Living With Mareks: And Yes, that's my introduction, sadly.

[Lil Halawakee]

Yes, I am still working on my breeding for resistance project cross breeding vaccinated, genetically resistant Egyptian Fayoumis to non vaccinated locally bred Amish backyard mixes that appear to have developed resistance to the strain of MD that devastated my flock 4 years ago.

So far so good! Not only have the Fayoumis bred with my barnyard crosses but also with my Silver Duck Wing Bantams. I have only gotten cockerels to date but I am hoping to start seeing some cross bred pullets, hopefully sooner than later.

@TheDawg, what a veterinary doctor at the University of MO at Columbia told me during a conversation is that you will recognize resistant birds when you have roosters and hens that survive 3-4 years, 5 is better. Yes, I know, then the trick is to get fertility out of them but it is possible.

And remember resistance doesn't mean immunity. I don't think there is a breed of chickens that is truly immune to MD but there are birds that are resistant to getting the disease.

Oh my gosh!!! This didn't occur to me!!! I have Fayoumis ordered, but I never thought of crossing these to my beloved bantams. I'm trying to understand something, help me here: why would it not be an option to breed for resistance PLUS the vaccine? I know that it seems counter-intuitive, but as you say here (totally correct) there are no *immune* birds. So, what are the real implications of doing, well, both? Thank you for responding, microchick. Kat

 

[ShrekDawg]

@Lil Halawakee so sorry for your losses! I know how rough it is. My birds are my pets too and named and all the ones I have lost, I’ve hatched myself including some from my first ever hatch, so it can definitely be quite rough! I totally get it.

Perhaps you could add some vaccinated cuddle birds to your April order? So that they are safe but you get some pets again.

 

[Lil Halawakee]

@Lil Halawakee so sorry for your losses! I know how rough it is. My birds are my pets too and named and all the ones I have lost, I’ve hatched myself including some from my first ever hatch, so it can definitely be quite rough! I totally get it.

Perhaps you could add some vaccinated cuddle birds to your April order? So that they are safe but you get some pets again.

Thank you so much. I think it's a sad club to join, isn't it? I hope that one day I can forgive myself for doing this to my babies. I've thought of adding a cuddler or three--just feel so badly about bringing them in and possibly exposing them, even vaccinated. I guess I need to decide. I really, really love my chickens. I sure would love to feel that way again. My Harriet (a frizzled one-pound chicken) was my little doll baby. She rode around on my shoulder, learned a special call for me, and would let me take her baby chicks from her. She's still alive, but I barely let myself see her--steadying up for the day she succumbs to this thing. If I could just talk myself into believing that it wouldn't be selfish to try again with vaccinated babes . . . we are only a year in, and I'm still looking for more folks who have made it four or five years. I guess I'm looking for hope.

 

[seminolewind]

Oh wow that’s so interesting!! My roosters seem to be most affected too and I too thought it was a fight at first with my first one. I’ve had to put down 3 now. Two last year about a month apart and then just last month another one. Of those 3, 2 of them were boys and the two last year were also both Welsummers oddly.

Also I had a cockerel drop dead last summer at around I think 8-9 months? I thought it was heat stroke as it had been unusually hot for a few days and he was huge and fluffy but complications from Mareks?

His son was the one I lost last month. His other son (the other bird’s half brother) and daughter are still going strong so far. I lost the other daughter to a hawk so won’t get to find out if she’s resistant unfortunately. These birds are around 7 months old now so

Mine have all gotten the classic leg paralysis, droopy wings, one had the gaping, etc. although I do also have one hen with ocular Mareks.

And oh yes, chicken math has me firmly in her grip hence not adding any more till some of these ones die or something.

It sounds like you were hit really hard. I think eventually things slow down. I've had it happen twice where a roo or hen flipped over and died. With the roo I thought he was faking! How sad. The hen was found under the perch . She was totally active the day before. It did not appear that Marek's had anything to do with it. Just heart attacks.

Most of mine developed symptoms at 6-8 weeks. A few at 5 weeks. I've even had 2 adults about 2 years old get one leg paralysis . It doesn't appear to be that there are hard and fast rules with Marek's. It also makes it hard when the symptoms are other than one leg paralysis. Wasting is always involved. They look like they are eating but are not. It looks like loss of depth perception sometimes. Judging from my necropsies in the past those Marek's exposed adults never tested positive for Marek's. It was always something else like Cocci, or Enteritis. Liver disease or aspergillosis. It was like the only ones that tested positive were the symptomatic young birds.

With vaccinations and the adults dying out normally I have not had a Marek's loss in years. I thought Marek's was the end of my chicken hobby. But then realized that I could do alot even with it. Get vaccinated hatchery chicks, keep my hatched chicks quarantined and vaccinated, give away quarantined chicks, The only thing I could not do was have my chicken hatch eggs. I tried 3 times and they all lived less than a year.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Thank you so much. I think it's a sad club to join, isn't it? I hope that one day I can forgive myself for doing this to my babies. I've thought of adding a cuddler or three--just feel so badly about bringing them in and possibly exposing them, even vaccinated. I guess I need to decide. I really, really love my chickens. I sure would love to feel that way again. My Harriet (a frizzled one-pound chicken) was my little doll baby. She rode around on my shoulder, learned a special call for me, and would let me take her baby chicks from her. She's still alive, but I barely let myself see her--steadying up for the day she succumbs to this thing. If I could just talk myself into believing that it wouldn't be selfish to try again with vaccinated babes . . . we are only a year in, and I'm still looking for more folks who have made it four or five years. I guess I'm looking for hope.

I totally understand that but I would at least start visiting your other bird again even if you don’t get more as I think it’s worth it to open our hearts again and love them even if it’s hard

 

[microchick]

Yes, the heartbreak is horrible. Self incriminations are bitter pills until you realize that there is really nothing you can do to change what has happened. Some say OH! I didn't isolate a new bird long enough before integrating it into the flock.

