Mareks, recovery and rehabilitation

[Faraz1]

Is it possible for young birds to recover from mareks ? Any ideas or recommendations on rehabilitation ? I understand sometimes birds can recover fully ?

Also are there some breeds that are more susceptible to mareks ? Can stress be a trigger for the disease to manifest itself ? I have had 2 ko shamo young birds which i suspect have it, one was the runt of the hatch and was picked on by the flock and another escaped from the chick coop to the adult coop and was pecked aggressively till bloody from the adult hens.

 

[coach723]

What symptoms are you seeing that make you suspect Marek's? Have you ever had Marek's confirmed by labs or necropsy, in your flock?
Some birds may survive Marek's, there are a lot of variables. Many do not. Depends on the strain, individual immune systems, etc.
Stress can trigger, or make worse, all kinds of things in birds, they just don't handle stress well.
Silkies and Sebrights are more susceptible in general to Marek's, but it can, and does, affect any breed. And those that do better in some flocks you will hear did not do well at all in another flock. The variables are almost infinite.
There are some very good threads and discussions on here about many aspects of flocks with Marek's, I will link a few below, you can search for more.
But if you haven't had it confirmed in your flock, I would do that before assuming. If you lose a bird with symptoms, get a necropsy and find out. Some things can look a lot like Marek's and are not.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/ar...-i-learned-to-deal-with-mareks-disease.76944/

http://extension.msstate.edu/publications/marek’s-disease-backyard-chickens

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

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...most-and-least-susceptible-to-mareks.1140686/

 

[Gone]

I am so despondent about the Marek's disease answers. Last year, I lost 4 out of 5 of my chickens to what I feel could have been Marek's disease. The symptoms started as less active, less eating and drinking, pale comb, depressed and weak. Then one of them fell over and I isolated her. Then I took her to the vet and he gave her a shot. He said that if it doesn't make her better then she probably has Marek's disease. Well, she died and three others also had the same symptoms and died. I vowed not to buy chicks without vaccinations. I got new chicks in the spring that were vaccinated from a reputable hatchery. Now one of them (about a year old) has the same symptoms and I isolated her. So far she is still eating after 4 days but lost the use of her legs. Today though, she flew to the top of the crate she was in and sat on it. I'm not getting my hopes up, but am very discouraged since I am supposed to cull her. I looked up Marek's disease and it can be spread in so many ways including chicken dander in the wind from another chicken coop. They may have a better chance of surviving it if vaccinated, but will always be a carrier. What's the use of vaccinating them? I guess that's why so many chicks are hatched and sold each year because you might loose your flock every year. I try very hard to keep my chickens healthy cleaning, worming, probiotics, brewer's yeast, good ventilation, and all that I can think of to do for them but it's not enough.

 

[coach723]

For many of us, the first phase, or wave, of illness is worst. That can take a year or more to get through. The birds that survive, if any, have a better resistance to the disease. There are differing opinions on the vaccine, and different ways moving forward. Some of us choose to hatch at home from birds that show no symptoms, to try to pass on the resistance in them to whatever strain we have. Some strains ARE more virulent than others. You still lose some, but the numbers, at least for me, are much, much lower and more intermittent now. I've found it manageable. If I find that a particular breed is having a higher percentage of disease, I no longer carry those in my flock (for me, every light brahma I've had has gotten symptoms). I try to carry breeds that have been hardier in my flock, and I have a lot of crosses and barnyard mixes, which have seemed to do better.I have about 40 birds right now, only 2 have symptoms of occular Marek's. It is very demoralizing at the beginning, I know. I thought about quitting. But it has become manageable with time, and I felt like I needed to give the ones that were doing well a chance. It's a personal choice going forward for each of us. I would highly recommend that if you lose another you do send it in for a professional necropsy, to confirm if it's Marek's or not. There are some other illness's and virus's that can mimic Marek's symptoms, lymphoid leukosis is one. It is better to be armed with the facts so you can make better decisions, than to guess. Once you have it confirmed, if that's what it is, then you will know and don't have to have every bird tested. The links I posted in my previous post are good articles to check out.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

What's the use of vaccinating them

To prevent the heavy loss like you get with unvaccinated birds

 

[TillyPeeps]

I have one vaccinated chicken survived Marek's, and all unvaccinated hens died. She got sick at 1.5 year old, and I suspect it was triggered by LPAI since most my chickens were sick at the same time. I tube fed her for a half year, and she started to eat herself and even started to lay eggs again. She never fully recovered though. She still has dilated pupils, can only walk slowly, and roosts on floor, but she's doing good otherwise.

 

[Gone]

For many of us, the first phase, or wave, of illness is worst. That can take a year or more to get through. The birds that survive, if any, have a better resistance to the disease. There are differing opinions on the vaccine, and different ways moving forward. Some of us choose to hatch at home from birds that show no symptoms, to try to pass on the resistance in them to whatever strain we have. Some strains ARE more virulent than others. You still lose some, but the numbers, at least for me, are much, much lower and more intermittent now. I've found it manageable. If I find that a particular breed is having a higher percentage of disease, I no longer carry those in my flock (for me, every light brahma I've had has gotten symptoms). I try to carry breeds that have been hardier in my flock, and I have a lot of crosses and barnyard mixes, which have seemed to do better.I have about 40 birds right now, only 2 have symptoms of occular Marek's. It is very demoralizing at the beginning, I know. I thought about quitting. But it has become manageable with time, and I felt like I needed to give the ones that were doing well a chance. It's a personal choice going forward for each of us. I would highly recommend that if you lose another you do send it in for a professional necropsy, to confirm if it's Marek's or not. There are some other illness's and virus's that can mimic Marek's symptoms, lymphoid leukosis is one. It is better to be armed with the facts so you can make better decisions, than to guess. Once you have it confirmed, if that's what it is, then you will know and don't have to have every bird tested. The links I posted in my previous post are good articles to check out.

Thank you for all the information.

 

[Gone]

To prevent the heavy loss like you get with unvaccinated birds

I understand that but my hen was vaccinated and will probably still not recover or recover and need to be culled because she will always be a carrier.

 

[Bawkbok]

I understand that but my hen was vaccinated

Being vaccinated is not a guarantee that a chicken will not get Marek's, it's still possible but the probability is lower. We lost all our unvaccinated pullets to Marek's (vet verified) purchased from two different local farmers. The first farmer did not vaccinate - we lost all the birds within months of each other, The second farmer did vaccinate, we lost one of two pullets from him. Now we only have vaccinated chickens from a national hatchery. They are healthy.
Sometimes I think it's just bad luck and nothing that you've done wrong. I wish you the best of luck with your flock.

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I understand that but my hen was vaccinated and will probably still not recover or recover and need to be culled because she will always be a carrier.

And some vaccinated birds still get it. I've had a few, but most of my losses were those I bred myself without the vaccine