HELP! Possible Marek's In Flock.

[RissyMcD]

I think I have Marek's Disease in my flock. I've done a lot of online research, but there are a few things I can't find the answers to. Any help would be appreciated.

Why I think it's Marek's: At 9 weeks old our bantam started limping. After 2 weeks on vitamins she has continued to get worse and is no longer able to use either legs with one sticking prominently out leaving her in a splits position. She is currently separated in her own little cage. Her age and symptoms are the main reason I think Marek's is likely.

Our Flock: We have a flock of 7 females of various different breeds mostly between 6 and 10 weeks old and just one that is a year old. These are pet chickens that my children and I have become attached to. That in mind, I would like to avoid getting ride of the whole flock and starting fresh. I would like to keep whoever can survive and continue to lay eggs. I'm hoping at least a couple of the breeds that I have are more resistant to the disease and can survive. We'd be happy if even just half of them made it.

Questions I can't find answers to:

1) Is there an age at which they are "safe" if they show no signs of the disease? I'm pretty sure they've all been exposed, and it's likely they'll be carriers the rest of their lives. But I'm hoping a couple of my breeds will be resistant and able to live a long egg-laying non-symptomatic life anyways. Would be nice to know we can breathe a little easier after they survive a certain age without symptoms.

2) Has anyone had Marek's in their flock and only lost a few birds, or are we probably going to loose them all?

3) Since they've all been exposed to the sick one, does it even make sense for me to clean out and scrub down the coop? From what I understand of contagious viruses (in humans), exposure is exposure and once it's out there, there's no going back. Is there risk of the others catching it even going to be reduced any by me cleaning now? They've been sharing water and food with her for weeks (I thought she was just injured at first) so I think chances are good at least a few of them will get sick and they've likely all be exposed to it. Will cleaning do me any good at this point? Especially since I don't plan on starting fresh with a new flock.

Any advise or answers would be appreciated! We're so distraught and worried. The one that's sick right now is my daughters favorite, so this is going to be a hard journey for our family.


Here's angel at 8 weeks, before she started showing symptoms. =(

 

[Coupon Cook]

I was just about to post something similar here. I found this article on BYC's. Maybe it will answer all of our questions.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq

 

[RissyMcD]

I appreciate the link. That helps.

Has anyone on here had Marek's in their flock? I would love it if anyone has a personal experience that they can share that may offer some hope for us. I still don't know how likely it is that some of my flock will survive or if I should expect them all to die. Anyone?

 

[Nambroth]

I appreciate the link. That helps.

Has anyone on here had Marek's in their flock? I would love it if anyone has a personal experience that they can share that may offer some hope for us. I still don't know how likely it is that some of my flock will survive or if I should expect them all to die. Anyone?

I wrote the above article because I have Marek's in my flock. Several members here have it in their flocks and have different experiences overall. Are your birds vaccinated? Where do you think the virus was introduced from? A history of your flock will be helpful. I'll answer your questions in a moment.

 

[Nambroth]

Questions I can't find answers to:

1) Is there an age at which they are "safe" if they show no signs of the disease? I'm pretty sure they've all been exposed, and it's likely they'll be carriers the rest of their lives. But I'm hoping a couple of my breeds will be resistant and able to live a long egg-laying non-symptomatic life anyways. Would be nice to know we can breathe a little easier after they survive a certain age without symptoms.

I wish that the answer was "yes", but alas it is not so. Chickens of any age can become symptomatic. That said, in general, it seems that birds that are older than a year are not AS likely to develop the aggressive visceral form of Marek's. The visceral form is when they develop leisons on the nervous system and/or aggressive lymphoma. Older birds are more likely to experience secondary problems, such as ocular issues, general wasting, or poor immune systems (and may get sick from secondary problems such as cocci, Aspergillosis, etc... as they have weakened immune systems from Marek's). Despite this, some birds may never show any symptoms at all, ever. There are MANY variables at play, including vaccination, individual genetics in a bird, the bird's individual immune system and immune response, breed, overall health and condition, stress, the strain of Marek's virus, presence of any other disease, etc etc. There is no one true answer to this question.