Truth is that you can keep a bird in isolation for months and if it has survived the initial infection, then there is no way for you to know that bird is a carrier without the feather testing mentioned is done.

I'm hoping the future will see easily obtainable and accurate testing to be available at local USDA or Home Extension offices.

But if all the things I've read are correct, then the fact is that Marek's disease is everywhere, then I hope there is a easily administered vaccine that will eliminate the disease the way small pox has been eliminated.

I lost Welsummer roosters and hens also.

What was left of my original flock after fighting MD for three years. Welsummers and Buff O's and one lone Welly rooster.

 

[ShrekDawg]

It sounds like you were hit really hard. I think eventually things slow down. I've had it happen twice where a roo or hen flipped over and died. With the roo I thought he was faking! How sad. The hen was found under the perch . She was totally active the day before. It did not appear that Marek's had anything to do with it. Just heart attacks.

Most of mine developed symptoms at 6-8 weeks. A few at 5 weeks. I've even had 2 adults about 2 years old get one leg paralysis . It doesn't appear to be that there are hard and fast rules with Marek's. It also makes it hard when the symptoms are other than one leg paralysis. Wasting is always involved. They look like they are eating but are not. It looks like loss of depth perception sometimes. Judging from my necropsies in the past those Marek's exposed adults never tested positive for Marek's. It was always something else like Cocci, or Enteritis. Liver disease or aspergillosis. It was like the only ones that tested positive were the symptomatic young birds.

With vaccinations and the adults dying out normally I have not had a Marek's loss in years. I thought Marek's was the end of my chicken hobby. But then realized that I could do alot even with it. Get vaccinated hatchery chicks, keep my hatched chicks quarantined and vaccinated, give away quarantined chicks, The only thing I could not do was have my chicken hatch eggs. I tried 3 times and they all lived less than a year.

Yeah it was hard especially last year as I had had a lot of other losses too due to predators mostly (I fixed those issues) so it was just really rough between that and the Mareks birds and especially having raised them!

That’s so weird that yours got it so young though! I wouldn’t have thought that. all mine got it the stereotypical time frame of adolescence or POL whatever.

I had a broody hatch chicks last summer and I’m hoping these remaining two pull through! I already lost the one boy, that’s the one I put down last month, and the other girl is the hawk attack one, but hoping the other two make it past a year. They’re 7 months now.

 

[Lil Halawakee]

It sounds like you were hit really hard. I think eventually things slow down. I've had it happen twice where a roo or hen flipped over and died. With the roo I thought he was faking! How sad. The hen was found under the perch . She was totally active the day before. It did not appear that Marek's had anything to do with it. Just heart attacks.

Most of mine developed symptoms at 6-8 weeks. A few at 5 weeks. I've even had 2 adults about 2 years old get one leg paralysis . It doesn't appear to be that there are hard and fast rules with Marek's. It also makes it hard when the symptoms are other than one leg paralysis. Wasting is always involved. They look like they are eating but are not. It looks like loss of depth perception sometimes. Judging from my necropsies in the past those Marek's exposed adults never tested positive for Marek's. It was always something else like Cocci, or Enteritis. Liver disease or aspergillosis. It was like the only ones that tested positive were the symptomatic young birds.

With vaccinations and the adults dying out normally I have not had a Marek's loss in years. I thought Marek's was the end of my chicken hobby. But then realized that I could do alot even with it. Get vaccinated hatchery chicks, keep my hatched chicks quarantined and vaccinated, give away quarantined chicks, The only thing I could not do was have my chicken hatch eggs. I tried 3 times and they all lived less than a year.

These are the kinds of lessons I need to hear. Yes, one of the hardest losses is keeping my broody hens from hatching out their own. I will always miss that--there's just no way back. But, I'm hoping to find a road forward. Sounds as if you did find one! Thank you for giving me that tiny hope. Kat

 

[Lil Halawakee]

Yeah it was hard especially last year as I had had a lot of other losses too due to predators mostly (I fixed those issues) so it was just really rough between that and the Mareks birds and especially having raised them!

That’s so weird that yours got it so young though! I wouldn’t have thought that. all mine got it the stereotypical time frame of adolescence or POL whatever.

I had a broody hatch chicks last summer and I’m hoping these remaining two pull through! I already lost the one boy, that’s the one I put down last month, and the other girl is the hawk attack one, but hoping the other two make it past a year. They’re 7 months now.

I'm hoping for you on those. I had a Brahma (a girl from a brood of Marans, Aracaunas and Death layers) somehow survive. She is almost ten months, laying eggs, and impervious to the disease . . . so far. I don't think we know a lot about how this virus works. Thank you for sharing!

 

[Lil Halawakee]

Yes, the heartbreak is horrible. Self incriminations are bitter pills until you realize that there is really nothing you can do to change what has happened. Some say OH! I didn't isolate a new bird long enough before integrating it into the flock.

Truth is that you can keep a bird in isolation for months and if it has survived the initial infection, then there is no way for you to know that bird is a carrier without the feather testing mentioned is done.

I'm hoping the future will see easily obtainable and accurate testing to be available at local USDA or Home Extension offices.

But if all the things I've read are correct, then the fact is that Marek's disease is everywhere, then I hope there is a easily administered vaccine that will eliminate the disease the way small pox has been eliminated.

I lost Welsummer roosters and hens also.

View attachment 2546229

What was left of my original flock after fighting MD for three years. Welsummers and Buff O's and one lone Welly rooster.

Yes, yes, yes. The truth is also: backyard flocks are not yet considered important enough to help. And that is sad. I love your picture. They look so very happy. Thank you.