly spent some time crying about it. All the symptoms can be due to the same infection. You might want to try the vaccine after all, but I wanted to warn you that it doesn't always work, and basically it just makes the disease milder and they still shed all over - and you won't get anywhere in breeding for resistance. If it were me, in your shoes, for now I would continue to keep them as you are, keeping them as healthy and happy as you can, knowing that you may continue to lose some, and breed from the survivors.

Have you seen this thread?

Moving Forward - Breeding for Resistance to Marek's Disease

- Ant Farm

 

[dan26552]

Banty, I set 29 eggs.

 

[microchick]

Do you take probiotic?
Clostridium difficile is not something to take lightly also!

Prebiotic and probiotic. I have a really glitchy immune system. I've had Rheumatic Fever at the age of 23 and have lots of allergies, most of the serious ones popping up after I was diagnosed with Lyme which isn't unusual. The RF and Lyme disease mean I'm on antibiotics a LOT. Not good but like I said, better than the alternative. So I do a lot of pre and pro biotics.

Okay, here's a question for all you duck lovers out there. If I have a virulent strain of Marek's on our property and want to hatch ducks, what are the chances that the duck version of Marek's is on the property also? Is there any way to tell?

 

[Fire Ant Farm]

Quote:
Yes - very well put, Benny. @microchick - stress does make things worse. That's why you can lose pullets at POL. E.g., in my case, Jenny is with Lissa and Dumbledore, and they are just a trio - Dumbledore takes such good care of her. When I was having some housing issues, I had considered whether to add the other three CL hens (daughters of Lissa and Dumbledore) back into that coop instead of their current one, and decided not to, because I am quite honestly concerned that the stress on Jenny of figuring out a new pecking order (esp. since she's almost blind) could quite literally kill her. So they will stay in their quiet trio until Jenny passes, whenever that may be. (Lissa is well and can take care of herself.) So anything you can do to decrease stress (e.g., more space, multiple feeders if they fight over them, etc., etc.) will help. (And there's no downside to decreasing stress...)

Again, I'm sorry you're going through this.

 

[microchick]

I'm so sorry - I just don't know. My issues were so much milder than yours, and I certainly spent some time crying about it. All the symptoms can be due to the same infection. You might want to try the vaccine after all, but I wanted to warn you that it doesn't always work, and basically it just makes the disease milder and they still shed all over - and you won't get anywhere in breeding for resistance. If it were me, in your shoes, for now I would continue to keep them as you are, keeping them as healthy and happy as you can, knowing that you may continue to lose some, and breed from the survivors.

Have you seen this thread?

Moving Forward - Breeding for Resistance to Marek's Disease

- Ant Farm

That is pretty much what I've been thinking I'll be facing. The fact that the majority of my birds that have fallen victim so far with the exception of one pullet are cockerels and one two year old rooster would pretty much add up to the breeding stress. The pullet that succumbed was at POL, once again a prime time for Marek's to show. My first rooster to succumb died at 14 months and his death is a puzzle as he was Alpha rooster one of three.

I've touched upon the Moving Forward thread. I need to read more of it.

Thank you for your help. Bless you!

 

[kajira]

Even if you've caught said tick within 24 hours of latching on?

We live in a tick-heavy place. We find ticks *all* the time with in a couple of minutes of being onour skin, or with in a few hours of biting. We talked to our doctor and unless we show symptoms, get a rash, or it's been more than 12 hours, we are fine.

We routinely search for ticks on everyone, too. Getting lyme disease is a possibility, as well as many other infections, but it's very, very low unless you live in a huge lyme disease heavy place - and even then, you usually need 24+ hours of exposure.