PLEASE HELP! I think her wing is broken, but can't tell!

[BantamLover21]

Well, Della was euthanized today due to Marek's disease. She was very skinny, but you couldn't tell visually. She was so weak she couldn't stand, plus she did have a broken wing at the shoulder. The vet said that she could've gotten that by falling off of the perch last night because she was just so weak. The only reason I didn't vaccinate them is because the farm told me that since they were 10-12 weeks they were in the clear. However, my vet said that it can take up to a year for symptoms, even if they are exposed to the virus as chicks. The other chickens seem to be fine, and she said that they might have been able to build up a tolerance to the virus and that the ducks cannot contract the virus, just chickens, turkeys, and quail. And now that Marek's has been in the coop/run, it will be in the environment forever. It makes me wary of adding new chickens to the flock, even vaccinated ones.

I'm sorry for your loss.

Your vet is correct--while Marek's is common in young birds 5-25 weeks of age, it can cause symptoms over a year after first exposure. Once you have Marek's in your flock, it will be there almost indefinitely, unfortunately. I think the best thing you can do is only bring in vaccinated birds, keep newly vaccinated chicks away from the flock for at least 14 days after vaccination, and try to keep the flock as stress-free as possible. Good luck, i hope something like this doesn't happen to you again for a long time (if ever).

 

[Chickenkate17]

Thanks everyone. I used to keep the baby chicks in a brooder cage in my basement, so now that area is technically contaminated too

I'm not sure I have a "clean" place to quarantine baby chicks....this sucks. I did write to the farm and let them know that their information was incorrect and that they need to advise buyers to vaccinate if they aren't going to.

 

[realsis]

I'm so sorry you have to go through this. There is a really great thread here on emergency and it's for people going through mareks and have a mareks compromised flock like yours. It's called not a emergency Mareks in my flock. Find that title and you will find lots of great information and support. They can help you move forward in a positive direction. Most are mareks experts with mareks in their own flocks. I'm certain they will have lots of tips and help for you. I agree with you people who sell should recommend the vaccination if they don't offer it them self. Mareks is litterly every where. No one is safe from this virus. I always ask my breeders if they were vaccinated and how the birds are kept. Inside ect. I myself just got some new babies that were not vaccinated so the first thing I vaccinated.luckily they were kept in side and away from adult birds. Before they were ever allowed to go outside I gave mine a good 14 days plus to develop antibodies.i think it was actually a month after vaccination that I finally let them outside. Although I've not yet had mareks I treat my land as it has the virus because mareks is everywhere and it's airborne so likely the land does have the virus! I know the vaccine is not 100% effective but it's all we have in the lines of defense. I had a wonderful breeder who bread beautiful birds not too far from me loose her flock to mareks. It really opened my eyes to how prevelant this virus is. Just because you had the virus does NOT mean your other birds will be symptomatic. But it DOES mean they are now carriers of the virus. You mentioned not having a place to isolate your new chick's? How about inside the house? I brood mine inside until the time has passed for the antibodies and immunity to kick in. If you have a spare room or area you can do it inside. That would work and give them time to develop the antibodies after vaccination safely without exposure.i hope this helps. And do go to the thread I mentioned above. I think they can be of great help in moving forward. I wish you the best.

 

[ESofVA]

I just saw this post and when I saw the pic at the top I was going to say Marek's and not a broken wing. So sorry and hope you don't lose any more!

 

[Nambroth]

I'm so sorry you are going through this. You're not alone-- many of us have been in this position of "Suddenly: Marek's disease" unexpectedly. It really is unfortunate and makes you feel sick that you have to deal with the disease essentially forevermore because it lives outside of the host for so long.
When I got it in my flock I got angry and really started researching. I tried to compile all the info I had found into one basic source, because I realized that nothing quite like it existed online yet, and when I first got Marek's in my flock I think it would have really helped me to not feel so helpless.

Having a game plan and knowing the facts of the disease helped me to get less upset over it. I hope it can help you, too. Feel free to give it a read when you have time, and I hope it can answer some of the questions you no doubt have right now. If any of us "Marek's people" can help you, let us know.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq