lymphoid leukosis - what next?

[Kkrejci]

You need to rethink your logic. The line of thinking you are pursuing would still leave you with a flock carrying the virus. It cannot be controlled and contained within the same premises. It spreads by dander and dust on the air currents, on your shoes and clothes and even hands. The new chicks will pick up the virus in this manner.

These new pullets will then carry the virus. You still have infected hens passing the virus to the embryo in the eggs. All hens carrying the virus will pass it to the embryos. You would not be able to sell any of these eggs for hatching purposes or hatched chicks.

It's like trying to have it both ways and the virus has its own rules. It won't work.

Shoot - that was my hunch, but I was too hopeful it seems. Thank you for your honesty - I truly appreciate it. I have some heavy thinking ahead of me.

 

[Kkrejci]

One more question for you - You mentioned brooding hatchery chicks adjacent to your flock, but at what age do you incorporate them with the rest of your flock?

 

[azygous]

I brood in my enclosed run. The hatchery chicks are exposed to the flock from the time they are a day old. As long as a broody hen doesn't get the notion to adopt them and sit on them, they do not become symptomatic and develop resistance.

 

[Kkrejci]

I brood in my enclosed run. The hatchery chicks are exposed to the flock from the time they are a day old. As long as a broody hen doesn't get the notion to adopt them and sit on them, they do not become symptomatic and develop resistance.

Excellent - this is great news. I was thinking I'd have to raise them adjacent to the coop in a separate chicken tractor. I have some brooder boxes built inside my coop that I like to use - I'll plan on going that route. Thank you so very much!

 

[lisa69]

Hello all, I have a flock of 45 chickens and about half of the chickens that I hatched last spring have randomly plopped over dead as they neared egg-laying age. All of my adults remain healthy with no issues. I finally did a necropsy and revealed a massive liver with white tumors in it (see photo). Everything else looked fine except for fairly atrophied intestines. No evidence of any egg production. I highly suspect lymphoid leukosis.

I have a few roosters, so I like to incubate my eggs each spring... but, now I'm not sure what to do since it looks like the virus can spread down from the flock to the eggs from the reading I've done. I saw a few people mention that it's safe if you only use the eggs from hens that have gone through 2 molts? Is that true?

I also have a few orders in for chicks from a hatchery... will they be safe bringing them in? I'm at a loss as to what to do. I really don't want to have to cull my flock especially with so many adult birds that seem quite healthy.

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

Go to RAL laboratories online and you can PCR test and find out what virus you have. You have to add avian leukosis to the RNA virus, on the order form. You can vaccinate and hatch your way out of Marek's disease but not Avian Leukosis, as it will pass to your eggs and the virus is more virulent in the progeny from infected hens. There is not vaccine. Unless you got the birds as pets then you pretty much have to cull your flock and start over. YOU CAN'T bring any new stock in safely.

 

[deekay04]

I brood in my enclosed run. The hatchery chicks are exposed to the flock from the time they are a day old. As long as a broody hen doesn't get the notion to adopt them and sit on them, they do not become symptomatic and develop resistance.

I have an ALV infected flock, but they are healthy with no symptoms or deaths. I actually thought it was gone, bought a bunch of chicks from hatchery, and then decided to test my flock. They came back positive. I suspect I even got ALV from hatching eggs, as that flock started dying off around 4months old (Nov 21 got diagnosis) and are now all gone due to the virus and predation. None of the birds I had before those hatched birds ever showed sickness or death - so they must be resistant as they are still around.

I was also stupid and just hatched eggs from that flock prior to test results and all developing eggs hatched. There are 11 and are about 5 weeks old.

The hatchery chicks are also around 5-6 weeks old, in a tent completely separated from my hatched chicks with small mesh windows that block a lot of dust/debris- but both reside in my basement right now.

I wanted to sell off the hatchery chicks because I was afraid I was just going to infect them and live a short life. But I also wonder if they could already be infected being in the same vicinity as the other chicks. But at the same time I want to keep some of the hatchery chicks...but don't want them to live short lives.

I'm at a loss...

 

[Saaniya]

Hello all, I have a flock of 45 chickens and about half of the chickens that I hatched last spring have randomly plopped over dead as they neared egg-laying age. All of my adults remain healthy with no issues. I finally did a necropsy and revealed a massive liver with white tumors in it (see photo). Everything else looked fine except for fairly atrophied intestines. No evidence of any egg production. I highly suspect lymphoid leukosis.

I have a few roosters, so I like to incubate my eggs each spring... but, now I'm not sure what to do since it looks like the virus can spread down from the flock to the eggs from the reading I've done. I saw a few people mention that it's safe if you only use the eggs from hens that have gone through 2 molts? Is that true?

I also have a few orders in for chicks from a hatchery... will they be safe bringing them in? I'm at a loss as to what to do. I really don't want to have to cull my flock especially with so many adult birds that seem quite healthy.

Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thank you!

LL is so bad and painful but how do u know it’s LL

 

[PurpleCArTires]

Go to RAL laboratories online and you can PCR test and find out what virus you have. You have to add avian leukosis to the RNA virus, on the order form. You can vaccinate and hatch your way out of Marek's disease but not Avian Leukosis, as it will pass to your eggs and the virus is more virulent in the progeny from infected hens. There is not vaccine. Unless you got the birds as pets then you pretty much have to cull your flock and start over. YOU CAN'T bring any new stock in safely.

I know this is an older thread, but question about the PCR Test. Did you literally write on the form "Avian Leukosis" and they were able to test for it? What did you send in for the test?

 

[azygous]

I'll answer this. The PCR test requires a blood sample from little blood from a toenail that you clip a tiny distance into the quick. The lab sends you a test kit with vials for the blood samples. You will be requesting the test for the specific pathogen. These tests are rather expensive and you can't just request a broad "test for everything bad". The lab has to know what to test for specifically.

Here's who to contact: Zoologix Inc 9811 Owensmouth Ave, STE 4, Chatsworth, CA, 91311-9547 818-717-8880 www.zoologix.com This test is around $100 and the test kit is around $25.

 

[PurpleCArTires]

I'll answer this. The PCR test requires a blood sample from little blood from a toenail that you clip a tiny distance into the quick. The lab sends you a test kit with vials for the blood samples. You will be requesting the test for the specific pathogen. These tests are rather expensive and you can't just request a broad "test for everything bad". The lab has to know what to test for specifically.

Here's who to contact: Zoologix Inc 9811 Owensmouth Ave, STE 4, Chatsworth, CA, 91311-9547 818-717-8880 www.zoologix.com This test is around $100 and the test kit is around $25.

Thank you!!