Vaccinating for Marek's - all hatching eggs "flock"

[Airyaman]

So here is my situation: my flock will only consist of my own hatched chicks. The space they will live in has never been exposed to chickens, and I have lived on the property for 22 years.

I have some Barnevelder eggs in an incubator and they are scheduled to hatch March 28. By the time they are hatched, I will have a few chicks of other breeds (Cream Legbar, Bielefelders, and Sparkled Sussex [if my two eggs hatch tomorrow!]) they will eventually be exposed to.

I have read posts online and here in the forum, but for a backyard chicken keeper with a smaller flock, what do you think the chances are for exposure to the virus? Is it worth it buy the vaccine and vaccinate at least the Barnevelders since the vaccine is basically good for one "session"?

When I asked the question "how prevalent is Marek's in soil that has never been exposed to chickens", Google's AI tells me:

So what's the opinion of experienced BYC members?

Thanks!

 

[cavemanrich]

If you live in area without neighbors with chickens nearby, You should be fine.
I have been keeping a small flock of pet chickens for over 20+ years. Never encountered Mareks. I acquired chickens from different sources, and never encountered the nasty viral disease.
If you do encounter it at some point,,, well, Its not the end of the world. From then on, you will need to vaccinate.

WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and

 

[Airyaman]

If you live in area without neighbors with chickens nearby, You should be fine.
I have been keeping a small flock of pet chickens for over 20+ years. Never encountered Mareks. I acquired chickens from different sources, and never encountered the nasty viral disease.
If you do encounter it at some point,,, well, Its not the end of the world. From then on, you will need to vaccinate.

WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and

Thanks...yeah, I live on 20 acres and while there is a neighbor about 1/2 mile away with chickens, don't think they'll ever come in contact with my little flock.

 

[cuquitina]

I can see this post is almost 1 year older, but I have to tell you, I have a medium sized flock, I live on 7 acres, the only neighbors that have chickens live about 1 mile away, his chickens are healthy, and I’ve been losing my babies to Mareks
Wild birds can carry it from one infected coop to a healthy one.
Thank goodness I’ve been ordering chicks vaccinated and although some of them show symptoms, I haven’t lost nearly as many as the ones hatched at home which were not vaccinated.
For you to have an idea, I had around 100 chickens and now I have 67.
Prevention could save you from heartache.

 

[cavemanrich]

I can see this post is almost 1 year older, but I have to tell you, I have a medium sized flock, I live on 7 acres, the only neighbors that have chickens live about 1 mile away, his chickens are healthy, and I’ve been losing my babies to Mareks
Wild birds can carry it from one infected coop to a healthy one.
Thank goodness I’ve been ordering chicks vaccinated and although some of them show symptoms, I haven’t lost nearly as many as the ones hatched at home which were not vaccinated.
For you to have an idea, I had around 100 chickens and now I have 67.
Prevention could save you from heartache.

Well.... Its difficult to pinpoint where the Mareks virus came from. But it is on your grounds at this time. So you need to Vaccinate all your chicks all the time,, or purchase those that are vaccinated.