To be or not to be...Marek vaccination??

[missnu01]

I did not realize it was so cheap. Especially if you have a lot to vaccinate. I just know all the vaccines I saw online only came with enough to do 1000 birds and I'm pretty sure it was more expensive than $20. 19 bucks isn't bad though. After these chicks I won't be buying anymore. Only hatching and I think I'm going to let it be handled by fate..and just keep the ones that end up fine. Hoping eventually they will all hatch immune.

 

[realsis]

yes i didn't realize the price was so affordable either until one day i decided to go online and set out to buy it ! i was really happy it was 19 dollars as opposed to new castle vaccine which is around 178!!! yikes! i do some day want to vaccinate for new castle but at that price in gonna have to wait. what you can do is go to your states web site and look at what diseases for poultry have been reported in your area i did this and i wish i could remember the web site but you put your county in and it tells you whats been reported.it comes in handy to know what to vaccinate for. best wishes and hope this helps.

 

[Rhonda0115]

Thank you for this great discussion!! I've been insisting that all my chicks are vaccinated and after reading some of the comments....and very glad I did. I didn't know I could purchase the vaccine and give myself....and will definitely be looking into this also.

Sooo glad I asked and so many were helpful !!

 

[BlossomSilkies]

I love when I get to get on my soapbox about Marek's. I never, ever want to see one of my beloved chickens suffer from this again, so my rule is, if an adult chicken I'm interested in has not been vaxed, then I don't bring it to my home. All the chicks I hatch here are vaxed by me.

The vaccine itself is not expensive but by the time you purchase it, 2 day shipping, and a cooler, it costs me about $53.00 total from Jeffers. Well worth it to me.

The feed store that I frequent for chicks and adults get their stock from Ideal and always add the vaccination to their order.

In my opinion folks get cocky about "my farm doesn't have Mareks, blah blah" However, the research I have done, and it's a lot, indicates that it's in the dust, in the air, on shoes, on other birds and animals that wonder around your property.

Ok, getting down off my soapbox now and thank you for listening.

 

[realsis]

yes in my humble opinion it's one of THE most important vaccines to give!

 

[BlossomSilkies]

I have to add one more thing, Marek's stays in the dirt for years and years. So once it's on your property, better to plan for it to be permanent. I've read some say it's gone within a few months or some say a year if you cull all your exposed flock. From my research it's nearly impossible to eradicate.

 

[CherylR]

It amazes me how I didn't know about something as ubiquitous as Marek's Disease- and I have had chickens for 6 or 7 years now! Recently, through a set of circumstances I won't bore everyone with, I learned a great deal about this heartbreaking disease and have a lot more to learn - it can be pretty confusing- but I now know that it is very wide spread. I personally will always vaccinate and encourage others to as well. It's a small price to pay for a little bit of piece of mind if you have a small hobby flock and don't want to lose any of your birds to the disease. Just my 2 cents. Have a good day everyone!

PS: Fellow BYCer Seminole Wind has some great information in her signature space at the bottom of her posts, and Nambroth has a great thread on this subject. Keeping chickens is becoming more and more popular and I think we will be seeing more problems with this disease if we aren't educated/informed from the start. There is a lot of questionable information out there too, so I always try to be sure I get my information from highly reputable sources....Merck Veterinary Manual, veterinarians that specialize in avian/exotics, State Veterinary sites, University studies, cooperative extension fact sheets....etc

 

[CherylR]

PS 2: love your avatar, KristyAZ!

 

[BlossomSilkies]

Thank you, my sister made that costume for my daughter (who is now 9 years old). It makes me giggle. She hated it.

 

[Rhonda0115]

So after seeing everyone's posts...I wrote an email to the people at the store(Orscheln's - Missouri chain) where they were not vaccinating, asking why (it's fairly cheap). They stated that anyone who wishes to order birds who are vaccinated can, most people 'do not want them vaccinated'. I further questioned them and they got defensive. I swear I did not get nasty but rather asking about the need to educate about Mareks and being responsible that people know that they are buying unvaccinated birds. (Nowhere is there any indication that the birds are not vaccinated, so first time buyers are just buying 'cute' birds 'because they have always wanted to have fresh eggs).

Have decided to not buy my feed from this chain due to this situation and a few other problems with their customer service. Given that I spend almost $400 for feed in a month for my animals, I just don't feel that they are telling the truth about what they are selling.