Marek's vaccination?

[OzarkChooks]

I have ordered 3 times from Meyer Hatchery. Each time I have had the chicks vaccinated. I am ordering from a different hatchery this spring and they are recommending not vaccinating. If my currents chickens have been vaccinated, wouldn't that mean that any new chicks I introduce should be vaccinated? I know this is probably a very silly question. If I ordered chicks that were not vaccinated, would they get sick from my flock?​

 

[JustBabyMargo]

I have ordered 3 times from Meyer Hatchery. Each time I have had the chicks vaccinated. I am ordering from a different hatchery this spring and they are recommending not vaccinating. If my currents chickens have been vaccinated, wouldn't that mean that any new chicks I introduce should be vaccinated? I know this is probably a very silly question. If I ordered chicks that were not vaccinated, would they get sick from my flock?​

I haven’t had this problem. Half of my flock is vaccinated, and the other half isn’t. I wish they all were, but not all hatcheries offer the vaccine. Either way, I haven’t had any problems.

 

[LadiesAndJane]

I have ordered 3 times from Meyer Hatchery. Each time I have had the chicks vaccinated. I am ordering from a different hatchery this spring and they are recommending not vaccinating. If my currents chickens have been vaccinated, wouldn't that mean that any new chicks I introduce should be vaccinated? I know this is probably a very silly question. If I ordered chicks that were not vaccinated, would they get sick from my flock?​

If your other birds are vaccinated then I would recommend that any other chicks you get are also vaccinated. Your other birds won’t make the new ones sick, but the new ones will show signs of Marek’s disease if you have it, where as the vaccinated ones will not likely show it.
Hope this makes sense.
Mareks vaccinated birds do not give Mareks to other birds in other words.

 

[JustBabyMargo]

If your other birds are vaccinated then I would recommend that any other chicks you get are also vaccinated. Your other birds won’t make the new ones sick, but the new ones will show signs of Marek’s disease if you have it, where as the vaccinated ones will not likely show it.
Hope this makes sense.
Mareks vaccinated birds do not give Mareks to other birds in other words.

So if all of your birds have Marek’s, then only the non-vaccinated ones will show it, even though they all have it?

Sorry, I’m just trying to make sure, for future reference.

 

[LadiesAndJane]

So if all of your birds have Marek’s, then only the non-vaccinated ones will show it, even though they all have it?

Sorry, I’m just trying to make sure, for future reference.

Well the Marek’s vaccine is not a guarantee, just like human vaccines! The vaccinated birds can still get it but they won’t normally get as ill and will likely recover. Marek's can be in a whole flock but it’s not necessarily that all the birds will come down with it.
But to answer your question directly, then yes the unvaccinated birds will likely show it and the vaccinated ones will not.
Some people keep an unvaccinated bird in their flock on purpose as a kind of “canary in the coal mine“, to know if they have Marek’s in their flock. Though honestly I’m not quite sure what the benefit of this would be.

 

[JustBabyMargo]

Well the Marek’s vaccine is not a guarantee, just like human vaccines! The vaccinated birds can still get it but they won’t normally get as ill and will likely recover. Marek's can be in a whole flock but it’s not necessarily that all the birds will come down with it.
But to answer your question directly, then yes the unvaccinated birds will likely show it and the vaccinated ones will not.
Some people keep an unvaccinated bird in their flock on purpose as a kind of “canary in the coal mine“, to know if they have Marek’s in their flock. Though honestly I’m not quite sure what the benefit of this would be.

Oh, okay! Thanks for the clarification and really great information!

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Well the Marek’s vaccine is not a guarantee, just like human vaccines! The vaccinated birds can still get it but they won’t normally get as ill and will likely recover. Marek's can be in a whole flock but it’s not necessarily that all the birds will come down with it.
But to answer your question directly, then yes the unvaccinated birds will likely show it and the vaccinated ones will not.
Some people keep an unvaccinated bird in their flock on purpose as a kind of “canary in the coal mine“, to know if they have Marek’s in their flock. Though honestly I’m not quite sure what the benefit of this would be.

The benefit is simply that they now know they have it. That way they know if its still acceptable to sell started birds or if they need to cull the flock

 

[Folly's place]

We have both vaccinated and unvaccinated birds in our flock, and it's true that if Marek's disease ever arrives here, at least some of our unvaccinated birds will very likely get sick, and necropsies will tell the tale. Then it becomes a totally closed flock, with no birds ever going elsewhere.
Mary

 

[Ridgerunner]

I have ordered 3 times from Meyer Hatchery. Each time I have had the chicks vaccinated. I am ordering from a different hatchery this spring and they are recommending not vaccinating. If my currents chickens have been vaccinated, wouldn't that mean that any new chicks I introduce should be vaccinated? I know this is probably a very silly question. If I ordered chicks that were not vaccinated, would they get sick from my flock?​

Not silly at all, there is a lot of confusion on this topic.

The Marek's vaccine given to chickens is actually Turkey Marek's. It cannot live in chickens and cannot make them sick. They cannot give it (Turkey Marek's) to other chickens.

The Turkey Marek's vaccine cannot prevent the chickens from getting Chicken Marek's if they are exposed to it. The vaccinated chickens can still catch and spread Chicken Marek's. The benefit from vaccinating them with Turkey Marek's is that the Turkey Marek's prevents the lesions that cause the damage from growing.

Is it possible that your existing vaccinated flock can give Chicken Marek's to your knew unvaccinated chicks? Yes, it is possible if they have been exposed to Chicken Marek's. But many of us have unvaccinated flocks that do not have Marek's. I hatch my own chicks and don't vaccinate. Marek's is nasty when it shows up but there is no guarantee that your existing flock has it or doesn't have it.

If your current flock has Marek's, then yes, I'd say it would be important for any new chicks to be vaccinated. But you don't know that. To me it is a personal decision and I choose not to vaccinate.