Mareks Vaccine

[ochochicas]

Quote: I lost 3 out of 3 pullets by 8 months old. I also lost 7 out of 11 chicks by 25 weeks. They still aren't out of the woods yet but I'm hoping the remaining four are resistant. Some strains are more virulent than others. By the time you know what hit them, it is too late.

 

[Carolei]

Has anyone vaccinated chicks being raised by a broody? My plan is to take the chicks, vaccinate, and return them to the broody. Do you think there is a chance the broody might reject them if they smell of vaccine or alcohol? She is a first time, one year old broody. (I understand that I am skipping the important isolation phase.)

 

[seminolewind]

Carolei, the goal of the vaccine is to provide exposure to Marek's in a chick and the blood will start to manufacture antibodies without the chick getting Marek's. The vaccine itself has no preventative medicine in it. It's just a safe exposure, and chicks should be quarantine for a few weeks following the vaccine.

The idea is to give a chick a jump start so that when exposed to the deadly virus, it can already have antibodies.

If you want to do this safely, you would have to take the eggs before they hatch, hatch them, quarantine them for 3 weeks, and give them back. I'm not sure if a hen will accept them back. I do know that I had a Buff Orpington adult who I put 3 Jersey Giants in with at 6 weeks old, and at night they roosted together and she spread her wings over them.

I tried twice with broody hatched eggs and was not successful. So I quit.

 

[Carolei]

Carolei, the goal of the vaccine is to provide exposure to Marek's in a chick and the blood will start to manufacture antibodies without the chick getting Marek's. The vaccine itself has no preventative medicine in it. It's just a safe exposure, and chicks should be quarantine for a few weeks following the vaccine.

The idea is to give a chick a jump start so that when exposed to the deadly virus, it can already have antibodies.

If you want to do this safely, you would have to take the eggs before they hatch, hatch them, quarantine them for 3 weeks, and give them back. I'm not sure if a hen will accept them back. I do know that I had a Buff Orpington adult who I put 3 Jersey Giants in with at 6 weeks old, and at night they roosted together and she spread her wings over them.

I tried twice with broody hatched eggs and was not successful. So I quit.

Yes. I understand how the vaccine works. I've read Nambroth's FAQ on Marek's. I understand that this is not the recommended approach. My hope is that it may increase their chance of developing immunity. It may not, but I believe it's preferable to not vaccinating at all.

 

[seminolewind]

I'm glad you read Nambroth's FAQ, she did a remarkable job in putting it together. I know some people like to try different things and that's good if one can deal with the deaths that will happen along the way. I've settled in to just getting or vaccinating chicks . I am upset about not having my broodies raise their chicks. But to me it's some sacrifices I made to have to deal with Marek's.

 

[ochochicas]

I'm under the impression that Carole's flock doesn't knowingly have Marek's now, but she wants to vaccinate the chicks to protect then in the future in case they come into contact with the virus.

Currently part of my vaccine experiment includes vaccinating chicks that are under a broody hen. The chicks are isolated (with one hen) in my horse trailer so that they will not be exposed to other chickens until they are 6 weeks old. In theory, they should have great immunity by then and will not get the disease. The only thing that could ruin my idea would be if the hen is a carrier. I don't think she is though, because I got her when she was older with a batch of hens and none of them have ever been sick.

My last batch of chicks is hatching at this very moment. After they are vaccinated it will be a "wait and see" for the next six months to see what happens. I hope all my chick survive, but of course I am also realistic and known there very well could be losses.

 

[kfotherg]

Jody:
I hope you are still out there and can provide more information on Marek's, or any of you other's who have knowledge. I raise Cornish X every year for meat birds. This year I am having problems with what might be Marek's disease. Bought one day old chicks from a reputable feed store that I have bought from for years. A short while after releasing them into my rearing area I noticed one of the smaller birds was listing and began to have trouble walking. No other obvious signs of problems. She bagan to seem lathargic and not readily going to food and water. I started taking her to water and food and holding her legs straight while she ate and drank. After about 2 weeks she died and before that, I noticed the other small bird showing similar signs. Now I have two larger birds with what appears to be walking difficulties and one died today. The only disease that seems to be likely is Marek's.

