North Carolina

[ChickenLover200]

Help, I need roosters! I'm slowly rebuilding and I'm lacking in the boy department. Anyone have any MATURE barred/cuckoo/Splash/Blue roosters that need a new home?

don't have any roosters to get rid of right now...

 

[rbaker0345]

Just wanted to give everyone an update on my ILT epidemic. I've lost four birds, all young birds. There are a few forms that the virus can take. One is a mild form which can come in conjunction with coryza. This form shows itself mostly as watery, crusty eyes, maybe a little sneezing, gasping and lethargy. They won't lose their appetites and they wont back off on laying. This form mimics coryze, newcastles, AI, mycoplasmosis and even pollorum, the only exception is that they will continue to lay and eat.

The next is a sneeze with neck-stretching and wheezing.

The third, most acute form is the sneeze which includes bloody exudate. These usually don't last more than 12-36 hours between onset of wet or bloody sneeze/cough and death. Death is usually due to a mucous plug which causes asphyxia.

HAVING LOTS OF FUN!

Please, please,please, in the best interest of the poultry community, do not vaccinate your flock for ILT with a live attenuated viral vaccine. Use only a recombinant vaccine. I highly recommend that you use the ILT vaccine which also gives mareks immunity, it can be used on birds of any age and confers permanent, non-shedding immunity. If you use a live attenuated vaccine, and you sell or show these birds, the stress can cause them to shed virus.

I will be vaccinating my birds and anyone who would like to split the cost of vaccines with me (I think they only come in portions of 1000 doses), please PM me and let me know. I highly recommend vaccinating for this virus, that way if you bring any newbies home, the rest of your flock is safe, and the new bird(s) is/are safe from your established flock.

There is a very good poultry vet in the area. She mostly specializes in large-scale, commercial operations, but I think that she is branching out to the small flock (maybe). I am not completely sure about this, she was given my phone number by my exotics vet (who also sees chickens) when she was completely stumped by the symptoms that my birds had. My poultry vet is Dr. Taylor at Bridges Professional Park Animal Hospital.

If you have any chickens with symptoms similar to the ones I listed above, please contact the state poultry vet and find out how to make arrangements to get the bird or swabs from the birds trachea and vent to the state lab. If you take the samples (or, even better, a dead bird) to the lab yourself, I believe the cost is minimal (like $15 minimal). I haven't spoken to the state vet yet, but I have heard that she is really nice.

What will probably be happening with my flock now, once she contacts me, is that my flock will be on a 45 day quarantine.


I have a degree in Molecular and Cellular biology, I have worked at Charles River Breeding Labs and I have been a vet tech on an off for the past umpteen years, so I am practicing (an approximation of) level 1 biocontainment with my acute birds and I have my subacute birds in isolation. If you have birds with symptoms and you need help with biosecurity, please don't hesitate to PM me or to email me at: [email protected]

We need to nip this in the bud, collectively, as a poultry community. You may not know this, but the commercial poultry industry blames people like us who don't practice all in, all out procedure, for the epidemic of ILT in this country.

With ANY upper respiratory illness, the best conditions for your birds are dry and warm, but not too warm (about 75 degrees is ideal).

ILT is killed within 15 seconds of contact with lysol, but is highly susceptible to any antiviral disinfectant. I am using a combo of bleach, lysol and simple green (not all at once).



And please, if your birds have had symptoms of ILT at ANY point in their lives, Don't take them to WCA or to any shows or swaps. This is really hard for me to say as I have 60 birds and half of them are John Blehm and Paul Smith ams, who I planned on showing and selling. Once I have vaccine in-hand, I can show any birds that have not been sick and any birds that I hatch. Once my birds are vaccinated, I can add or subtract new birds.

Another note. This virus usually dies within X amount of hours of being outside of the body, but if the poop its in or the area its in remains damp, it can live up to 80 days outside of the body. Quarantine of new birds should be 90 days and those birds should be quarantined in an area where you can completely change clothes and shoes before returning to your existing flock. You should also wear gloves when dealing with new birds and use bleach generously.

 

[BHep]

rbacker.... questions:

Are the ones that have it carriers for life?

If you vaccinate...they can NOT get it at all?

This is a contact disease...not airborn?

The ones that have been sick.....can they get vaccinated?

 

[2Sesslers]

If I am not adding any birds to my mini flock of 8 - do I need to be concerned about these diseases?

Should I vaccinate regardless of any symptoms?

 

[wildriverswolf90]

ome out and enjoy the flock swap. At the mill spring agricultural center. Come by, sell, buy and trade, check out the farm store, with fresh bread, jams, produce and fresh meats. And come check out the meat tasting, local farmers, farm raised meats, and their best recipes.

156 School road. Mill spring NC 28756. @ Mill spring ag center.

went to this advent a couple months ago, and it was very goo, lots of birds, rabbits and turkeys, and all the animals, were cage humanely, with water and looked all in great health.

 

[greenchickenman]

and that certainly was the main thing. There are still no holes for me to trip in. And he left the slate under the rosemary bush so he wouldn't have to do anything but a rectangle. Of course, he left a pile of slate, too. But he's leaving for a week, and I'll get that hauled back out to the slate pile first thing.

I didn't go back to the first pic of yours but the way I remember it, I personally think yours looked better. Lol

 

[caitanni]

Hi Im in Wilmington...a chicken addict. 11 eggs in the incubator, 5 in a my brooder in the bathroom, 6 hens, 1 rooster in one coop, 2 hens and 2 roosters in another(they are not fighting YET..making arrangements for them) And I just started in March...

 

[Moores6]

Help I have a hen with drainage from the beak (clear like a runny nose). And bright green discharge from her vent. Was hanging out in a nesting box all day. Ugh.

 

[Moores6]

Help I have a hen with drainage from the beak (clear like a runny nose). And bright green discharge from her vent. Was hanging out in a nesting box all day. Ugh.

We lost her.
Very sad right now.
RIP Alford

 

[Moores6]

should I be worried about the rest of my flock?