Know Your State Laws/ Partial Rant

altair

Songster
14 Years
Aug 16, 2010
205
49
246
I debated writing this but it's been kind of festering in the back of my mind and I don't really have many I can discuss this with without feeling sad and disappointed in institutions we look up to. I try to balance my personal sensitivities with common sense and mostly just feel kind of "stuck" with no good outcome for any decision.

Our flock consists of very rare breeds, 57 birds, we've bred for four years. Last month we opted voluntarily to have our birds tested. Our young birds we'd hatch each year and mix with the adults would get a "crud" during cold weather then get over it and the whole flock would seem fine until the next year of young ones. The outcome was mycoplasma gallisepticum (MG) and infectious laryngotracheitis (ILT). Our state vet was alerted by the testers and we effectively have a lock down on our property. No more birds in, no birds or products out. We have the option to cull everything but that decision would have wounded me enough to never have poultry again. With how prevalent disease and carriers are, there's the very real possibility it'd happen to a new flock.

I knew with testing birds comes with risk but didn't quite know to what extent. What was the most frustrating was not being even to sell eating eggs. I've phoned and emailed various vets from Georgia and Pennsylvania State University who treated my diagnosis with (summarized) "not a big deal, there are vaccines and treatments" where as my state, using the term the Penn State vet said on the phone, feels like house arrest.

I understand each state enacts its own rules as they see fit depending on a lot of factors. What was galling was getting treated so strictly without any other general precautions taken by my state to prevent diseases like MG and ILT. I'm a member of several local forums and clubs and cringe when I see birds getting swapped and sold and feel like if we would have never tested, we'd be just as under the radar. From talking with vets and reading, MG is very common and many flocks have it. Our assistant state vet asked if we had gotten creditable birds and both sources we did get adults from were NPIP. So then it was stated NPIP doesn't mean they're free from all disease. We never purchased birds from fairs or swaps or the neighbors, never opened our place up for farm tours, and were mindful of observation and month-long quarantines for the NPIP birds we did get. That some of our birds were handled by my state ag to get them NPIP approved when they clearly had other diseases seems like a hypocritical system.

Don't get me wrong, I am currently practicing husbandry practices to stop ILT and agree both diseases are not great to have. But to not even be able to sell eggs for eating is not exactly great when we're swamped and used to donate them to a food shelf and sell them just to offset feed prices. There's no way we can eat them all or have them leave the property so we'll have to find some other way to dispose/deal with the eggs.

After all was said and done it feels a bit like getting betrayed by the people you go to for help, but too late now. Vets on the phone have told me not to get testing done, which is pretty sad. The vet from Penn State said she'd be willing to write a letter on my behalf. I thought that was kind of her. One of the things I was wondering is how each state decides on how to react to reportable diseases and work to perhaps getting them adjusted. Or not. But I will never have testing done again.

We never made profits off our flock, I was really excited and proud to be able to conserve endangered breeds. All for naught. Please know your local regulations if you get testing or necropsies done. And all the health to your birds!
 
I think you have to see the regulation is in place to help protect others from receiving unhealthy birds or eggs from unhealthy birds and to prevent transmittable diseases from spreading not punishment to you. You shouldn’t feel betrayed. At least you know what is making the flock sick. I’m sorry to hear of your loss. :(
 
Last edited:
The NPIP site is the resource for control of these disease entities and surveillance testing is much of the control with recommendations for positive results. Their recommendations are as you suggested to purchase only from NPIP certified breeders or hatcheries with clean stock and practicing good bio security measures. The risk raises with avian diseases as flock size increases as well. The NPIP site does provide guidance literature on good bio security measures and handling prevention on certain disease entities. Any other questions for individualized situations would have to be handled direct.:)
 
Last edited:
I think you have to see the regulation is in place to help protect others from receiving unhealthy birds or eggs from unhealthy birds and to prevent transmittable diseases from spreading not punishment to you. You shouldn’t feel betrayed. At least you know what is making the flock sick. I’m sorry to hear of your loss. :(

The weird thing was, a year ago before I had them tested I emailed the state with my suspicions about my birds having ILT and was told no, my birds don't have that; there would be a lot of deaths. No follow-through.

Thanks for the tips and links, I'm definitely more knowledgeable!
 
The weird thing was, a year ago before I had them tested I emailed the state with my suspicions about my birds having ILT and was told no, my birds don't have that; there would be a lot of deaths. No follow-through.

Thanks for the tips and links, I'm definitely more knowledgeable!

Welcome! Sometimes it just takes time for it to show itself and they probably didn’t want to be rash in the decision. You have good instincts.
 
As the old adage states, 'It's harder to do the right thing'. Unfortunate circumstances, but being responsible isn't nearly as easy as being irresponsible. Frustrating for sure and I can with all sincerity feel and see you indeed are, I'd have been the same way.

Can't tell you how many times I go to my local and regional fairs poultry exhibits and just find them mostly in poor taste and incompetence. Non professionals doing professional things never seems like a good idea. Like the two hens on display with Scaly Leg mites...nobody really cared but me so I wrote the owner a note and stuck it to their cages for all to see. I can not disagree with the state AG's office about the quarantine, but to ponder the idea of putting my entire flock of pets down would completely ruin me for my beloved hobby. I'd probably vomit and lay in bed for a few days with depression.

I hope with your new found knowledge you are somehow able to slowly remove the issues from your flock and get past the frustration. You really take me as a responsible, caring person in regard to your feathery friends. Heck, I'd love an update six months from now even just to see how you are making out. Good luck with everything and I apologize for not having more to offer you than well wishes and support.
 
Hello..My old flock had ILT also. It was recommended that I cull all Birds. I refused too. Also no Birds in or out of my property. Trust me the rules are not strictly followed in Backyard flocks. I continued to provide friends with eggs and sold Chicks. I got rid of that flock of Chickens this past September. I cleaned my Coop and did not introduce new Birds to that Coop till after 8 weeks. My Silkies are free from ILT.
All they want to do is scare you. I chat off on on with a University Poultry Vet here in Edmonton, Alberta. Chickens catch many diseases so disease transfer is hard to control in Backyard flocks.
Just enjoy your Birds. :frow
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom