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

[seminolewind]

Quote:

I'll keep my fingers crossed for everyone's hens .

Seminolewind, don't forget that I have that black astrolorp with a grey eye. Her sibling had the same, I sent her in for that necropsy a couple of months ago and the vet said it wasn't mareks. So the suriving BA is doing fine - whatever is going on with her eye. She is lightweight, but her comb is pinking up a bit. I'll hope the same for your polish hen.

I started feeding tumeric. It seems a bit expensive online, but I found in Indian grocery stores you can get it for cheaper. Right now I'm finding it for $13 for a 3 lb bag. Only trouble is, it stains like the dickens. When I forget to wear gloves, my fingernails turn yellow and look disgusting. The flock doesn't seem to mind it - they will prefer the food that isn't dosed with the tumeric but will eat and finish up the tumeric food. I am experimenting with the amount and still researching to try to find more about what the critical point is (how much tumeric do you need to make a difference?)

Maybe at 7 years old the chances are good that it's more of an old age related thing. Thanks.

 

[KayTee]

Maybe at 7 years old the chances are good that it's more of an old age related thing. Thanks.

Seminolewind, I'm guessing from your location that you get quite a bit of sunshine during the year - certainly more than we get here in France - so in a seven year old chicken I would imagine that cataracts could be a very big possibility.

(Of course, I don't know how you look after your girls - maybe you make them wear sunglasses all summer!

)

 

[jgoldy2]

How long does it take for Mareks to kill a flock?

 

[lalaland]

jgoldy, I for sure don't know that one - I think it would depend on how virulent the strain was, whether any were vaccinated, etc

How did the show go?
And how is your flock? Any more sick hens?

 

[jgoldy2]

jgoldy, I for sure don't know that one - I think it would depend on how virulent the strain was, whether any were vaccinated, etc

How did the show go?
And how is your flock? Any more sick hens?

The Sussex were disqualified, but that Antwarp's sister got a red in her breed, only Partraige Rock Bantams, only NN, second BLRW, second Mille Fleur D'uccle. Thanks for asking.

No more sick chickens, all were vaccinated so still puzzled, did I wast $0.19 ?
We are in CO so the grounds were (not anymore) frozen but I am hoping all will be okay although her brother lost his voice last month

 

[seminolewind]

Quote:
Thanks. No I don't provide sun glasses, but I do provide ice water and shade, LOL

 

[seminolewind]

How long does it take for Mareks to kill a flock?

From what I've read and experienced, up to about 8 months old has been symptoms including paralysis. After that, it's basically wasting, but since Marek's causes immune suppression, I've started treating those skinny older chickens with general antibiotics because I am not sure if wasting should just be written off as Marek's wasting, or whether it can be opportunistic bugs moving in, such as cocci, clostridium, or e. coli.

And Marek's doesn't really go and kill a whole flock. Older birds become resistant.

You will not waste money having your chicks vaccinated. I , for one, have gotten really tired of seeing young birds get paralysis, or loss of perception and unable to aim for food. It's sad . Approximately 1/2 of my chickens have been vaccinated at hatch. The rest are older chickens.

 

[jgoldy2]

How long does it take for Mareks to kill a flock?

From what I've read and experienced, up to about 8 months old has been symptoms including paralysis.  After that, it's basically wasting, but since Marek's causes immune suppression, I've started treating those skinny older chickens with general antibiotics because I am not sure if wasting should just be written off as Marek's wasting, or whether it can be opportunistic bugs moving in, such as cocci, clostridium, or e. coli. 

And Marek's doesn't really go and kill a whole flock.  Older birds become resistant.

You will not waste money having your chicks vaccinated.  I , for one, have gotten really tired of seeing young birds get paralysis, or loss of perception and unable to aim for food.  It's sad .  Approximately 1/2 of my chickens have been vaccinated at hatch.  The rest are older chickens.

That was a waste of money, unless the vaccination actually helped her friends.

 

[Nambroth]

I'll keep my fingers crossed for everyone's hens .

I started feeding tumeric. It seems a bit expensive online, but I found in Indian grocery stores you can get it for cheaper. Right now I'm finding it for $13 for a 3 lb bag. Only trouble is, it stains like the dickens. When I forget to wear gloves, my fingernails turn yellow and look disgusting. The flock doesn't seem to mind it - they will prefer the food that isn't dosed with the tumeric but will eat and finish up the tumeric food. I am experimenting with the amount and still researching to try to find more about what the critical point is (how much tumeric do you need to make a difference?)

I used to do the same thing-- buy bulk spices from an Indian grocer. Now, I don't, because a lot of our imported spices can have lead in them. Not to be alarmist, and I wish it weren't true, but it's worth mentioning here since lead toxicity in chickens can.. well, look like Marek's disease! : https://preventdisease.com/news/10/032210_indian_spices_lead_poisoning.shtml
http://www.astaspice.org/the-american-spice-trade-associations-statement-on-lead-in-turmeric/
There are many other sources that indicate that spices, including turmeric, have been found to have varying levels of lead (sometimes quite a lot ) but I don't want to spam them all here. Google "Turmeric lead"

Turmeric is thought to be beneficial however-- plus, I like cooking with it, so I started to grind my own. It's not too hard, fortunately, and all it takes for the amounts I need is a cheap coffee/spice grinder. http://www.freshbitesdaily.com/homemade-turmeric-powder/

That was a waste of money, unless the vaccination actually helped her friends.

Marek's vaccination is never 100% effective. It seems strange to not want to spare the $0.19 per chick to possibly save them later on, even if it's not totally effective. Unless I am misunderstanding?

 

[ochochicas]

The vaccine itself is $0.19 per dose, but you have to buy a vial that treats 1000 chicks. On top of that you have to pay for shipping plus needles and syringes Shipping vaccines is expensive because they have to stay cooled until they are administered. A lot of people cannot/don't want to vaccinate their chicks due to lack of skill/training. Having a vet do it would be super expensive. I'm not saying vaccinating isn't worth it, but it is mostly only feasible for large scale breeders. If I hatch out 20 chicks and vaccinate them, I'm invested at least $2 per chick just for the vaccine and related supplies. Then I sell the chicks for $3 and it is a total loss. If people own birds that are carriers of Marek's, then it makes sense that they should always buy vaccinated chicks or vaccinate their own chicks.

From what I've read, the vaccine does not prevent the chickens from contracting the Marek's virus, but it prevents the formation of tumors which, in the end, paralyze the bird and lead to its death.