Marans Thread - breed discussion & pictures are welcome!

[snowbird]

Quote:
I vaccinate all of my chicks as day olds. As for the broody chicks...I pull them from the hens within 24 hours of hatch and vaccinate them. I, personally, brood the chicks from that point on in my house. I just find that house-brooded chicks are friendlier than hen raised ones. But if I wanted (and I have), I have put the vaccinated chicks back with their vaccinated mothers for grow out.

I set my eggs in the incubators once a week and vaccinate. You know there is a way to split the Mareks wafer if you are only doing a few.

 

[shelleyb1969]

Quote:
I vaccinate all of my chicks as day olds. As for the broody chicks...I pull them from the hens within 24 hours of hatch and vaccinate them. I, personally, brood the chicks from that point on in my house. I just find that house-brooded chicks are friendlier than hen raised ones. But if I wanted (and I have), I have put the vaccinated chicks back with their vaccinated mothers for grow out.

I set my eggs in the incubators once a week and vaccinate. You know there is a way to split the Mareks wafer if you are only doing a few.

Yep. I split mine into quarters. I'm leary of breaking it down any smaller than that.

Needless to say, I spend a lot each year in vaccine. I'm on my 72nd hatch for this year.

It requires A LOT of discipline and planning to do it, but it's do-able.

 

[Wynette]

Don - I'd love to see how you built your light box as well! Something I've been wanting to make, but have no idea on how to tackle.

 

[snowbird]

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Wynette, I built the box similiar to the one Bill Wulf uses for the poultry Press. The one I will use is three foot square and three foot high. Soon as I paint it will be all white inside . Will have a drop down hinged door on front so when the wild birds settle down I can drop the door and get a picture without the wire showing. I will use two of the Daylite bulbs fof lighting. Will try and get it painted and ready to go by first of week.

 

[Wynette]

Don, Gosh, I feel like I saw an article about how to build the one Bill Wulff uses...would that have been in Backyard Poultry, I wonder? Hmmm...

 

[gvntofly05]

Quote:
I set my eggs in the incubators once a week and vaccinate. You know there is a way to split the Mareks wafer if you are only doing a few.

Yep. I split mine into quarters. I'm leary of breaking it down any smaller than that.

Needless to say, I spend a lot each year in vaccine. I'm on my 72nd hatch for this year.

It requires A LOT of discipline and planning to do it, but it's do-able.

How do you split it?

I would vaccinate all my chicks if I can do this.

ETA: Nevermind I was able to find the info on a search! I wish I would have known this a long time ago! Ordering some vaccine now to have for my next hatch!

 

[Wynette]

I'm not 100% sure, but I don't believe you can get it in wafers any longer; the last few batches I've gotten were in powder form (probably because the mfr. figured out that the wafers could be split). Is that right, shelleyb?

 

[gvntofly05]

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Hmmm, I have a very small scale.

Maybe the powder could be weighed and split?

 

[shelleyb1969]

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I'm still getting it in wafer form. The manufacturer DID change the size of the bottle that the wafer comes in, though. It's MUCH harder to split the wafer now.

 

[Wynette]

I'm sure that it could, but the problem is that it's not really sanitary to do that. It comes in a tiny vial - you extract some of the antigen via needle/syringe, then squirt it into the tiny vial, gently mix, then remove it with the needle/syringe and squirt it back into the bottle of antigen. If you remove the vaccine, it's exposed....

shelleyb - where are you getting it from? I get mine from Twin Cities, and for the last 6 months, all have been powder form.