So, first, how is it diagnosed, second is it going to infect my whole flock of meat birds, and lastly is the meat still safe for consumption? They are very close to butchering weight.

 

[Eggcessive]

Jody:
I hope you are still out there and can provide more information on Marek's, or any of you other's who have knowledge. I raise Cornish X every year for meat birds. This year I am having problems with what might be Marek's disease. Bought one day old chicks from a reputable feed store that I have bought from for years. A short while after releasing them into my rearing area I noticed one of the smaller birds was listing and began to have trouble walking. No other obvious signs of problems. She bagan to seem lathargic and not readily going to food and water. I started taking her to water and food and holding her legs straight while she ate and drank. After about 2 weeks she died and before that, I noticed the other small bird showing similar signs. Now I have two larger birds with what appears to be walking difficulties and one died today. The only disease that seems to be likely is Marek's.

So, first, how is it diagnosed, second is it going to infect my whole flock of meat birds, and lastly is the meat still safe for consumption? They are very close to butchering weight.

Welcome to BYC. Sorry for your loss. I would start some poultry vitamins in their water in case of a possible vitamin deficiency which can cause leg problems. Mareks can be diagnosed by a blood test called a PCR test for Mareks that is done at several poultry centers, including Texas A&M. But most people send in a dead bird to the state vet for a necropsy and testing that way. Here are some of the best links to read about Mareks disease:
http://www.thepoultrysite.com/diseaseinfo/90/mareks-disease/
https://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource000791_Rep813.pdf
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq
http://www.usaha.org/Portals/6/StateAnimalHealthOfficials.pdf

 

[ochochicas]

Your chickens are safe to eat. The disease is not transmissible to humans. Marek's is best diagnosed on a dead bird through necropsy and tissue sampling. The blood test is over $100 so the necrospy should be a bit cheaper.

If you do have Marek's you will need to get vaccinated chicks in the future. It isn't the end of chicken raising for you, but you will have to take extra precautions in the future. Most of the time Marek's infects young birds (under 6 months old), but I have had one get Marek's and die around a year of age.

 

[JimH99]

I bought some 1 year old + pullets from Texas and shipped them to Idaho. I have had Mareks in past and two of the three pullets contracted Mareks after I had them about six months and they were all over 18 months of age. My flock consists of a number of hen raised babies, incubator and hatchery fowl. Some vaccinated and some not. I know the two older pullets that contracted the disease were incubator raised and never vaccinated. I have had older fowl get the disease and as soon as I see any signs I immediately dispose of them as they will not survive in my opinion. I have vaccine here and do vaccinate all chicks and request any hatchery chicks to be vaccinated going forward. I just think it is safer than not, but again I have a number of un-vaccinated fowl that are old and still healthy and have been with vaccinated fowl all along. I just make sure vaccinated ones are not exposed until about 30 days old.
I have introduced vaccinated chicks for years and never thought about any transmission of Mareks. I have very healthy 3,4 and 5 yr olds out there now that were never vaccinated as I raised them and didn't vaccinate. So I seem to agree with the vet that wrote he doesn't think vaccinated chicks will transmit the virus after 10 days. My vaccinated chicks are housed inside first month at least anyway totally away from all others.

When Mareks shows up here it is usually isolated to one bird at a time. I did lose about 4 birds in about a month period several years ago and that was my first time in 40+ years of keeping fowl that I saw it on my property and thought at first it was paratyphoid, but after WSU tested them it was determined to be Mareks. Now I have to consider vaccinating as I believe they do NOT transmit the virus if they are quarantined long enough after vaccination. I use 30 days personally before introducing vaccinated chicks into flock. I haven't lost any vaccinated fowl to Mareks as well, so now I am a believer to vaccinate going forward and someday everything will be vaccinated on property. During that time I lost those 3 or 4 I was importing birds from all over the USA and I am sure that is probably how I got it here.