Thank you to everyone who tells to quarantine

[elieugene6]

I just want to say a big thank you to everyone who lets people know to quarantine. I got Sebrights back on October 17th I knew from being on here that they should be quarantined for at least 4 wks. Thank god I kept them in longer. They started sneezing and having watery eyes today. I am heartbroken. I tried so hard to finally get sebrights only to have to cull all of them due to sickness. I drove 3 hrs there and back to get show quality chickens for my son for 4h. I don't have that much money but they were his favorite kind and I couldn't find them around here and heard that they were hard to hatch. I just hope that my biosecurity was good enough. My chicks that I hatched in the incubator were down in the basement as well but in another room. I pray to god that I didn't pass it to the chicks somehow. I took care of them first before the quarantined ones. So to anyone who thinks that it will be ok I would just like to say no it might not be ok. That is exactly what I said. I should have just stuck with eggs. I will never again get live chickens. Maybe chicks from a hatchery but that is it. My chickens are livestock but some are also pets. I do think that we should be telling to quarantine for 6wks, if I hadn't kept them in there longer I would have exposed the whole flock.

 

[Dar]

depending on where I get the chickens from I will keep the isolated from anywhere to 6 weeks to 3 months.

If I get them at auction its 3 months

 

[elieugene6]

I got them from the yankee classic. I never thought that it could take up to 3 months to show up. This stinks.

 

[jjthink]

Seeing as they just became symptomatic today, maybe their illness is something simple and transient.

JJ

 

[elieugene6]

I have heard the occasional sneeze prior to this and let it go. Chickens sneeze. This was not the occasional sneeze and they were quickly becoming snotty. Maybe if it was just one but 3 out of 4? I couldn't risk it. I have livestock and I have pets. I would never forgive myself if I had to cull the entire flock due to my stupidity in trying to keep chickens that may or may not be sick.

Has anyone had any experience with oxine? I would like to fog the entire basement with it in the hopes to kill everything down there and hopefully keep it from spreading to the chicks. Not to mention I have more due to hatch soon and need a place for them. I normally move to the basement between 1 and 2 weeks. I have some approaching 2 wks that are going to have to stay upstairs until I figure something out down there.

 

[galanie]

I have no experience with Oxine AH to speak of, but there's a nice article about it here: http://www.shagbarkbantams.com/oxine.htm

After reading this article, I got some and am using it for bio-security and prevention though I have not had any sick birds yet

He cautions that for poultry use, NEVER use the citrus to 'activate' it.
7 drops per gallon in water for drinking
6 oz per gallon for fogging the coop and birds themselves (so they breathe it).
It is supposed to be wonderful for treating many types of illnesses in addition to prevention.

Also good for disinfecting equipment and shoes. But don't totally take my word for it, read the article

 

[Rozzie]

Shudder! This is why I am afraid to bring any additional live birds into my flock! Hatching eggs it will have to continue to be...

 

[elieugene6]

I was afraid too, thats why I quarantine. If I could have found the eggs at a reasonable price to try and hatch I would have. I just thank god I caught it before introduction. NO more live birds for me unless they come from a hatchery. I would rather try and turn hatchery stock into breeder stock and have it take forever than go through this again. My son is very upset. I have been crying all day and my fiance is just ticked off at the person that I got them from.