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

[Haunted55]

Good morning everyone! It's been a couple weeks since I've checked in. So an update it is. My ee girl is doing great, preens daily, eats like no tomorrow, and lays an egg every other day. I do notice if she doesn't get her vit b complex for a day, she's on shakey feet. So she gets it daily.

Now good news and bad. I finally got my poop board. It's just really to hard to see the poop when it's all mixed in with the bedding. It's not that I want to see that dreaded green color of poop, more like if its there I have a heads up.

So since we were working in the coop a little later, one of my BA decided she was going to roost on my fence, and no sooner did she land, my dog got her. It was over very quickly. Not much damage but two puncture wounds, I believe she punctured her heart. All my fault. So I went out last night to buy more fencing and get to install that today.

Now a question. Can they do a necropsy on her and test for mericks? I have her in the fridge, just in case and bought what I needed for insulating the box. Just not sure if they will since it was a dog attack.

Also I have another BA who has gone broody. I am going to set some eggs under her. She's been broody now for 2 weeks. She sleeps in her nest box and only goes outside to eat and poo only if I take her. So I will have 3 weeks to get done what needs to be done before the eggs hatch. Now another question. What do I need to do to ensure I have healthy chick presuming I have mericks in the flock. I know it's different than a clean flick. Any and all help is appreciated.

Yes, they will. They will test for whatever you ask them to. Kudos for thinking like this!

thank-you for posting back, I am happy to hear about the EE. How much of the Bs are you giving and is it the Super Bs? Reason I am asking is she may be able to be weaned from them slowly. I had a couple that had to have a full Super B Complex in a gallon of water everyday for months. Well one day, I only had a half pills left because of treating others. Well I gave it to them and hoped for the best, until I could get out to the store. It worked. No problems at all! So I continued with that for a week and then cut it back to 1/4 of a pill. Same results. I did this for a few weeks because I am a Nervous Nelly when it comes to making these decisions, lol. Finally, I stopped them, there was no change in them at all. This may or may not work for you, but it might be worth a try. If you see any indications things aren't working, put her right back on them. She may have a defect that doesn't allow her body to metabolise the Bs from her food or it could also be the C included in the Super Bs. Don't know.....I think of it this way...if it ain't broke, don't fix it. I don't always need an answer as to why something works, either because there is no time to figure it out or I am unable to. I do try to find supportive research being done or already done, but sometimes there just isn't any. Sometimes we who have, are doing things not tested yet or even thought of. We just 'Do' and watch for results. Lol, sad thing really, you can't mess up with a Marek's bird. The prognosis is always the same in the end. It just comes down to when and quality of life over quantity.

 

[hogster160]

And my ocular form of md my 2 birds are still alive. Scratch that 1 is, the other died last nite, my dog got her. She's who I want to send out and have necropsied. The other went broody on me and has been in a hard broody since. As long as I'm outside she out eating and pooping, as soon as I turn my back shes inside on her nest of golf balls that she gathered. I am learning so much about a crappy disease that my chickens can get, my family thinks I'm nuts!

I won't go to the fair so I don't take it with me. I buy my feed in bulk, so I have less trips to the feed store. I have a can of Lysol in each car and tell everyone to use it before getting in their car and leaving it. To the point that my dh says he smells like a cleaned men's urinal! I have certain clothes and shoes to do chicken chores in. no one is aloud on my chicken yard . all shoes get taken off outside and sprayed with lysol. Overboard, I don't think so. This is nasty, mine caught it probably from the environment , my neighbor has chickens too, lots.

Even if mine do not have md, it's only suspicion at this point, I am doing all of this to protect my girls. And not hurting any one else's chickens.

Well my dh hubby does think he smells like a cleaned urinal, but even that isn't so bad. Smelling like a used urinal, now that's bad!

Deb

 

[hogster160]

She's on the super b complex in a gallon jug. I was able to stop the calcium pills, but she does eat a lot of crushed egg shell, which is why I stopped the pill. Didn't want to hurt her more. And the poly vit I only did for like a week, she really didn't like the taste lol. I'm a nervous nelly like that too, so she will probably be on the, for a while before I try. Gotta work up to it lol.

Do you think it's ok to set eggs under my broody? Kind of nervous, but I locked her up for 4 days, and she didn't break, so we kind of figured wed give it a shot. We are going to get some eggs today from a farmer in Lakeville. He has auracanas, which he shows. My neighbor only has production red, which I don't want. We are meeting him at a neutral place, just to keep on the safe side, I really don't want to pass this on.

Deb

 

[Haunted55]

And my ocular form of md my 2 birds are still alive. Scratch that 1 is, the other died last nite, my dog got her. She's who I want to send out and have necropsied. The other went broody on me and has been in a hard broody since. As long as I'm outside she out eating and pooping, as soon as I turn my back shes inside on her nest of golf balls that she gathered. I am learning so much about a crappy disease that my chickens can get, my family thinks I'm nuts!

