Not an Emergency...Marek's in the Flock

[Haunted55]

Update. the next phase of my experimant is finally here. I have received two orders of vaccinated chicks this week. One from a local farm store through Mt Healthy Hatchery, May 2nd, vaccinated with just the MD-Vac, turkey's Marek's vaccine, and another from McMurray, May 6th, vaccinated with all three available vaccines. These birds will be kept in my house for 6-8 weeks and then moved into a new building away from my other birds, for 6 months at least, hopefully the full year to ensure the resistance is built up to the point of being able to handle the mutated form I have had here.

My second control group has been moved into the chicken house and at this time all are thriving! It's early yet but I still have hope I won't have any loses with this group.

 

[salt and pepper]

Awesome! Wish you luck. my chicks are 6-10 weeks, and haven't lost one

 

[salt and pepper]

Haunted, how are your birds doing? Mine are 9-13 and no loss! I'm sooooooo happy right now, after all my troubles last year. I almost lost one bird, who seems to carry the dwarf gene, since she is half the size as the other chicks, and is shaped differently, but ever since I switched to fermented fee, she's bounced back, and is now doing great!

 

[Haunted55]

Control group #2 is 6 weeks old. 10 hatched for this group and none are showing symptoms at all. I am crossing fingers that this will continue! Control group #1 is still going strong! Fat and sassy and the hens are laying everyday.

The new birds....the ones I ordered from a local farm store [Mt. Healthy stock], vaccinated with the MD-Vac, hatched on the 30th - 1st, and delivered on May 2nd, are doing fine. I lost 2 from this group so far but these were normal chick issues. I say normal as if there ever is a 'normal' chick death. They are still inside my house and growing well. The birds from McMurray, vaccinated with all three types vaccine, delivered on the 6th of May, are doing the same. I also lost 2 from this group as well, first 24 hrs.. Medicated chick feed for both groups of new chicks. The chicks from the farm store are going through a picking stage right now and I think I have more Blu-Kote on my hands than in a bottle, lol. It's funny to see the looks on peoples' faces when they ask you 'whatcha painting?' and you tell them chicks, lol, priceless!

I have a long way to go with the new chicks before I'll be able to say for sure what's going to happen. One group at 3 weeks and the other just about the same. Three more weeks to go for the first marker time frame of 6-8 weeks. Crossing fingers, this last winter was so harsh temperature wise and the frost got into the ground early and very deep, it is possible that enviromentally, I may not have the same worries I did last year. From what I've read, Marek's will die if it is frozen, thawed and then frozen again. We had a lot of that going on last Fall and this Spring as well. At least it may give my birds a fighting chance.

Thanks for asking Salt and Pepper, I've been caught up in the care of the new ones, as well as all of the other birds and animals I have here. It's hard to carve out the time to keep this updated sometimes. I am so glad yours are doing so well! It's very nice when things work out the right way. I pray it continues for you!

 

[Haunted55]

Haunted, how are your birds doing? Mine are 9-13 and no loss! I'm sooooooo happy right now, after all my troubles last year. I almost lost one bird, who seems to carry the dwarf gene, since she is half the size as the other chicks, and is shaped differently, but ever since I switched to fermented fee, she's bounced back, and is now doing great!

The dwarf gene may be the Marek's, just keep a good eye on her. I haven't done the fermented feed yet. It's one of those things on my To-Do list after the building is finished.

 

[salt and pepper]

I'm glad your flock is doing well =) How is your older flock doing? None of my chicks are vaccinated, that I know of, six might be since I got them from the feed store, but I'm really not sure. All are growing normally, just that one chick,acting fine though.. we will see!!

 

[Haunted55]

The older flock is hanging in there, lol. My survivors are in with them and there were some deaths over this past Winter, but with their immune system the way it was, I'm very lucky not to have lost more. Poor buggers were stuck inside their house from December until April.

 

[salt and pepper]

Oh my! I'm not sure mine could have handled that! Lol, Just treated for mites, found some in the coop, though I can't find any on the birds, tried permethrin powder, and spray, neither worked, so I went ahead and used a flea stuff that has the active ingredient of frontline on all the birds, and hoping for that to work. It should though, after everything I've read. Haven't lost any adults since that 24 week old, everybody is now 9 months. My thirteen week olds might be vaccinated, but are doing well, and my nine week olds are eating me out of the house! lol.

 

[seminolewind]

My 2 control batches have made it to 7 weeks. Haunted, I'm like you. Seems there are hurdles .

 

[Haunted55]

Oh my! I'm not sure mine could have handled that! Lol, Just treated for mites, found some in the coop, though I can't find any on the birds, tried permethrin powder, and spray, neither worked, so I went ahead and used a flea stuff that has the active ingredient of frontline on all the birds, and hoping for that to work. It should though, after everything I've read. Haven't lost any adults since that 24 week old, everybody is now 9 months. My thirteen week olds might be vaccinated, but are doing well, and my nine week olds are eating me out of the house! lol.

Mostly their fault, lol! They saw the snow outside in March and turned their beaks up. Now you've brought up something I am agonizing over as well! From physical appearance, my birds have mites, but darn it, I can't find anything on them even with a magnifying glass! I have powerwashed their house, sprayed the crap out of their roost and nesting boxes with Sevin spray, pounced them with the Sevin and I use poultry protector as often as I can catch them. I still have bare bottomed babies and the roos look bad! Two of them do, I should say, not the Dominique. He looks fine! No feather loss, no red patches, nothing. I don't get it! Seriously! I have been told there is a mite that only gets on them at night, but the other thing I did when I was cleaning their house was spray the corners and edges with Ant and Roach bug spray. Nothing should live or be able to cross that. So what the heck is going on?

That's the biggest thing I've learned with the Marek's survivors, they eat like the meaties but still maintain their svelte figure, lol. Poor buggers! I am not even going to bring up how much feed i go through a month. It's disgusting, but they're happy and as healthy as they can be.

My 2 control batches have made it to 7 weeks. Haunted, I'm like you. Seems there are hurdles .

Yeah Seminolewind, seems we're always waiting for the other shoe to drop aren't we, lol. Doesn't matter, we may not have taken the 'smart' way, but I do believe we took the right way. I've got to quit being a slacker and take some pictures. Control Group #1 are some gorgeous birds! I really never expected to get such pretty birds from the hatch! Seriously! They are fat and sassy just like I said and I think they will make it. Control Group #2...well they're not much to look at yet, lol. They're all black with some different coloring on the wings on some, but still too young to be feathered out completely. They're also small and need some growing yet. Doesn't matter...they're alive and right now that's all that counts for me. I hope everything works for both of us Seminole. We've gone through the fire, now's the time to see the results. I've got to get the terminology straight on how they are related, lol! Keep the faith my friend...some days that's about all we have!