to vaccinate or to not vaccinate?

[reesechickpic]

tricky one here because I'm not sure if there is much we can do at this point. we got day old chicks from two different places on the same day. one claimed their chicks were vaccinated. the other place "didn't think so" but might have been vaccinated for mareks only... I read it might not be necessary to vaccinate backyard chickens, we have 15 total and no other chickens on our property, just a dog and a cat. there is a lot of wildlife around. I don't think there is any way to find out if the second batch of chicks was vaccinated or not for sure, and I don't want to accidentally double up. I want to give my chicks the best shot! maybe you all have some ideas for supplements to start implementing into their diet when they get a bit older or some way to keep their immune systems strong. Thank you!

 

[LaurEliz]

I have never ever vaccinated any of my chicks and I have never had one pass due to an illness, just the old "failure to thrive" in very new chicks.

I do not think it's necessary. I do feed medicated chick feed though.

 

[LaurEliz]

This thread might be useful for you to read more about people who do and don't vaccinate and their reasoning.
Personally, since I don't vaccinate in the first place, I wouldn't risk doubling up.

 

[Eggcessive]

I have had vaccinated chicks and raised my own chicks from those birds who were not. I have never dealt with Mareks before. I usually opt for the Mareks vaccine if I get hatchery chicks, but by the time you have brought those unvaccinated chicks home, it is probably too late to vaccinate them anyway. So, I would probably not bother vaccinating now.

 

[reesechickpic]

I have never ever vaccinated any of my chicks and I have never had one pass due to an illness, just the old "failure to thrive" in very new chicks.

I do not think it's necessary. I do feed medicated chick feed though.

great, than you! we got non medicated feed right off the bat with the vaccinated chicks. now I'm wondering if I should be supplementing any vitamins or medicines.... I don't want to buy a whole new bag of feed though.

 

[Eggcessive]

B complex tablets are economical vitamins, and hard to overdose. You can crush a tablet or two onto their feed a couple of days a week. Probiotics are good too, and some feeds contain probiotics nowadays. If not, there are some commercial ones such as Probios powder, Gro2Max sold online, and others. I sometimes spoon a bit of plain yogurt onto my powdery feed, and stir some water into it.

 

[reesechickpic]

B complex tablets are economical vitamins, and hard to overdose. You can crush a tablet or two onto their feed a couple of days a week. Probiotics are good too, and some feeds contain probiotics nowadays. If not, there are some commercial ones such as Probios powder, Gro2Max sold online, and others. I sometimes spoon a bit of plain yogurt onto my powdery feed, and stir some water into it.

Great! I got B2 in liquid form with a dropper, I'm not sure what the dose would be. I read it prevents and can fix the curly foot situation. I have been putting a little bit of ACV in their water to act as a probiotic.

 

[Eggcessive]

Let us know how your chick gets along.