I won't go to the fair so I don't take it with me. I buy my feed in bulk, so I have less trips to the feed store. I have a can of Lysol in each car and tell everyone to use it before getting in their car and leaving it. To the point that my dh says he smells like a cleaned men's urinal! I have certain clothes and shoes to do chicken chores in. no one is aloud on my chicken yard . all shoes get taken off outside and sprayed with lysol. Overboard, I don't think so. This is nasty, mine caught it probably from the environment , my neighbor has chickens too, lots.

Even if mine do not have md, it's only suspicion at this point, I am doing all of this to protect my girls. And not hurting any one else's chickens.

Well my dh hubby does think he smells like a cleaned urinal, but even that isn't so bad. Smelling like a used urinal, now that's bad!

Deb

LOL!! You know..I wish everyone would do as you are doing! This would go a long way in getting it under control. Even though it's out there, there are way too many mutated forms of it floating around now, because of what I believe are folks not taking the proper precautions and ignorance. Like I said before, the signature fragrance of choice for me. Tell DH you'll find a more manly scent for him, lol.

 

[seminolewind]

Good morning everyone! It's been a couple weeks since I've checked in. So an update it is. My ee girl is doing great, preens daily, eats like no tomorrow, and lays an egg every other day. I do notice if she doesn't get her vit b complex for a day, she's on shakey feet. So she gets it daily.

Now good news and bad. I finally got my poop board. It's just really to hard to see the poop when it's all mixed in with the bedding. It's not that I want to see that dreaded green color of poop, more like if its there I have a heads up.

So since we were working in the coop a little later, one of my BA decided she was going to roost on my fence, and no sooner did she land, my dog got her. It was over very quickly. Not much damage but two puncture wounds, I believe she punctured her heart. All my fault. So I went out last night to buy more fencing and get to install that today.

Now a question. Can they do a necropsy on her and test for mericks? I have her in the fridge, just in case and bought what I needed for insulating the box. Just not sure if they will since it was a dog attack.

Also I have another BA who has gone broody. I am going to set some eggs under her. She's been broody now for 2 weeks. She sleeps in her nest box and only goes outside to eat and poo only if I take her. So I will have 3 weeks to get done what needs to be done before the eggs hatch. Now another question. What do I need to do to ensure I have healthy chick presuming I have mericks in the flock. I know it's different than a clean flick. Any and all help is appreciated.

Sorry about your bird. Accidents happen. It's sad. Yes you can send the bird. It's dead and cold.

You can vaccinate all your chicks day one and quarantine them for 2+ weeks. If done with a hatchery, get the coccidiosis vaccine as well. I find these Marek's birds, vaccinated or not are super prone to coccidiosis.

I'm a poop checker too. I also check for meat on the breast bone every month to see if they are eating enough.

 

[hogster160]

Sorry about your bird. Accidents happen. It's sad. Yes you can send the bird. It's dead and cold.

You can vaccinate all your chicks day one and quarantine them for 2+ weeks. If done with a hatchery, get the coccidiosis vaccine as well. I find these Marek's birds, vaccinated or not are super prone to coccidiosis.

I'm a poop checker too. I also check for meat on the breast bone every month to see if they are eating enough.

Thanks, I have everything ready to send her, just have to pack her up. While talking with him, a Dr. someone...hes Russian maybe, hard to under stand. He asked the age that my pullets started showing symptoms. He doesn't think its mericks because of the age. He said normally they show symptoms by 16 weeks. Anything older and they look at something else being the cause, but they won't rule out mericks. He said my ee could be just vit b dif. and the ones with occular change could be a different virus, just didn't say what. So I am hoping he come back with something. One way or another. The not knowing drives me nuts.

Ok, so where do I buy the vaccine, any farm store? Is it just mericks vacc? If I get the eggs from a hatchery, can they do the vaccine to the egg? Or is it just the chick they vaccinate?

I have been digging most days just to see the poop, drives me crazy. So now I can see it daily with just a look, makes for a good day! I pick each bird up daily and do a nice pet/check to make sure no lumps bumps or blood lol. The bird that died was the head honcho. She liked to pick on all the birds, drew blood several times. Either by biting combs or pulling feathers. Did I mention I hate surprises lol.

 

[PoultryPedia]

I won't go to the fair so I don't take it with me. I buy my feed in bulk, so I have less trips to the feed store. I have a can of Lysol in each car and tell everyone to use it before getting in their car and leaving it. To the point that my dh says he smells like a cleaned men's urinal! I have certain clothes and shoes to do chicken chores in. no one is aloud on my chicken yard . all shoes get taken off outside and sprayed with lysol. Overboard, I don't think so. This is nasty, mine caught it probably from the environment , my neighbor has chickens too, lots.

Even if mine do not have md, it's only suspicion at this point, I am doing all of this to protect my girls. And not hurting any one else's chickens.

Well my dh hubby does think he smells like a cleaned urinal, but even that isn't so bad. Smelling like a used urinal, now that's bad!

You are being so conscientious! You have my respect.
I hope you are able to find out what has been the problem for your birds and are able to find solutions.

 

[hogster160]

You are being so conscientious! You have my respect.
I hope you are able to find out what has been the problem for your birds and are able to find solutions.

