Well, this sucks. (Alternatively: How Panic + Mareks Research Affects Everybody)

[Khavilah]

Earlier this year I had one sick chicken with leg issues. I googled for Mareks and didn't see specifically the kind of leg issues she was having. Well, she died. Shortly after, I found a hen with her legs stretched out and curled toes, dead. And now my turkey is flopping around with one leg out and I think he's got Mareks too.

My neighbor pointed out that one symptom is diarrhea, and then she reminded me that the chickens I had adopted from a friend early on this year had mudbutts. Which they kinda still do despite my best efforts at cleaning and keeping their tushies clean. (They're not as bad as they were when I got them; everyone was in bad shape from being kept in a small coop without much room to live, or so I thought.)

I have had my ducks and turkey inside the coop, as well as all my chickens, of course. Now ... now there's not much I can do since they all have it now already, right?

I am so mad at myself for not realizing sooner. I am so mad at myself for not knowing ahead of time to vaccinate the new chicks. I now have 19 hens, one rooster, two ducks, and one turkey that could suffer a horrible malady because I was so eager to rescue someone's chickens who ended up being sick. And my awesome coop that I'd configured now is filled with disease.

I am sad. Especially because, from what I'm reading, there's nothing I can do about it.

I'll post pictures of the turkey here in a second when I get back to my phone.

 

[Khavilah]

(It's poor quality because it was dark and I was panicking.)

It's as if his leg is seizing and he wasn't able to walk today. He stood for half a second and then fell again. He ate well and pooped normally, and I made sure he had food and water nearby. No visible injuries.

 

[Eggcessive]

Mareks virus affects mostly chickens and quail, but usually not turkeys. However, it has been reported that some Turkeys in other countries have gotten it from meat chickens. Here is a link about that: http://www.merckmanuals.com/vet/poultry/neoplasms/mareks_disease_in_poultry.html
Ducks do not get Mareks. Turkeys and other poultry do get leg bone deformities which could make you suspicious of a neurological disease. While your first chicken that died could have been Mareks, it needs to be confirmed with a blood test or a necropsy on a chicken that has died. Diarrhea can mean coccidiosis, worms, or even vent gleet, but the diet can also play a part in droppings.
Here are some more links to read about Mareks just to see what other diseases can look like Mareks, and better how to spot it:
http://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource000791_Rep813.pdf
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq

 

[Khavilah]

I will check those out more throughly tomorrow; I have worried myself right into a bout of nausea over my flock and any kind of research I was trying to do wasn't very helpful or productive because I was tied up in knots. And my neighbor has been researching too, supplying me with update texts about how all symptoms and reasons point to mareks. So I'm a worried mess tonight.

 

[Khavilah]

Mareks virus affects mostly chickens and quail, but usually not turkeys. However, it has been reported that some Turkeys in other countries have gotten it from meat chickens. Here is a link about that: http://www.merckmanuals.com/vet/poultry/neoplasms/mareks_disease_in_poultry.html
Ducks do not get Mareks. Turkeys and other poultry do get leg bone deformities which could make you suspicious of a neurological disease. While your first chicken that died could have been Mareks, it needs to be confirmed with a blood test or a necropsy on a chicken that has died. Diarrhea can mean coccidiosis, worms, or even vent gleet, but the diet can also play a part in droppings.
Here are some more links to read about Mareks just to see what other diseases can look like Mareks, and better how to spot it:
http://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource000791_Rep813.pdf
https://www.backyardchickens.com/a/the-great-big-giant-mareks-disease-faq

Well, the turkey in question is about two years old, and he was wobbly (because he was so large) but was able to walk and make it on his own. His legs aren't deformed from what I can see, and I can't see any visible injuries or twists or anything. He just now can't walk and his legs don't seem to work and his toes are curling. I'll keep researching but ... man, he looks just like the chickens in the pictures with his legs all wonky.

The next chicken / bird that dies will have a necropsy. I was in denial for the first two that it might be, even with constantly considering it - I made up excuses as to why they died that wasn't Mareks because I didn't want to face the possibility that my whole flock was already infected and I could keep losing them. I'm still so mad at myself for not researching this more before.

I'm glad my ducks will be safe, even though they're kind of jerks.