How isolated do quarantined birds have to be?

[Goldendoodles]

I have 5 chicks ( light brahma's and welsummers

) around 6-7 weeks old that i bought at a livestock sale 3 weeks ago.

They've been in my spare bathroom for those 3 weeks, and are getting way too big to be inside. I've read that you're supposed to keep new birds quarantined for 30 days before introduction to the rest of the flock, which means another week of cleaning up after these girls,

so I was wonder if i could put these chicks in a separate part of my coop outside. The back part is divided, and the divider goes almost to the ceiling, and is made out of poultry wire, but I can cover it with a sheet of plastic to restrict airflow between the two areas. I just don't won't to risk any of my original flock getting ill.

Thanks

 

[crazyhen]

sorry , Isolation is just that. No air that each other breathes. I know it is hard. Even the clothes you wear, shoes should be different. I realize this is extreme. But knowing my nice sweet flock I would not rely on any bird from an auction sale. I bought some a couple of years ago and ended up killing all but two of my birds. Heart breaking lesson for me. No more auction birds. There is too much chance of problems. Hens can catch disease, get better and seem to be completely healthy and turn out to be carriers. I am still building my flock but get the chicks from someone I know and then keep them seperate for a while before letting them get to know each other. After this year if my blue hen is fertile and roo is fertile I may not get anymore at all. I will start a closed flock. gloria Jean

 

[speckledhen]

Even quarantine is not perfect. If they are carriers, you may not know that till they come in contact with your birds, even after six or more weeks of quarantine. The general rule is that they can't get near each other at all, not breathe the same air, so to speak, till quarantine is over. I realize how tired you are of them being inside, so I get where you're coming from. Just buying started birds at all is a risk; you are just mitigating the risk by quarantining for a month.

 

[patandchickens]

I dunno, 4 weeks is more safer than 3, but I am skeptical it is a *big* difference and there is nothing magic about 4 weeks as opposed to 5 etcetera.

If they seem 100% entirely healthy in all ways right now, and are driving you *completely buggy* or are getting miserable in their current quarters, I do not honestly think you are running much extra risk by putting them in the coop as you describe. As speckledhen says, ANY time you buy started birds it is a risk, and quarantine is not surefire, they can still be incubating something that you never see in that month.

JMHO, good luck with whatever you decide to do,

Pat

 

[Goldendoodles]

Thanks to all
I totally agree about auctions being risky. At first I was really excited about all the different breeds and good deals, but quarantining and introducing seems like more trouble than buying fertile eggs, or day old chicks.