Soooo how can we be sure that the chicks we want to buy from any of the feed or ag stores are mg free? Is there a list of hatcheries somewhere that advertise to be mg free?
Look back on this thread a couple of pages for at least 2 places with MG-free stock. One is a hatchery called Whitmore Farm and the other is a smalltime breeder that can be found on CL & Facebook. I included all their information, as well as contact info and prices for the small-time breeder. As far as I know, there are only 2 hatcheries in the country who claim to be Mycoplasma free. Remember it's not just MG, but MS also you want to look out for. The rest of the large popular hatcheries do not test for MG, therefore they cannot claim to be MG free to the public. I have emials saved from many when I was researching before placing an order this year. All have told me they don't test for it and cannot claim to be 100% MG free, but that they vaccinate, follow protocol, etc etc. But there are horror stories if you get to digging. BTW, when they vaccinate for MG (and they wouldnt do it unless there was a chance it was in their breeding stock) the bird gets a live virus essentially (<--I'm no doctor here) and they will test positive for the rest of their lives.
What you if want if you're out to buy, is healthy looking chicks w/o pasty butt, and the ability to get background information on the flock these eggs were laid from.
Here's what I ask
anyone I'm considering buying from. Be it hatchery or individual.
1. Are you NPIP certified?
2. if yes, What do you test for & how often?
3. Do you test for Mycoplasmas? Usually this is a no. Don't be afraid to ask why they don't. I stop here when dealing with large-scale hatcheries. Continue on with individuals if you choose...
4. Have you ever had to give your chickens any kind of treatment for any kind of illness? If this is a yes, ask what they gave them. A lot of individuals will guess at what's wrong (which is ok, we all don't have chicken vets or money to send them to a lab) so they will treat with something/few things they think will fix it. If respiratory issues were a problem in the past, or they treated with:
doxycycline
tylosine
tylan
tetracycline/oxytetracycline
......Shop Elsewhere. it's not worth the risk. If they were only given Corid (for coccidiosis) or have been given electrolytes and vitamins and minerals and wormer medication, don't sweat it. Buy some chicks...if you think they are the honest type.
5. Do you maintain a closed flock? if not, see how long they quarantine - if they do, when they get new stock. It's preferable to find someone who maintains a closed flock and breeds generations of birds. or has had the same birds on their property for at least a yr or 2. Tho thats not always plausible.
6. Do you show your birds? If yes, Do you quarantine in a separate pen away from your flock? This should be a yes. If not, shop elsewhere. All kinds of things can be picked up at shows from other birds. Mycoplasma being one. Since adult chickens live easily with the disease and the symptoms can be hidden for shows, some people who show may choose to keep a bird rather than culling, esp if they tend to place high with it.
7. Can I get some pictures of your set up and the parent birds? Most serious breeders looking to keep out diseases do not allow visits in person. But you should still be able to see how the breeders are kept, and what they look like. You'll be able to decide whether you think they have good care, or if you're dealing with a "chickie-mill breeder". If adults are kept in small mud pens with lots of feathers missing (A sign of picking from being too crowded) you'll know to keep looking.
Good preparation and asking questions for the background info on parent stock is the best thing you can do. Unfortunately for the buyer. mycoplasma isn't taken seriously enough, or has been kept hush-hush. Many simply do not know what it is they are choosing to treat and take on the rest of the chickens's lives. They just get told to go get some antibiotics and it'll go away. (it won't). The lady I get my frizzles from does not have MG free certification. Though what made me decide to buy was this, they have peacocks out with their chickens. After having them about a yr they started acting funky, so she took them to a vet in a city nearby. He tests the peacocks at the zoo, so she had hers tested by them. They turned out to be MG/MS AI and pull negative. They just had a bout of Cocci. It recieved treatment and was wiped out. She has not taken in any more birds to her proeprty since the peacocks. This means that if anything did have MG, they all would have had it bc it is highly contagious. Given that the peacocks didn't have it, she's not taken in anymore birds, but rather has bred any new ones she has now herself, and she has never had to give them anything other than electrolytes, it's safe to assume that she is MG free. This has been right so far bc none of my birds started showing symptoms from being in contact with hers when I brought them home.
I know it's a pain in the butt, and you'll seriously cut down your buying sources if you want to be as careful as I am, but it has been worth it to me to know I have 100% disease free stock - since that is what I require to someday sell chicks and eggs and be an NPIP certified breeder myself.
