Rest assured when you buy from Whitmore Farm you will be getting disease free stock. All hatcheries are in the NPIP program, but they only monitor for Avian Influenza and Pullorum Typhoid, the minimum required by law. Whitmore Farm is very proud to be the only hatchery selling heritage breed poultry that are certified Mycoplasma free by NPIP.
And from all that I have herd I would not buy birds from an auction just to be safe
According to the Maryland Department of Agriculture the farm is not MG FREE or AI FREE. They are in fact MG and AI monitored, which means that every three months 30 birds from the farm are tested.
This could be the same 30 birds everytime or an assortment. It does not mean they are in fact disease free and it does not mean they aren't.
To be in the "FREE" classification, all birds on the farm have to be tested every three months, which is a horrendous expense.
In addition, there are four types of mycoplasma.
I would still recommend quarantine for anyone who gets new birds from anywhere, even chicks.
Rest assured when you buy from Whitmore Farm you will be getting disease free stock. All hatcheries are in the NPIP program, but they only monitor for Avian Influenza and Pullorum Typhoid, the minimum required by law. Whitmore Farm is very proud to be the only hatchery selling heritage breed poultry that are certified Mycoplasma free by NPIP.
And from all that I have herd I would not buy birds from an auction just to be safe
According to the Maryland Department of Agriculture the farm is not MG FREE or AI FREE. They are in fact MG and AI monitored, which means that every three months 30 birds from the farm are tested.
This could be the same 30 birds everytime or an assortment. It does not mean they are in fact disease free and it does not mean they aren't.
To be in the "FREE" classification, all birds on the farm have to be tested every three months, which is a horrendous expense.
In addition, there are four types of mycoplasma.
I would still recommend quarantine for anyone who gets new birds from anywhere, even chicks.
I have to agree with Jean. No matter who you get chicks from, never take anyone's word on the health of the flock, even with NPIP or other testing. Always, always quarantine! No exceptions. NPIP is not an across the board guarantee of anything, really. Birds may contract disease anytime between testing periods, which is something to keep in mind.