if it's not mareks, what's the deal?

[Lady of McCamley]

I've had Marek's birds that were fine one day, limping the next and floundering on the ground in the classic Marek's, one leg forward, one back splits, and 2 days later they were back up on their feet as if nothing had ever been amiss. I've had others that have not done the splits but lost use of a leg and some have taken months to improve and others have deteriorated quite quickly and needed to be euthanized. There just don't seem to be any rules or normal course for this disease to progress. Every one is different.
I appreciate that these birds came from a hatchery. Do you have any other chickens from another source that you added to the flock. Whilst Marek's is pretty common and easily contracted, it is usually brought into a flock with birds from another source like an independent breeder or bird bought at auction/swap.....Just wondering if you added to your flock a month or so before this bird started exhibiting symptoms as that would lend weight to it being Marek's.

Thank you for chiming in. I've suspicion I've had Marek's in just a few of birds. A couple limped, but recovered. The other hobbled on hocks, so weak, appeared to be doing a split (although it may have simply been how it was laying), and then died.

Marek's is morphing as a virus so it is now very variable than the old fashioned split leg than death.

LofMc

 

[rebrascora]

Marek's is morphing as a virus so it is now very variable than the old fashioned split leg than death.

I agree, although I also believe that, through the likes of this forum particularly, with people from around the world sharing their knowledge and experience, we are learning much more about it, in all it's many guises. In the 3 years that I have had it, this forum has been invaluable in helping me understand and interpret what I see both through external symptoms and internal post mortem (necropsy) findings.

I also think that the previous practice of culling birds which exhibited symptoms, did not allow for finding out what happened next in the majority of cases. That practice may still be the most appropriate course of action but with chickens becoming more pets in backyard flocks, than expendable livestock, it is not something we can easily accept or are prepared to perform. It is not cost effective to treat a chicken, but we are prepared to do so. Marek's hens that recover don't lay at an efficient rate compared to healthy birds. You can still eat Marek's birds without risk to human health, so as livestock, it would probably have made sense to cull and eat those ones that displayed symptoms as early as possible, before too much wastage to the disease occurred.

 

[AllOutOfClucksToGive]

the silkies were raised with 3 pullets who will be full size chickens. we did already introduced them to our backyard block (3 barred rocks and 3 koshens). there obviously is a pecking order that has to be established.

Winnie, our ambassador and official backyard greeter wasted no time in introducing herself to the tiny ones.

ill relay this info to my wife and go from there.. we were hoping they could all coexist in the yard together with our pot bellied pig.

 

[annaBsChick]

Have you used PoultryDVM's Chicken Symptom Checker tool yet? What were the results? http://www.poultrydvm.com/

 

[AllOutOfClucksToGive]

so interesting turn of events. I had to cull one of our silkies yesterday. He, out of the blue fell over in the run and when trying to walk would wobble and just fall.

we isolated him, gave electrolytes, the whole 9... a few hours later his head was flipped back and he was sprawled out. he could not move. He was dispatched humanely, but i am concerned this will be the case with the others.

Patient Zero's (original chicken discussed in this thread) foot is indeed paralyzed. she is able to walk, but limps/hobbles around. her toes just fold if her foot is poorly positioned. she is eating and alert, but i still dont know what to make of it.

Have you used PoultryDVM's Chicken Symptom Checker tool yet? What were the results? http://www.poultrydvm.com/

no i havent but thanks for providing it.

 

[rebrascora]

Hi
Sorry to hear that you lost a silkie cockerel. His symptoms add further weight to the Marek's diagnosis I'm afraid.
It would have been a good idea to have had a necropsy done on him and I would urge you to consider it, if you lose another one. You need to be very careful about having contact with other people's flocks and not passing on any of your birds to other people who have chickens.

 

[AllOutOfClucksToGive]

Hi
Sorry to hear that you lost a silkie cockerel. His symptoms add further weight to the Marek's diagnosis I'm afraid.
It would have been a good idea to have had a necropsy done on him and I would urge you to consider it, if you lose another one. You need to be very careful about having contact with other people's flocks and not passing on any of your birds to other people who have chickens.

yeah, im no dr. or vet, but i tend to call a spade a spade. The silkies and the other 2 hens raised with them have no contact with our main, large flock of older girls. Our yard chickens are almost a year old but they dont really bother with the silkies much. No others are showing any oddities (aside from the silkies having no brains). Then again, the one i had to cull just dropped out of nowhere......

i read that old chickens are less susceptible?

all our hens are from the same hatchery (ideal poultry). the silkies are the only breeder chickens we have.

 

[rebrascora]

My guess would be that the silkies are the source of the Marek's virus. It is a disease that goes dormant and then flares up, just when you are starting to think it is gone. Some die very rapidly with it, some rally quite quickly but then relapse and some seem to just fail to thrive. The birds from the hatchery cannot be the source because the virus is not passed down through the egg from the mother. If you plan to get more chick from hatchery at any time in the future, it would probably be best to pay extra to get them vaccinated against Marek's.... it is usually an optional extra when ordering.
Good luck with the rest of your flock.

 

[AllOutOfClucksToGive]

now i'm really concerned.

 

[AllOutOfClucksToGive]

Hi All - just an update.

She's still alert and eating, but she cannot walk now. her toes are curled in and her leg is splayed.

We're not sure what to do. we're having a hard time with this one.