Please help! Anemic chick dying

[rebrascora]

Hi again Susie

I know that will not be an easy task tomorrow and I wish you courage to face it.

I hope I am wrong and it is in fact something other than Marek's. I would greatly appreciate you updating the thread with the results as it will no doubt be educational whatever the outcome, both for myself and others who may read this.

Best wishes

Barbara

PS. I am pleased that I am able to give you a little perspective and hope. I know when I first learned that my flock had Marek's and started doing research, it was all very scary and easy to panic. The reality has not been nearly so bad as much of what I read, so if I can do anything to offset that feeling of despondency in others through my experience, it is worth while. By learning together and sharing information freely there is a better chance of one day figuring out the best course of treatment or maybe even a cure. The power of the internet in sharing knowledge like this makes it a wonderful resource. I have learned so much from reading other peoples' posts about their knowledge and experiences that it is good to be able to add that to mine and pass it forward.

 

[Sqhomestead]

Barbara
Your writings today in this thread have made me feel like even if it is Mareks , I can face it and still have the love for raising my chickens. Before your first reply here, whenever I would let myself think about it being Mareks , I was over come with despair. You have helped me, maybe more than you'll ever know. I promise to update. And here is a picture of her in the brood box.. I want to remember her happy.

 

[Sqhomestead]

Well, there was no improvement today I couldn't even get her to eat or drink with my help . With a broken heart, I took her to the UK veterinary diagnostic center and they helped her go peacefully . They performed a necropsy and the final report will take 7 to 10 business days, but the preliminary results are pneumonia. Since she's been unable to stand for days I wasn't shocked but I do think it is most likely secondary to the real issue that she died from. I'll update again as soon as I know. Thank you so much for your support!

 

[rebrascora]

I'm so sorry, but hope you can take comfort from the fact it was done by experienced people and she is no longer suffering.
Thanks for the prelim report.
I have a 3 yr old Marans cross that has been battling respiratory problems for months and she has gone down hill the past few days. She has not shown any Marek's symptoms prior to this but my gut feeling is that this is probably a secondary infection as a result of the disease. She has also suddenly developed scaly leg mites and it will all be down to a compromised immune system. I slathered Vicks Vapour Rub all over her legs and comb and wattles.... kills leg mites and helps open up the air ways (we don't have Vet RX here).... but didn't expect her to survive the night. 2 days later she has perked up a bit and was tucking into some chick crumb mash today and her comb is a little more red and less purple although her breathing is still very laboured and eating and breathing at the same time is hard work for her. I don't hold out much hope but will give her support as long as she is eating.

 

[Sqhomestead]

That was my deciding factor on whether to keep giving her supportive care, if she was still eating and drinking. I am very sorry about your girl. Hoping she will keep parking up and be back good as new! I can't help but find myself out to the coops several times a day now inspecting every chicken for any sign of illness. I know I'm obsessing and need to stop and trust that I'll know when one of them is off without looking for them to be. I'll definitely update when I get the final report. I was told it will all be in veterinary terminology and they refer me to my regular vet to read it for me. Little do they know I've been quite studious on all of this since getting chickens lol

Best wishes for your hen that's under the weather!

 

[rebrascora]

Thanks.
I know that feeling of watching for the slightest sign of anything not quite right. I still subconsciously do it, but I don't stress about it so much. What will happen, will happen.
Between a few of us here, we can mostly translate the diagnostic terminology so if there is anything you get stuck with in the report, our combined learning and logic should be able to figure out.

 

[Sageacresfarm]

If it is indeed Mareks, how long before the other birds that lived with her show symptoms?[/QUOTE

This is why I vaccinate Every single bird for Mereks, it’s just awful and leads to total loss of flocks. Please people, only buy vaccinated chickens and if you hatch it buy and vaccinate yourself! I’m
Heartbroken for you and your littles..so sorry

 

[rebrascora]

@Sageacresfarm
It is my belief that the vaccine that is available is leaky and leads to the more aggressive strains of Marek's developing. Since we have a mild strain here which does not decimate flocks but just kills the odd chick, I would prefer to keep things that way, even though every loss is heart breaking. I also broody rear my chicks so vaccination would be a waste of time and money in that situation because the chicks would be exposed to the virus before the vaccine had a chance to work.... it needs about 3 weeks of significant biosecurity measures (particularly when you already have Marek's in your flock) after vaccination to enable the body to recognise and develop a response to the virus.

You are of course right to point out that there is a vaccine available but it is not necessarily the best way to deal with the problem of Marek's at the moment in my opinion, unless perhaps you already have a very aggressive local strain which decimates a significant percentage of flocks.

 

[Sqhomestead]

I'm in crisis mode. I'm still waiting for the final report on my 3 month old blue copper marans that died, the initial chicken I posted about in this thread, but one of my hens died over the weekend. She was the 1st chicken I ever got and of course by far my favorite. I've had to nurse her back from all sorts if different issues over the past year. Prolapsed vent, impacted crop , clogged nare and respiratory issues. Friday I brought her inside because I heard her rattling and I was checking her out and putting VetRX on. She literally started gushing an almost clear liquid from her vent. It had a very slight chalky look. It was like a running faucet . I fixed her up in a quiet, dark area in the house, and we gave her a penicillin shot because she was going down hill very fast..She died that night. She's a Black australorp, about 2 years old. Like I said, I'm in crisis mode. Has Anyone had this happen?

 

[Sqhomestead]