Mareks disease!!!

[Annalyse]

I'm sorry to hear about the diagnosis.

I don't believe I've ever seen anyone with confirmed Marek's mention their bird got immediately better when given a pain reliever. What was given?

Since she's been with her flock this whole time except for a week's separation, everyone is exposed. If she seems fit to start the re-integration process, then put her near her flock and see how she does.

@microchick @coach723 any thoughts?

Thank you! She was given Meloxicam 15mg tablets that have been mixed with water to make it liquid. I give her 0.4 mg every night. When she had wry neck as a baby chick she had the same meds but given 0.1 every night as well as a vitamin boost.

 

[Annalyse]

Do you know specifically what test they did, that confirmed Marek's?
I'm asking because it's uncommon for most vets to run it, it's a PCR test that usually has to be sent off, and I'm only aware of limited resources that do it. I could be mistaken, maybe things are changing, but just want to verify. With Marek's and paralysis it's caused by tumors on the nerves, and I don't think pain meds would suddenly make that go away. Again, I could be wrong, but not what I have seen. I'm wondering, since it's a silkie, if it's more something with inflammation in the brain that is getting knocked back by the meds. Silkies and other vaulted skull birds can have more issues with inflammation in the brain and brain injury. They are also more susceptible to vitamin deficiencies and those symptoms. Since she presented with issues when she was younger, I wonder if this is related to that. As @WyorpRock said, if it is Marek's, they have all already been exposed, so unless you see severe issues affecting her, I personally wouldn't cull. In addition to the pain meds I would do some vitamin supplementing, E and selenium, and a b complex. Give her some time, and see how it goes.

Thank you! I’m not sure what the name of the test that was done. I don’t specifically remember but on my receipt I have 1 Mareks RAL as well as Venipuncture I’m guessing is the blood drawn.

 

[Annalyse]

I agree that a blood test seems odd for Marak's, but unfortunately I'm not a vet. Usually it's confirmed by necropsy through visible lesions/tumors along with tissue sample tests.

I think pain meds might work with Marak's symptoms, especially in the early stages. Whatever it is, I'm glad the pain meds seem to be working.

I agree with the others that, if it is Marak's, the entire flock is already exposed so I'd put her back in, especially if she seems better. Of course, if it's not Marak's but something else, you run the risk of spreading that disease. However, I think the stress of separation isn't worth it unless you see a valid reason to do so.

If she or any of your other birds succumb, I'd highly recommend a necropsy, especially if there are multiple birds showing symptoms. If it truly is Marak's, you'll want to know for sure so you only bring in vaccinated birds from here on out.

On an emotional note, I know it's hard but try not to panic. It's very possible to deal with Marak's and continue to move forward successfully. The virus is endemic and has been in our world for a very long time (before it was discovered, farmers called it pasture paralysis). Yet backyard flocks are still here AND thriving!

Hang in there, and keep us posted!

My Flock has a specific doctors at my vet that takes again and she also has chickens as well which is nice. I also don’t know much about Avian Vet besides the simple at home diys. All my other silkies are fine and they have been with her since the brooder. I know the vet would tell me to keep her seperated but she is too young to be put down. I really do want her to thrive. I saved her once from wry neck I plan on doing that again for my baby. If I have to keep her on meds the rest of her life I will.

 

[Annalyse]

Thanks @Wyorp Rock for the tag.

@Annalyse I'm so sorry to hear about your Silkie. Yeah, I have the same thoughts about the test BUT, Silkies are #1 with a bullet when it comes to Marek's disease. That being said, it's chances of being positive are probably higher than it being negative. Of course a post mortem necropsy is the only true diagnosis testing for Marek's.

Unfortunately, if it is Marek's the Genie is out of the bottle and your whole flock is carrying the disease. And yes, I've heard of remissions only for the disease to come back later when the bird reaches POL or sexual maturity. Mine all died at a year to a year and a half average, but showed no signs of the initial infection with the exception of a few birds.

Until you get it figured out 100% my best advice is to lock your flock down. No birds out, no birds in unless they are vaccinated and even that isn't a 100% guarantee that you won't suffer losses. Keeping her separated from the flock isn't necessary. They already have been exposed to her.

I invite you to read my article about dealing with Marek's in your flock:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...-i-learned-to-deal-with-mareks-disease.76944/

And take heart. You aren't alone here.

​

Thank you! I already trying to prepare myself for the worst of it. I got four 20 week old silkies because my original flock of chickens are all standard birds but I have one silkie in that flock. They bullied her they are all 5 years old and I wanted to get her some more silkies so she’d feel better not be bullied everyday. Made the silkies there own seperate coop. My 5 year old silkie has been with the silkie coop for a little bit now so I’m not taking any chances putting with my other flock so keep any disease at bay. I feel bad that she has it now but hoping she is stronger since she’s older but my hopes are for them to live a happy life right now <3

 

[coach723]

How long between the visit where the test was administered, and the results were given to you? I'm sorry for all the questions, and doubts, just trying to have as much information as possible. I would hate for you to be assuming Marek's if it's something else.
But as others have said, Marek's is not the end of things for chicken keeping. I do understand the initial fear and panic, I think all of us that have dealt with it have had the same reaction. But the reality is often much different than the horrible expectations we all had before. So, try not to panic, give yourself some breathing time. I would still try the vitamins to see if you get any improvement at all. If things get worse, you can always decide enough is enough.

 

[Annalyse]

How long between the visit where the test was administered, and the results were given to you? I'm sorry for all the questions, and doubts, just trying to have as much information as possible. I would hate for you to be assuming Marek's if it's something else.
But as others have said, Marek's is not the end of things for chicken keeping. I do understand the initial fear and panic, I think all of us that have dealt with it have had the same reaction. But the reality is often much different than the horrible expectations we all had before. So, try not to panic, give yourself some breathing time. I would still try the vitamins to see if you get any improvement at all. If things get worse, you can always decide enough is enough.

The vet visit was July 7, 2025 and today is July 18, 2025. I’ve had her in my house/basement for I think two weeks. A couple days ago is when I called the vet to get the test results back. (I was waiting for them to call me). My flock is fine no other symptoms. I have two boys and two girls 21 weeks starting today I think and then my one 5 year old girl. The meds I have my hen on seem to gotten her better quickly. I got the meds the same day we went to the vet. She got better overnight. I will look into providing her some more vitamins. Should I also add more vitamins to my other silkies and if so What kind? I have quite a lot of stuff I got from TSC when she was sick with wry neck as a baby. I think I grabbed every booster/med stuff I could get in store. I have my own chicken first aid kit. Should I also add some vitamins to my 5 year flock as well just as an in case? They have never been out together only see eachother through the runs (both coops/runs are multiple feet apart not touching.

 

[coach723]

I would just give the vitamins to the one with the symptoms. So it sounds more probable that they did run the test, and my understanding is that the results are usually high confidence (a false negative would be more common than a false positive as the blood test is not as sensitive as the feather follicle test). The only caveat is if the bird was immunized for Marek's disease, in which case they could test positive without actually being infected with the virulent form of the disease (so kind of a false positive in that case). So if she was not vaccinated and the PCR said positive for Marek's DNA, then likely she does have it.
If in fact that is the case, it's mostly spread through feather dander, which is everywhere, and can even be carried on the wind for miles. So being in a different run is not necessarily going to protect the others on your property. You can carry in on your clothes and shoes, feeders, waterers, etc.
Again, don't panic. Time will tell. Many of us found that at the very beginning our losses were higher, as time goes on it becomes less, and more manageable. Some strains are much more virulent than others. I do know that silkies are more susceptible to it, so if you bring any more in I would probably only bring in vaccinated ones of that breed particularly. I do not have silkies, and probably never will due to knowing that I've got/had Marek's on the property. Whether to bring in vaccinated birds or not is a personal decision that you will have to make. There are loads of articles and many different opinions, so I would do some reading, educate yourself, and make a decision that works for you.
I currently have two birds (in a 40 bird flock) with ocular Marek's, one is blind (she is about 12 years old and has had symptoms for at least 5 years), the other still has some amount of vision and is still with the flock (she is about 5 years old). It has been about a year since I lost one to Marek's. I know it can, and probably will, rear it's head again, but it has calmed down greatly since the initial case in my flock. I try to hatch here, from my own birds who have reached the age of two without any symptoms. The only purchased birds I've brought in were some blue rocks (for the andalusian genes) and some fayoumi's which are supposed to be more naturally resistant to the disease, again for the genes. Those are now 2 years old, I have lost a couple to predators but none to Marek's, at least at this point, I hatched from them this spring and so far all of those are healthy as well. So fingers crossed. There is hope in many cases, it just depends on how you feel about it all.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq.66077/

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...ding-for-resistance-to-mareks-disease.894589/

https://extension.psu.edu/mareks-disease-in-chickens

 

[2ndTink]

The only caveat is if the bird was immunized for Marek's disease, in which case they could test positive without actually being infected with the virulent form of the disease (so kind of a false positive in that case). So if she was not vaccinated and the PCR said positive for Marek's DNA, then likely she does have it.

One note on this, as I was really worried about the vaccinated birds showing positive, I called RAL to double check and they said their pcr test would NOT show positive if the chicken had been vaccinated but not contracted the virus. They said it would only show a positive if the bird was truly infected with Mareks.

RAL is the only lab I've used for blood samples so I can't speak for other labs testing procedures and results on vaccinated birds. The rapid antigen tests though will test positive on a vaccinated bird. I think they are the ELISA tests, you can order large quantities of them and run the test at home, but, only if your birds are not vaccinated.

 

[FreedomLovinJenn]

My 20 week old silkie was not eating and drinking and didn’t want to stand. Took her to the vet and she got a blood test done and it’s mareks disease. She was given a liquid pain reliever that as soon as she took it she instantly got better acting normal and herself again. When she was a baby she had wry neck and was on the same medicine. I know it can get worse and can spread to the rest of the flock. She’s been kept away from the flock for a week. I don’t know what to do. I know if it gets worse we have to put her down but right now she’s her healthy self again so can I put her back into the flock? Has anyone experienced this?

I’m not an expert but I’ve had experience with Mareks in my flock last year. Everyone here seems to treat their flock at home (no vet) and I followed suit.

I started my Texas flock with (6) six month old production RIR hens, and 3 eventually succumbed to Mareks but they lived a good life. I didn’t split the flock, quarantine, or treat beyond good feed, large paddock to free range, and treats like kale etc.

I still have 2 heathy, thrifty hens from that original flock and added more chickens this spring with zero reservations.

I love my birds and get so much enjoyment from them, but like us, they have a life cycle and the strong survive, and are stronger still by challenges such as Mareks.

As I learn more and more, I 100% agree with the old-time homesteaders who cull “unthrifty” birds. While I haven’t done it myself, I witnessed it play out in my flock when they are allowed to survive. It’s not for the faint of heart either way.

Good luck and may your silkie bring you many many more days of happiness!