Mareks disease

[wolfwalker]

I promise not to get on my soap box about this issue. BUT, too many people immediately conclude Mareks without lab tests instead of the dozen or so other issues that mimic Mareks perfectly. Like heavy metal poisoning (from ground or water sources), Neurological from vitamin deficiency, low level Aflatoxin from bad feed( have had that happen to me). Lab tests are the only way to conclude you have Mareks Period! And you don't have to cull a bird to get it done, a blood sample can be sent in and is inexpensive.

Your profile does not state where you are located. Search out your State veterinarian, he or she is the go to resource for any issues you encounter, they are paid to handle these issues. Look them up and call their office. In my opinion no one should cull their entire flock without the State Vet weighing in.

You don't mention if your birds have been vaccinated or their age.

As far as the picture of the eye, I can think of several things to investigate before even considering Mareks. Eye injury and scaring. Chickens do get glaucoma just like people. And being in Arizona I have had chickens go blind from to much sun exposure as they tried to follow an aerial threat who flew across the sun. As far as the pupil and eye being misshapen, that too could be normal or the results of the start of a respiratory issue, which is a whole other kettle of issues.

Because of Mareks being so devastating everyone jumps to that conclusion first and second and third without ever giving consideration to anything else.

And good bio-security practices, even if you are not NPIP or a hatchery states no one who has chickens visits past your house without wearing clothing that has not had contact with their chickens, which includes shoes, since they were washed.

 

[Lulu35]

Hi wolf walker. Thank you for your comment. The only reason I'm thinking mareks is because my stepdaughter and her moms flock had to be killed from mareks. She still has turkey and maybe quails. I've been nervous ever since. I live in New Hampshire and we did just have our water tested. Its well water. We are a bit over in arsenic, fluoride, iron and manganese. Not much over the state requirements. We have been researching water filter and reverse osmosis. And we can set up to catch rain water. I have her separated, i kind of feel bad though. To me it looks as if she is blind in her one eye. She's kind of doing this exorcist turning her head around to see me.. not wry neck or anything just trying to adapt to her new issue. When I picked her up this morning she seemed kind of snotty. Im going to call my vet. They see my goats but not sure about chickens.

 

[Eggcessive]

I would not bother keeping her separated. If she has been exposed to Mareks, and I have doubts about that being ocular Mareks, all of your chickens have been exposed and will continue to be exposed. Chickens are happier in a flock. There is no need to cull a flock with Mareks. It will continue to be in the dust and dander for months to years. Quail, I have read can also get Mareks. I think turkeys have it in some countries. If Mareks is still a consideration you can get a blood test kit from RAL in Texas, and collect a blood sample from a cut toenail to send in for PCR testing. It is between $20-40. Here is a link for them:
https://www.vetdna.com/application/forms/aviansubmittalform.pdf

 

[Lulu35]

She is not liking being separated i kind of knew that it wouldn't be much help in separating her now. Because of the dander being in the coop and they all been together forever. I called my vet they do necropsy in nh but they could do blood test and send to Texas. Which would be 65$ I dont want to kill her, unless I have to. I'll contact the Texas diagnosis place and see. I put her back out with the others. We will wait and see what happens.

 

[Ancacl7]

What usually kills unvaccinated chickens is exposing them to vaccinated ones.
Never, ever mix vaccinated and unvaccinated chickens. Marek's vaccination is what they call a "leaky" vaccination in that it prevents death of the host but does not prevent transmission, and it allows the virus to become increasingly "hot" or more deadly. Vaccinated chickens transmit 10,000 times more of the deadly virus than an unvaccinated bird, and the virus has evolved so strong now that it has the capability of killing 100% of unvaccinated chickens the vaccinated chicken comes into contact with. Always ask whether the chickens have been vaccinated before adding them to your flock. Chicks bought from Tractor Supply stores are not vaccinated. Chicks bought from Ace Hardware are.

Research Marek's Vaccine. This is a known fact (and snowballing problem) in the commercial poultry world, threatening the very existence of chickens in the future. The first vaccine of 1970 eventually stopped working, so a second was developed in 1983, and when that began to fail, a third, which is what we are on now. The virus keeps evolving hotter strains (killing far more unvaccinated chickens than it did before the vaccine was developed). These variants are increasingly resistant to vaccination (killing more and more vaccinated chickens). Here's just one part of one article about a disease ecologist's experiment and findings:

"Read’s group started their investigation by exposing vaccinated and unvaccinated Rhode Island Red chickens to one of five Marek’s disease strains that ranged from hot to cold. The hottest strains killed every unvaccinated bird within 10 days, and the team noticed that barely any virus was shed from the feathers of the chickens during that time. (The virus spreads via contaminated dust in chicken coops). In contrast, vaccination extended the lifespan of birds exposed to the hottest strains, with 80 percent living longer than two months. But the vaccinated chickens were transmitting the virus, shedding 10,000 times more virus than an unvaccinated bird.....“One way to look at that experiment is that shows vaccinating birds kills unvaccinated birds. The vaccination of one group of birds leads to the transmission of a virus so hot that it kills the other birds, said Read said. “If you vaccinate the mothers, the same thing happens. The offspring are protected by the maternal antibodies of the mother and that allows the virus in the chicks to transmit before they kill the host. So they transmit and kill the other individuals.”

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/science/tthis-chicken-vaccine-makes-virus-dangerous
https://www.healthline.com/health-n...n-produce-stronger-versions-of-viruses-072715
https://www.quantamagazine.org/how-vaccines-can-drive-pathogens-to-evolve-20180510/

Thank you for sharing this! This is extremely helpful!

 

[Folly's place]

And @Outta Here is wrong about this! Vaccinated birds do NOT spread Marek's disease to unvaccinated birds, it's the other way around. Vaccinated birds will get Marek's disease if they are exposed, but are much more likely to survive it, because they are well protected from getting the tumors that kill some unvaccinated Marek's birds.
And biosecurity is very important!
Listen to @Eggcessive , and talk to your state veterinary path lab about testing live birds, and about the vaccine.
Mary

 

[Eggcessive]

And @Outta Here is wrong about this! Vaccinated birds do NOT spread Marek's disease to unvaccinated birds, it's the other way around. Vaccinated birds will get Marek's disease if they are exposed, but are much more likely to survive it, because they are well protected from getting the tumors that kill some unvaccinated Marek's birds.
And biosecurity is very important!
Listen to @Eggcessive , and talk to your state veterinary path lab about testing live birds, and about the vaccine.
Mary

Yes, that is a myth about vaccinated birds exposing unvaccinated ones to Mareks. My first birds were all vaccinated, but I later hatched out chicks and added a few from feed stores, and have never had a case of Mareks in 10 years that I know of. I always get vaccinated chicks if I can, and will in the future.

 

[Folly's place]

Here any chicks I buy, from approved hatcheries only, are vaccinated against Marek's disease, and isolated from the flock area for two weeks, so they can develop immunity. Chicks raised from our birds are not vaccinated, and in thirty years, we don't have a Marek's infected flock. It's part luck, and practicing biosecurity, and checking every bird who dies.
Mary