2) Has anyone had Marek's in their flock and only lost a few birds, or are we probably going to loose them all?

Lots of people have had Marek's in their flocks. I know I have it. I bet a lot of people have it and don't even realize it. They may lose a bird once in a while and not think much of it, as the symptoms are NOT always straightforward. That said, it really depends on the above factors as to how many birds one might lose. Some people lose very few birds. Some people lose most. It depends. Again, there are too many variables to possibly suggest how yours will do! I'm sorry.

3) Since they've all been exposed to the sick one, does it even make sense for me to clean out and scrub down the coop? From what I understand of contagious viruses (in humans), exposure is exposure and once it's out there, there's no going back. Is there risk of the others catching it even going to be reduced any by me cleaning now? They've been sharing water and food with her for weeks (I thought she was just injured at first) so I think chances are good at least a few of them will get sick and they've likely all be exposed to it. Will cleaning do me any good at this point? Especially since I don't plan on starting fresh with a new flock.

Yes, it still makes sense to clean. It is realistically impossible to think that you will get all of the virus, unless you keep your birds indoors in a sterile environment. Most of us keep our birds in backyard conditions, so it's nearly impossible to get rid of the virus once it is in the ground. Still, you can reduce the amount of virus, which will be concentrated where your birds spend the most time (coop) and there are less environmental elements to reduce it (again the coop). By reducing the amount of virus, in theory, one can also help keep it from spreading too much. This will also help if you want to ever bring in new birds, even if only one or two. Cleaning sure can't hurt.

I have answered in-line above, in red. I also wanted to mention that there is really no need to cull your pet birds. Culling, cleaning, and starting over only works in environments that can be sterilized with an appropriate parricide, which really only exists for commercial poultry operations and maybe some people that raise show chickens indoors. It is impractical for most backyard chicken keepers with a few pet birds.

 

[RissyMcD]

Thanks for your replies. I really appreciate it. I'll clean the coop, keep the sick one separate and hope for the best. Do you know if there's something I can give them to boost their immune systems so that maybe the others can get through it better? I've already got vitamins and electrolytes in their water. Any other products or things I can do that might improve their chances?

 

[RissyMcD]

Oh. Most of my girls came from a local hobbyist farmer who raises and shows chickens. (We're in the St. Louis area). And the one year old hen was an "only chicken" raised in the city under their back porch. We added her to our flock a couple weeks after we got the others. She is, obviously, bigger than the others, but not overly mean or anything. She sticks to herself for the most part and pecks at them if they try to eat at the same time as her, but otherwise leaves them alone. I don't know if any of them were vaccinated.

 

[BantamLover21]

I appreciate the link. That helps.

Has anyone on here had Marek's in their flock? I would love it if anyone has a personal experience that they can share that may offer some hope for us. I still don't know how likely it is that some of my flock will survive or if I should expect them all to die. Anyone?

I've had Marek's in my flock. It killed one vaccinated cockerel and three other non-vaccinated birds of mine last year. One, a 5 month old pullet, got the ocular form, and slowly wasted away. The other three (including my favorite chicken--a sweet little pullet named Pip) had legs that became paralyzed. Pip was just over a year old, and the other two were about 8 months old. I treated them with several remedies that have worked for some people (st. johns wort, turmeric, etc.), but nothing saved them. Marek's is just a terrible disease, present everywhere, and which has no real cure.

One thing I did not have a chance to try (it arrived one day too late for my birds) treating Marek's with was colloidal silver. Colloidal silver has properties which kill viruses, bacteria, and other infectious organisms. Some people have had miraculous success treating their birds with it--as it builds up in the body (so I've read), any disease particle that comes into contact with it is destroyed. I am not saying that colloidal silver is a cure-all, but if you are desperate to save your little bird, I would try it.

Good luck.

 

[RissyMcD]

BantamLover21, how many did you have in your flock total? Thanks for the tip about colloidal silver. I'll get some and try it! This sweet girl is the favorite of the entire flock.

 

[Nambroth]

Just be careful with the colloidal silver. I am not saying it works or it does not-- but be careful and research it carefully before using it, so that you don't accidentally do more harm than good.