marek's vaccine - all or nothing for flock?

[chickenE]

I'm still in planning phase for chickens. I would like to have standard pullets and bantam pullets. Ideally I would like to pick up one group this year and the other group next year. I had originally planned on all the birds being vaccinated for mareks but I'm noticing it is more difficult to find bantams which have been vaccinated.

The feed store near my house does not get the chick vaccinated. The lady told me that mareks is an all or none for the flock. She said if some of the chicks were vaccinated then it would introduce mareks to the soil at our house and then all future chicks would need to be vaccinated.

1) If I got chicks which were not vaccinated this year, could I get chicks which were vaccinated next year? What about sooner than a year?

2) If I got chicks which were vaccinated this year, could I get chicks which were not vaccinated next year? What about sooner than a year?

 

[SunHwaKwon]

I debated on this earlier this year. My flock is not vaccinated and I was going to buy chicks from one of the feed stores until I found out they were vaccinated for Mareks so it worried me. What I was told is that the Mareks vaccine is non-attenuated, therefore it won't affect non-vaccinated flock members. What will happen is if Mareks hits the flock, the vaccinated birds can still become infected and carriers but will be asymptomatic while the non-vaccinated will actually become ill and thus act as sentinels in regard to the exposure.

 

[chickenE]

I debated on this earlier this year. My flock is not vaccinated and I was going to buy chicks from one of the feed stores until I found out they were vaccinated for Mareks so it worried me. What I was told is that the Mareks vaccine is non-attenuated, therefore it won't affect non-vaccinated flock members. What will happen is if Mareks hits the flock, the vaccinated birds can still become infected and carriers but will be asymptomatic while the non-vaccinated will actually become ill and thus act as sentinels in regard to the exposure.

Thanks! That had been my understanding too - thanks for the confirmation!

 

[coach723]

Just wanted to add that many, many people who do not have Mareks in their flock will get vaccinated chicks when they purchase, and do not vaccinate chicks that they hatch themselves from their own birds, so many mixed flocks of vaccinated/unvaccinated birds out there.

 

[chickenE]

Good point - thanks coach!

 

[Eggcessive]

Why not get the chicks in two groups from a hatchery that will vaccinate them? I would get the bantams first, then the bigger ones next year, making it a little easier to integrate them. I had vaccinated hatchery chicks first, then later hatched my own with no vaccines, and have never had a problem.

 

[chickenE]

Good point about the flock integration. My reason for wanting to get the standard chickens first was to be able to start getting the regular sized eggs sooner. I’m not sure what I’m going to do yet.

Cackle and Chickens for Backyards were the only hatcheries / suppliers I could find that sold sexed bantams and would vaccinate bantams. I’m nervous about having DOAs if I get chicks shipped in the mail.

 

[Eggcessive]

Meyer Hatchery in Ohio is good to ship smaller groups, and I had good luck with my shipments of 15 and later 10 chicks during the month of April. I have never seen sexed bantams available before, since they say they usually cannot do that with accuracy. But things may have changed. Bantams many times are not available until the summer, but it seems too hot to ship. The only problem I see is to wait until the excessive heat of summer is past, say in early September, but then your chicks may need some time to grow and get ready for winter temperatures. Do you have neighbors who have chickens? I don't know of anyone in my area with Mareks in their flocks, but I have always preferred getting them vaccinated for it.

 

[SunHwaKwon]

The sexed ones from cackle are the ones that are sexable by down pattern, such as crele or barred. I'm not sure who is providing the ones for MPC.