The Old Folks Home

[perchie.girl]

O.
M.
G.

Y'all

I have an announcement.


View attachment 1078954

Did she finally give up?

 

[microchick]

O.M.G! Is right!

Bless her little heart. She finally gave up!

All things considered she actually looks in pretty good shape. Not psychotic anymore at all, LOL!

I appreciate the kind words and encouragement everyone, honestly. My DH understands how hard this has been on me but only another chicken person can fully relate. I'm not giving up on my flock. I just blame myself for not buying vaccinated birds to start with. I know there is a pro and con to the whole vaccination debate but if I'd known how bad Marek's disease is around us and the impact it would have on my flock, first and foremost, it would have been a no brainer. At least my flock would have had a fighting chance.

So just how hard ARE turkeys to raise? I keep reading how hard the poults are to raise but if they will help my flock resist Marek's, hey, I'll take your psychotic hen, SGC! Just kidding,.....really.

 

[getaclue]

micro, the vaccinations don't work either, so stop beating yourself up. The only thing you can do, is try hatching eggs from the current infected flock. That should begin breeding resistance into your flock.

scg, well, wonders never cease!

 

[microchick]

micro, the vaccinations don't work either, so stop beating yourself up. The only thing you can do, is try hatching eggs from the current infected flock. That should begin breeding resistance into your flock.

scg, well, wonders never cease!

Thank you. I needed that.

 

[chickadoodles]

So sorry micro.

Welcome.e back beer can.

 

[BantyChooks]

I'm totally discouraged at the moment. Little Lucky, the bantam chick that survived a hen attack when she first hatched is dead. She didn't come out of the grow out coop this morning when I opened the door and her two companions, the two little pullets I bought from Orschelns to keep her company were fretting about. Lucky was sitting in a corner, fluffed up and lethargic. I got her out and she just laid in my hand with her eyes closed. No wounds, no sign of illness other than the lethargy and the weakness. Yesterday she was fine. I have the three musketeers as I call them in with four other juvies that are a week or two older than they are. There is a bit of pecking order fussing going on but nothing serious. I put her in a cat carrier with food and water and put her on top of the little coop in the shade so I could keep an eye on her. She seemed more lethargic every time I checked her and 4 hours later when I looked in at her, she seized and died.

I'm sure it's just more of the same Marek's crap that I've been fighting. She was only 8 weeks old. No sign of anything visibly wrong with her. Not overly skinny, no discharges. Just dead. I feel so sorry for Faith and Hope. They kept going into the coop when I first found her and stood over her crying. They really loved their little sister.

Personally, I'm not feeling like such a trooper any more. I'm busting my hump trying to save my flock. I've separated extra roosters into their own pen so the hens aren't stressed, I've got a Juvie pen and a nursery pen. I'm feeding them good feed, all they can hold and this Marek's is just whipping my butt and theirs also.

I figured today that I have lost over 15 birds in the past year. Over 20% of my flock and there are still 6 showing signs of ocular Marek's or wasting from more than likely tumors of some sort.

I'm about ready to turn them all loose together in a common pen and tell them to enjoy life while they can, bury the victims and when all is said and done, see what I have left.

Sorry. I'm just so tired of digging these little graves.

I am sorry.

 

[ronott1]

Thank you. I needed that.

Yes! Vaccines do not stop them from dying. Sometimes the vaccines will make a local super mareks which is what you are likely dealing with. Mareks is not supposed to kill during the initial infection but kills with cancer at about year 2. When you get through with the deaths, the super mareks should be gone and then you will be dealing with regular mareks again.
The best thing to do is to not mix vaccinated with not vaccinated--do what I do and only hatch your own chicks.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

O.M.G! Is right!
I'll take your psychotic hen, SGC! Just kidding,.....really.

I'll box her up and mail her tomorrow.

She's back to being sweet.

The guineas, on the other hand, chased a skunk out of the run this evening. That could have had disastrous consequences.

 

[chickadoodles]

Scg so happy to hear your hen has finally found her scenes.
Great guinea's!

 

[microchick]

Thanks Ronott1 for that advice. That does make me feel better. Most of my birds have been dying between the ages of 8 months to 2 years. I am now seeing deaths as young as 8-9 weeks. Lucky was 8 weeks and I lost another little pullet at 9 weeks to classic Marek's paralysis. I had to put her down.

I have standard sized BO and Welsummer hens that have made it to two + years now but no roosters that have made it that far. Well, one did but I gave him to a neighbor and he got killed by a fox. Pretty expensive dinner for a varmint IMHO, he was a super nice Welly. I have 4 standard roosters who are a year old now, 16 months, exactly. One has grey eye. The other three are doing pretty good, a little light but holding their own. I'm hoping that I'll get some standard sized and bantam roosters to make it past the 2 year mark. I have been hatching my own eggs for about a year now, with the exception of the 11 bantam eggs I got from our neighbor that I hatched in my incubator this past Feb.

I have been considering bringing in some Egyptian Fayoumi chicks next spring. I've read a lot about their disease resistance, especially when it comes to Marek's, then do some cross breeding with whatever I have that survives past 2 years.

On a pleasant note. I had my first fried green tomatoes for dinner tonight. Epicurian bliss!