Wow, thank you! I'm just trying to prevent someone new from getting something nasty. My birds really haven't had many problems. Just an ee who couldn't walk and 2 BA who have ocular changes. Other than that we have loved having them.

She has been shipped off, ouch pricey for a dead chicken lmao. I will not tell dh how much I had to pay to ship her overnight. He'd ring my neck. But, I think it was still cheaper than the gas and time to drive there 2+ hours one way.

I didn't get my eggs today, the gentleman who has them didn't return my call. So I'm not too sure what I'm going to do. Maybe try giving him a call here in a bit.

I also wish you good luck in finding out about your chickens. I haven't finished catching up, but if you are here reading about MD, you may be having problems.

The pullet that passed, had such black eyes, the whole eye looked like the pupil, it was crazy looking. So hopefully they can find out something for me.

Deb

 

[Haunted55]

Thanks, I have everything ready to send her, just have to pack her up. While talking with him, a Dr. someone...hes Russian maybe, hard to under stand. He asked the age that my pullets started showing symptoms. He doesn't think its mericks because of the age. He said normally they show symptoms by 16 weeks. Anything older and they look at something else being the cause, but they won't rule out mericks. He said my ee could be just vit b dif. and the ones with occular change could be a different virus, just didn't say what. So I am hoping he come back with something. One way or another. The not knowing drives me nuts.

Ok, so where do I buy the vaccine, any farm store? Is it just mericks vacc? If I get the eggs from a hatchery, can they do the vaccine to the egg? Or is it just the chick they vaccinate?

I have been digging most days just to see the poop, drives me crazy. So now I can see it daily with just a look, makes for a good day! I pick each bird up daily and do a nice pet/check to make sure no lumps bumps or blood lol. The bird that died was the head honcho. She liked to pick on all the birds, drew blood several times. Either by biting combs or pulling feathers. Did I mention I hate surprises lol.

I got mine vaccine from Jeffers, it was about 20.00 dollars before shipping. You may be able to find it closer to home, but call before driving.

I wouldn't be too sure about it being the Lymphoma thing, or what ever it's called, that comes later then the Marek's. When I think back now to the initial out break...I think I could have seen symptoms as early as 2 weeks. If I had known what I was looking at, that is. Either way, it's about the same, Marek's with a different name. Same things have to be done and watched, if I remember correctly. You'll find out with the lab results.

I use McMurray hatchery, because they use all 3 vaccines for the Marek's. That's just my choice, but I hope if you do use a hatchery, you will ask what they use and how it is given. They have proven by testing that the vaccines given twice are much, much better than the one time a lot of them do. A lot of the failure seen with the vaccines happens because of the antibodies they get from their mother. If it is strong, there's a darned good chance the vaccine won't take. The double vaccination seems to get around this and protect better.

I agree with Seminolewind about the coccidiosis vaccine if you can be sure the stuff you have there isn't a resistant form. Me? I can't do that, it wouldn't work here no way, no how. If you've never run into this, then by all means, do it! One less worry. But remember, no medicated feed and if you have to treat for a resistant form of it...you're right back at square one. Research it and see. If it'll work for you, it would be a big blessing!

 

[hogster160]

I got mine vaccine from Jeffers, it was about 20.00 dollars before shipping. You may be able to find it closer to home, but call before driving.

I wouldn't be too sure about it being the Lymphoma thing, or what ever it's called, that comes later then the Marek's. When I think back now to the initial out break...I think I could have seen symptoms as early as 2 weeks. If I had known what I was looking at, that is. Either way, it's about the same, Marek's with a different name. Same things have to be done and watched, if I remember correctly. You'll find out with the lab results.

I use McMurray hatchery, because they use all 3 vaccines for the Marek's. That's just my choice, but I hope if you do use a hatchery, you will ask what they use and how it is given. They have proven by testing that the vaccines given twice are much, much better than the one time a lot of them do. A lot of the failure seen with the vaccines happens because of the antibodies they get from their mother. If it is strong, there's a darned good chance the vaccine won't take. The double vaccination seems to get around this and protect better.

I agree with Seminolewind about the coccidiosis vaccine if you can be sure the stuff you have there isn't a resistant form. Me? I can't do that, it wouldn't work here no way, no how. If you've never run into this, then by all means, do it! One less worry. But remember, no medicated feed and if you have to treat for a resistant form of it...you're right back at square one. Research it and see. If it'll work for you, it would be a big blessing!

Well it looks like I'll be getting my eggs today, the gentleman finally got back with me. So I will need to get the vaccine and administer myself. I checked Jeffers, I'll probably just get it there. Now is that the 3 vaccines in one or is it just one? OI read the compendium on the vaccine, it just really didn't say, so I;m guessing its just the single. But the name of it is Serotype 3, Live Virus, so maybe it is 3. Now do I get (2) 1000 doses, so I can double immunize? or just one and a single vaccination? I'm guessing I have 1000 doses, just give it 2x? And how many days apart or both in the same day? I probably wont be getting the coccidiosis vaccine, its $50. Hubby would kill me, my little chicken adventure sure is starting to get pricey lol. Who knows though, maybe he will just smile and shake his head and walk away.