Necropsy help

[PippinChicken]

Hi all,
I need some help knowing what's going on with a hen I attempted to necropsy this morning. She's about a year and a half old and hasn't been the healthiest. She had worms when I got her a year ago (which was great because I'd avoided that so far) but I treated that and there's been no return. She had an issue earlier this year where she had lost a lot of weight and was extremely weak. This was after a lice outbreak (also treated with no return since) and I thought maybe she was so miserable she'd stopped eating. She had a stint in the chicken hospital and after a few days of being force fed nutridrench, mash, and scrambled eggs, she was back on her feet and eating again. I sent her back to the flock and she looked great, grew all the feathers she had lost and started laying again. Then I noticed her being less active again and found she had bumblefoot. Treated that and it was getting better. But she was still lethargic and more or less stopped eating. Her crop was empty every night and she got extremely thin. I breathing also seemed a bit more effortful... maybe it was just how thin she was but when she inhaled you could see her face skin stuck in and her wattles retract a little. She was still drinking and even eating the occasional mealworm, but mostly seemed to be wasting away. I found her dead this afternoon; she was a bit stiff and I suspect she died overnight.

I attempted a necropsy... still not super experienced with this (I guess that's a good thing) but here's what I noticed:
- Her liver was blotchy with pale spots on the edges
- Her digestive tract and all that connective tissue around it was... really, really lumpy
- Her heart had a weird little white bit on the bottom?
- Her crop had a small amount of pine needles and a bit of nasty gray fluid. There was also a bit in her trachea and mouth. Her crop was never squishy (just always empty) and she didn't have bad breath so I never suspected sour crop.

Anyone have ideas of what was going on with her? Poor thing just had one issue after another for the year I had her.

 

[Eggcessive]

It looks like cancer to me, possibly caused by Mareks disease. Symptoms can vary from bird to bird, and there are 4 types of Mareks—internal tumors, skin tumors, nerve tumors which cause paralysis, and eye changes. Some birds will have tiny tumors in crop or gizzard, intestines which can cause starving. If you have any of her body that can be refrigerated over the weekend, you can contact your atate vet on Monday to check on getting the tissue and feather shaft tested for Mareks or another virus -causing cancer, lymphoid leukosis. There are other types of cancer as well besides Mareks and leukosis. Sorry for your loss. Here is a list of most stae poultry vets to contact:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/PoultryLabs.cfm

 

[Eggcessive]

There are some pictures of Mareks tumors in the slides of these links:
http://www.poultrymed.com/Poultrymed/Templates/showpage.asp?DBID=1&LNGID=1&TMID=103&FID=1523

In this one click on pictures of both clinical signs and gross lesions:
https://partnersah.vet.cornell.edu/avian-atlas/#/disease/Marek's_Disease

 

[Eggcessive]

Right in the center of the picture, the lighter part of the liver is cancerous. The intestines appear to be full of tiny tumors.

 

[PippinChicken]

Oh gosh...I was suspecting cancer but didn't think it would be caused by marek's without anyone in the flock ever having any neurological symptoms. Not as familiar with the leukosis... is there an age range these typically kill by?

I had already buried her but dug her up, bagged the intestines, and pulled some wing feathers It's been below 50 degrees all day so hopefully the samples aren't too far gone. I emailed the closest lab, thank you. Can they really test with nothing but feather shafts?

It looks like cancer to me, possibly caused by Mareks disease. Symptoms can vary from bird to bird, and there are 4 types of Mareks—internal tumors, skin tumors, nerve tumors which cause paralysis, and eye changes. Some birds will have tiny tumors in crop or gizzard, intestines which can cause starving. If you have any of her body that can be refrigerated over the weekend, you can contact your atate vet on Monday to check on getting the tissue and feather shaft tested for Mareks or another virus -causing cancer, lymphoid leukosis. There are other types of cancer as well besides Mareks and leukosis. Sorry for your loss. Here is a list of most stae poultry vets to contact:
https://www.metzerfarms.com/PoultryLabs.cfm

 

[PippinChicken]

Yeah, that spot was the first thing that stood out to me as definitely not right. In a sense it's a relief to know there's nothing I could have done to cure her, but very concerning if it was cancer caused by something contagious. I have a few breeding projects I've invested substantial time and money in and don't even want to imagine having to cull and start from scratch... and since NPIP doesn't test for either marek's or leukosis, how can you even be confident new birds don't have it??

View attachment 1955645
Right in the center of the picture, the lighter part of the liver is cancerous. The intestines appear to be full of tiny tumors.

 

[Eggcessive]

Mareks usually affects younger birds from 2-8 months more commonly, but can occur at any age. Have you added any new birds to your flock in recent months? I am not familiar with leukosis, but it can cause tumors or lymphomas in the body, but does not cause the paralysis symptoms frequently seen in Mareks. It affects chickens 4 months and older. Here are some articles to read, and I will tag a few others to look at your necropsy photos for opinions—@casportpony, @rebracora, @azygous , since I am an amateur at doing necropsies.

Here are the articles:
https://extension.umd.edu/sites/ext...Preventing Mareks Disease in Small Flocks.pdf

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

https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/neoplasms/lymphoid-leukosis-in-poultry

 

[PippinChicken]

Thanks so much for all the resources. I did get two new pullets the first week of September... the breeder is very well known and respected, and the facilities and breeding stock all looked great (I got a little tour when I picked up the girls). I'd be surprised if they were the culprits but in the reading I've been doing tonight, it sounds like most adults have been exposed and few become symptomatic?

Mareks usually affects younger birds from 2-8 months more commonly, but can occur at any age. Have you added any new birds to your flock in recent months? I am not familiar with leukosis, but it can cause tumors or lymphomas in the body, but does not cause the paralysis symptoms frequently seen in Mareks. It affects chickens 4 months and older. Here are some articles to read, and I will tag a few others to look at your necropsy photos for opinions—@casportpony, @rebracora, @azygous , since I am an amateur at doing necropsies.

Here are the articles:
https://extension.umd.edu/sites/extension.umd.edu/files/_docs/programs/poultry/FS-1007 Recognizing and Preventing Mareks Disease in Small Flocks.pdf

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

https://www.merckvetmanual.com/poultry/neoplasms/lymphoid-leukosis-in-poultry

 

[Eggcessive]

Mareks is presumed to be everywhere all over the world. I have never seen it in my flock although I have both vaccinated and some not vaccinated chickens. Leukosis is less contagious in a flock, meaning not that many will show symptoms. I really hope that I am wrong, and it is just another type of cancer. Chickens can suffer from many different kinds, and the only 2 that are caused by viruses are Mareks and leukosis. I am not a vet, so that is why I would suggest getting tested. Hopefully by tomorrow, some others will chime in and offer opinions.