HOw do I best prevent diseases in our healthy hens?

[Sozoed]

What preventative vaccinations or deworming should I do to prevent diseases? Our pullets are 9 months old and regular egg layers.

 

[ninabeast]

 

[Sozoed]

(Smilies are a little whacko for me today...will this print

?)

 

[GoldDogsMom]

I'm waiting to see what answers you get too! I have read here to put Apple Cider Vinegar in their water but not sure how much or how often the water would need to be changed out...

 

[LarryPQ]

The best and most important thing you can do is to keep a closed flock. No one in our out, and don't have a bajillion BYCers come in and out.

Vaccines:
IB/Newcastle
Fowl Pox
Mareks

Those are the big ones.

 

[Clay Valley Farmer]

Closed flock

X2

No rescues, no taking give aways, no birds from auctions, want ads or unknown sources. Best to stick with hatching eggs or chicks from a tested source.

Other than that, plenty of space, a clean coop and good quality food. Feeding cayane pepper, ACV or other herbal profolactics or remidies if they are of any proven value are going to be much much less importaint than basic animal husbandry.​

 

[Beekissed]

I don't advocate for vaccinations or chemical dewormers, so I can only tell you how I do it.

Start with hardy breeds that do well in my climate
Free range
Clean water with a dollop of unpastuerized apple cider vinegar in it(make sure you are not using a galvanized metal container)
Whole grains mixed into laying mash and only fed once a day and just what they can clean up in one setting with only a little left over for lesser flock members
Good ventilation in the coop
Deep litter that is not moist or smelly~I throw BOSS in it for the gals to keep it fluffed and dry
Extra OS or their own shells in the feed during stress times like peak laying season or molt
Grit free choice when the snows cover the ground
Fermented pumpkins in the early spring/late winter
A dab of Shaklee's soap in the water once in a while
Cull for non productive egg laying patterns, slow or no recovery from molt, consistently poor appearance
No meds, no vaccines, no chemical dewormers
No supplemental heat or light in the winter

As of yet, this regimen has yielded very healthy flocks with no illnesses recorded over all these years. Current flock age is 5-6 years and still laying every day or every other day in peak laying season.

 

[Clay Valley Farmer]

Also another secret to a healthy flock is cull relentlessly, don't tolerate weak or sickly birds that pass along weak genes or can become an infection vector to the healthy birds.

 

[Sozoed]

I am a newbie chicken owner, so bear with my questions here: If I cull a diseased bird, does it depend on the disease whether or not we can butcher and eat the meat? What diseases should we not butcher/eat the bird?

 

[Sozoed]

Beekissed, when you say no supplemental light in the winter, some hens stop laying altogether in the winter to decreased light. What's the danger of a lightbulb in the coop for say 3 hours at dusk?