Hi Eric! I am really glad you asked this, I think it opens a great discussion.
I completely agree with you. It does seem pointless to never see chicks hatch out of your flock, and to start out with them all being vaccinated.
This is exactly the premise we are going by with our flock. We are not vaccinating them, and we are not giving them antibiotics (unless it ever got to a point where there was absolutely no choice). We want to work with their immune systems, and build them up, so that the birds we hatch out from them will be stronger and more well adapted to our environment, for generations to come.
We constantly read about, you must vaccinate your chicks, and give them medicated feed, and keep them (and the eggs they come out of) in a sanitary environment. Lots of people say you need to do this in order for them to be healthy. Well, how does this help their immune systems? How does it help the genetics for the generations to come? In a simple answer, it doesn't. It makes them more dependent on these outside things that wouldn't be necessary if we worked with their immune systems, rather than against them.
I'm not trying to be "anti-vaccinations" or "anti-antibiotics" or anything like that, either. I am more trying to be "pro-nature" and "pro-immune system". People have had chickens for hundreds and hundreds of years, and they never did the things you are told to do with them today.
Chickens are birds. They are meant to be birds, that's what their immune systems are for. They are meant to be outside, they are meant to be in the dirt, and they are even meant to be in an environment with other birds (imagine that!). Lots of people say, you can't let any other wild birds anywhere near your chickens ever. Well, I don't recommend purposely putting wild birds or wild bird poop in with your chickens, but if your chickens immune systems are working properly, you shouldn't need to worry as much about diseases and stuff.
When we first got our first batch of chicks, we didn't get them vaccinated. We didn't feed them medicated feed. We get them organic, non GMO feed. And when we had an outbreak of coccidiosis, we didn't treat them with corrid, either (GASP!
). We use herbs, such as garlic, oregano, and aloe to build up their immunity. We use probiotics, rather than antibiotics to build up their gut flora, and keep it healthy. And we did lose a few chicks those first couple weeks, and it was really super sad. But what we are doing makes it so that the ones who do survive will have a super strong immune system, and they won't need to depend on medications and such to keep them healthy. However, people who do use medications and vaccines loose chicks too.
And you're right when you say a lot of people would cull their entire flock at the first sign of something being wrong! We had half of our whole flock get super puffy eyes, from some sort of respiratory problem, for weeks until we got it figured out. A LOT of people would have culled them all- no questions asked. We used herbs, essential oils, and a vitamin supplement and got it all figured out- they are all healthy now. Yes, the vitamin supplement had propelyne glycol in it as the carrier oil, which is not preferable. But, we figured it better then antibiotics or culling them. You can read more about our experience with treating them
here.
Another thing- do your chickens have worms? They need worm medication!... Or do they? Pumpkin seeds can completely treat worm and parasite infestations, but a lot of people don't know that. Our dogs had really, super bloody poop with a lot of worms. Nothing but parsley water, and ground up pumpkin seeds, got them all out! Pumpkin seeds do this for people, chickens, dogs, cats, everything. Plus, they are good for them and not bad for them. They build up their immune system, rather than hinder it. And, future generations, might be more genetically resistant to them. Just like if you sprout seeds from a blite resistant plant that is acclimated to your area, the offspring will be blite resistant, too.
I feel like a lot of people get guilt-tripped into doing it (vaccines, meds, antibiotics, etc) because it's just "the right thing to do", and it's "what's best for your chickens". But what if it's not? What if that is what's harming them and making them more genetically prone to diseases (such as cocci) and deformities?
In Africa, for example, they don't have corrid. When their chickens get coccidiosis, they crush up aloe leaves and give it to them in water. This works for them, and it's what they've done for generations. So now, as soon as we suspect cocci, we immediately add aloe juice to their water. We haven't had any die from that (thankfully) since we've figured out to give it to them soon enough.
I strongly believe that for every ailment a chicken can get, there is a natural solution. You just have to find it. And it might take a few tries to get it right, but I also strongly believe that our flock, and their offspring are and will be healthier for it.
We started our flock by buying chicks, not hatching eggs, so we haven't had a chance to raise chicks in our flock yet. I think it makes a lot of sense to do that though! We have an incubator, and will use it. But, the eggs we use are from chickens who weren't vaccinated, weren't medicated, and who are already more adapted to this environment. We do also plan on letting our hens hatch out some eggs at some point too though.
I'm sorry I seem to have gone off on a bit of a rant here. I just get frustrated because so many people look down on the NATURAL way of doing things, because of "science". Well, if you look at the majority of chickens in the agriculture industry, lots of them have deformities and are deficient in vitamins. This is why they need the vaccines and medications to keep them alive- because they have been bred to be dependent on "the" system, rather than
their own immune system.
I would highly recommend you look up Justin Rhodes on YouTube. He has chickens and a homestead, grows a garden, the whole nine yards. He does everything as naturally as possible, and goes on tours to visit other farmers who do too. You might learn a lot from him! I know I have!
So, I would recommend that you do treat your chickens naturally, and that you hatch out their babies rather than getting vaccinated and medicated ones.
I wrote
this article about how we treat our chickens and keep them healthy with herbs if you want to take a look. I am not a vet, but I am someone trying to keep our chickens healthy, the way they are meant to be!
Again- sorry for such a long post. But I completely agree with your flow of logic, and I wonder why more people don't ask the questions you are asking.
