Rooster balance problems - how big is the chance of Marek's?

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Just found another article about this called

"
This chicken vaccine makes its virus more dangerous

The deadliest strains of viruses often take care of themselves — they flare up and then die out. This is because they are so good at destroying cells and causing illness that they ultimately kill their host before they have time to spread.

But a chicken virus that represents one of the deadliest germs in history breaks from this conventional wisdom, thanks to an inadvertent effect from a vaccine. Chickens vaccinated against Marek’s disease rarely get sick. But the vaccine does not prevent them from spreading Marek’s to unvaccinated birds.

“With the hottest strains, every unvaccinated bird dies within 10 days. There is no human virus that is that hot. Ebola, for example, doesn’t kill everything in 10 days.”
In fact, rather than stop fowl from spreading the virus, the vaccine allows the disease to spread faster and longer than it normally would, a new study finds. The scientists now believe that this vaccine has helped this chicken virus become uniquely virulent. (Note: it only harms fowl). The study was published on Monday in the journal
PLOS Biology.

This is the first time that this virus-boosting phenomenon, known as the imperfect vaccine hypothesis, has been observed experimentally.
 
We are not here to debate the use of Mareks vaccines. That is up to each person who buys baby chicks. But you said that Mareks vaccine “gives them Mareks,” and that is not true. If one has no Mareks in the flock, a vaccine will not cause Mareks. If a flock has Mareks or a carrier is brought into a flock, all flock members will become carriers. The vaccine may help prevent symptoms.
 
I respect your opinion about vaccinating or not, but please don't turn my thread into a discussion, it won't change the current situation. I'm only looking for support and help with my sick roo and keep updates for people with similar issues in the future.

I'm flabbergasted with these two responses, first one says I don't want to debate, then debates. Then this,.....

I am here to try to support you because I have been through exactly what you are going through. Many times. Including this last week. What is a thread if not a discussion ? How is it possible to have a thread without discussion? you may as well say have a thread without typing. I'm not changing the subject, I'm not here to debate anything. At all. I do not care to debate anything. At all. I can just tell you about what my flock has been through, what I have been through, I think this is exactly what is relevant, did you want to talk to someone who has never been through it ?

I would think a link to some helpful resources would have been helpful, so it's not about Chinese whispers or opinions, I thought pointing to the resources available might help those seeking to understand what is going on or why.

I do not want to give you my opinion, I'm just some random person on the internet, same as everyone else, rather I would point not to anyone's opinion at all. opinions are worthless and a dime a dozen. I would point to resources like absolute science or safety data sheets, now they're a good read. Read the manufactures own product statements ..

I'll leave this as a nice pointer to a nice read, and say no more. It's not opinion, it's some science that sums up something without opinion, without rumour.

https://bioone.org/journals/Avian-D...osures-on-the/10.1637/9348-033010-Reg.1.short
Abstract
Marek's disease virus (MDV) is ubiquitous within commercial poultry flocks because current vaccines do not prevent MDV infection or transmission.


I lost 3 roosters this last week to Mareks. I got them as a gift from a friend who didn't want them. A lovely big black jackass of a rooster, he really was to be honest, loud as anything and wild as anything too, but he was calming down at my place. The other two were younger and shy. The three fell sick with paralysis first, which happened about the third or fourth day, and it got worse, fast. They could not lift their heads within 24 hours. Then within another day, in cardboard boxes brought indoors so they were not on the cold ground, they all passed away.
 
I just came back from the poultry clinic. The vet thinks it's almost certainly NOT Mareks, because Phil can still kick his legs and flap his wings. They held him in the air by his wings and he does these kungfu kicks, they even made a video of it for documentation. They assume there's something with his brain because he can move but seems to not know how. They can't feel any injury either. Their diagnosis was bacterial meningitis, hence his neck pulling back even though he has full control of it. I have to give him strong antibiotics until Monday and have to continue giving him painkillers and vitamins, but directly into his mouth. If he shows any progress by Monday we'll have to continue treatment, if not then it's time to end it.
 
I just came back from the poultry clinic. The vet thinks it's almost certainly NOT Mareks, because Phil can still kick his legs and flap his wings. They held him in the air by his wings and he does these kungfu kicks, they even made a video of it for documentation. They assume there's something with his brain because he can move but seems to not know how. They can't feel any injury either. Their diagnosis was bacterial meningitis, hence his neck pulling back even though he has full control of it. I have to give him strong antibiotics until Monday and have to continue giving him painkillers and vitamins, but directly into his mouth. If he shows any progress by Monday we'll have to continue treatment, if not then it's time to end it.
Good luck with Phil, and thanks for the update!
 
@GodofPecking - :hugs Sorry about your Roos, I was caring for a friend's WTB; 16wks, vaccinated for Mareks from McMurray, out of an order of 15 (WTB, WTG, Light Brahma, Polish). Last weekend she notified me one was found leg out, on the ground. Thought perhaps a vitamin defiencey; Cinnamon was perky, eating, drinking & pooping; so she brought her to me (she works full time, I'm retired). I treated with Vitamin B Complex, Poultry Cell, egg yolk, tofu and fermented Flock Raiser ... Been waiting for Dels/TSC to get their Nutri Drench in for months :mad:

So discouraging, I thought she was getting better but then she started having seizures Wednesday night. Yesterday we put her out of her misery, she was not as perky and appetite dwindled. I've treated Vitamin Deficiency in the past but not at this age and although the early symptoms were similar, the deterioration was so fast :hit
 
So today is D-day. Or tomorrow actually as I'm about to go to bed. I have a bad feeling about it :( I'm afraid the changes I might be seeing are too insignificant to determine the antibiotics are working. I wanted to give him his painkillers a little bit earlier today as I had to go somewhere but he was eating like a madman, like he hadn't eaten in days. I sat there, chickens on my lap, watching him eat for maybe 20 minutes. I didn't want to disturb him. He never stopped eating since he was sick but I never saw him this dedicated... it also looks like he's trying to get up, but he still fails and falls over head first. Above that it's getting harder and harder to give him any medicine because he resists so much, he isn't weak... we did notice his left leg is cold and the right one is warm, but if it was a blocked nerve I'd think he would be able to use the other leg...

I'm really having a hard time making a decision about Phil when he still eats and drinks well like nothing is wrong. My girlfriend told me today that I shouldn't have to let him go if I don't want to on the condition that he eats and drinks normally, but the poultry vet said it clearly: call me on Monday, if nothing changes, we euthanize him. It's a really tough choice to make. I wish he would just get up. We still have tomorrow to determine if anything changed, but I'm afraid it won't :(
 
Well, Phil is your rooster, and if you want to give him some more time to see if he gets better, that is your right. If you decide next week or the next, to put him down, call the vet. If I have the time to feed and care for a sick bird, I will, especially if they do not seem to be suffering. If they won’t eat and seem in pain, or the others are pecking, they get put down.
 

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