Marek's or something else?

[Airyaman]

I am sorry for your loss. Your state vet lab would be the best for getting a necropsy and diaganosis. Mareks causes low white bloodcounts, and low immunity to common illnesses. It also can cause internal tumors on organs. Gapeworm is rare. Aquasol is a weak version of fenbendazol to be given over 5 days to treat roundworms only. It will not treat gapeworm or capillary/thread worms. To treat for those, get SafeGuard Liquid goat wormer or the Equine/horse paste which is 10% fenbendazole. Dosage for most worms is 0.23 ml per pound of weight given orally undiluted for 5 consecutive days.

Thanks. Since none of the others appears to showing any symptoms, I am going to wait and see if they find anything in the initial examination. Yes, this will be a state lab.

 

[Airyaman]

So one of the examiners was in the lobby when I dropped off my pullet. We talked for several moments about Marek's and she made some interesting comments.

1) you can vaccinate up to 10 days from hatch as long as they are in a clean (no Marek infested dander flying around) brooder inside. The 1 day is a recommendation that comes from production birds that are hatched and put in houses.
2) The paralysis can be transient and if a chicken does not succumb they may recover enough mobility to have a functional life.
3) She claimed PCRs for Marek's are a waste of money on a live bird. In conjunction with necroscopy, much more valuable.
4) I described my one pullet's head growths and she said it did not sound like Marek's (I did not have the photo anymore on my phone).

 

[Airyaman]

Well now I'm at a total loss. The necroscopy was basically inconclusive. No signs of Marek's type tumors, no sign of anything really. Said she might have had rickets do to a curved keel? Said it could be due to a lack of calcium and/or phosphorus, but I know she was laying very strong eggs up until 3-4 days before she passed (I feed an all flock and offer supplemental calcium).

No signs of bacteria but they only tested for two types of mycoplasma and Paramyxovirus (Newcastle's).

I'm glad she didn't come down with Marek's but still have no clue. She had no symptoms of rickets as I can find on the Web.

Knock on wood, the only flock dealing with Marek's like symptoms is the one SS flock with the two deaths, a struggling cockerel, a blind pullet, and the other pullet with the unknown grown on her face.