ok... no peeking back..... 'Cool Particularly Prettiful Person Singing Everso Often' Did I get it right? There better not be a test on this one sigh.
The Crazy Chicken Crew and Their Titles
ROTFL Dahlianut. Good one!
I may need the hatching crew in upcoming weeks. Due to the many losses here, I have taken a ridiculous risk and bought some eggs from eggbid. If they don't all freeze, I might have some hatches. We shall see....
Good luck
CPPPSEOUOIEHA Patch will be ready CPO CMoxon!!! LMAO!!!!
I will be on alert as well!
Specail Agent of the Chick inspection Division will report when needed!
Ninja Dahlianut has commenced reconn to ensure the perimeters are secure.
Commander Moxon is meditating while awaiting egg arrival.
I won the following from eggbid:
12 white and buff silkie eggs
12 Rhode Island red eggs
12 Delaware eggs
I also bid on 18 mixed breed and 18 buff orpingtons.
If any of them make it here without freezing, I will be amazed, but I have to give it my best shot. Also, a friend at work who has chickens is going to bring me a dozen mixed breed eggs next week from her farm. They will be barred rock crosses.
That is great Claire! Congrats! It is indeed eggciting.
I ordered 6 showgirls. They did not come. They are sending out another batch.
I think they will be just fine. I can not imagine having all those eggs in the bator at once! hehehe.
I panic with 8!
That IS wonderful news Claire! Won't they be ok if shipped as 'perishable'?
Claire remember you Must Thoroughly Clean and disinfect your whole surroundings and equipment. I most certainly would not recommend bringing in any eggs to hatch or chickens.
I was going to say concernig your outbreak in some cases of an outbreak the adult chickens that don't get sick can be the carriers of the disease. Loseing that many chickens is a warning that your enviroment is contaminated and that it was brought in from somewhere. It's usually the last chickens that is brought on your property that spread the virus.
If i had this happen in my flock and it was as severe as yours i personally would depopulate all adults as suspious carriers. I might even consider putting down the chicks if i thought they could be carriers when well.
I would clean an disinfect all waters, feeders, remove all bedding and burn it as well as remove all nest boxs and either disinfect or get new ones.
I'm not trying to be harsh just giveing the facts if you bring in more and expose them to this you could well be dealing with more sickness and death.
Harmony - good points. None of my indoor chicks are sick now. I think my indoor setting is fine. I am very conscious of washing my hands when I come in, and getting changed too. I will hatch indoors and they won't be going outside until much later (likely March or April) so by then, we will have decontaminated everything. We bought Nolvasan disinfectant which is also a virucide. You have to wear protective gloves and mask to use it, but we don't want to use it until we have a day above freezing, because it is dangerous until it evaporates dry. That won't happen when it's this cold, so we need to wait. Since all my outdoor birds are already exposed, I can't worry about them now. I will have to worry about the introduction phase. What I think I will do is introduce any new chicks in small numbers. For example, if I had 10 chicks, I might put out 2 and see how they do - kind of like what you did with the birds you put with the Spanish. I thought that was a really good idea.
Sounds good Claire but IMHO i wouldn't hatch or bring in anything until i was sure it was gone.
I just couldn't risk it as it has been such a short time since all this has occurred.
I would also be suspious of the ones that didn't come down with it at all as being carriers of it.
Most chickens will at least show a minimal reaction runny eye or a little droopy. But a carrier will be well and appear healthy because it has already had it and is simply spreading it.
I would IMHO still depopulate because if there is a carrier in will only recontaiminate the coop and grounds after you disinfect.
If you don't want to depopulate i would sudjest purchaseing some culls chickens you know are healthy but are willing to sacrifice. This will show you if you do have carriers or not before you introduce your chicks.
Well, I did some research on it, since I would prefer not to kill the rest of my flock, all of whom have been exposed. There is no information I can find on chickens being carriers of the infectious bronchitis virus. As a rule, viruses run their course and are finished. I mean this from the microbiological standpoint. Vaccinations are available for IB, so I am going to order some. I can vaccinate new birds, but the virus does not last for a long time outside of the bird, so the 3 months should be more than enough that the virus shouldn't be present any more. This is different from Infectious coryza, for instance, which does result in carrier birds. IB doesn't result in carriers.
I don't believe it to be coryza because there is no smell to the nasal discharge, which seems to be a key symptom in identifying coryza.
I don't know what else it could be. They have:
- no facial swelling
- no bad odors
- no poop problems
- gummed shut eyes (frequent)
- wheezing/rattling breathing
- sneezing (occasional)
- nasal discharge (some)
- sometimes bubbles in the eyes or eyes watery
- good appetite and good water drinking
- not lethargic or droopy most of the time
Any other thoughts on what it could be are welcomed!
WAY too long a thread to look back for it, but are you giving them apple cider vinegar?
Not right now. At the moment I am putting erythromycin in the water to prevent secondary bacterial infections. I don't know what effect the vinegar would have with the antibiotic since it might change its effectiveness given the unusual pH level of the water with vinegar in it. Since I am not sure about that, I elected not to combine them. I will use the antibiotic for a week and then switch to ACV.
No ACV with water based antibio---on a thread somewhere, I think referenced...
gee claire, i could have given you rhode island red eggs
Oh Kathy, you are very kind - you already gave me all those pecans! Did you get your package, by the way?
yes and thank you so much. i thinks of you everymorning, and whenever i look at my calender. i still have more pecans to send you. hopefully i'll get to the post office next week
Claire sounds very hopeful with the vaccine and disinfecting i researched as well and found different opinions on it causeing carriers.
Damerow said the survivors become carriers but a link said it produced carriers for up to 4 weeks and still another said a year.
I brought up a link that explains things for others here http://www.shagbarkbantams.com/ib.htm
Claire i'm still suprised that after all that went on in your flock you have eggs comeing.......
Hello Jordan glad to see you back at Daves
This message was edited Jan 2, 2009 12:52 PM
thanks for those other opinions Harmony - I am nervous about the one that said a year. What a huge difference of opinion between 4 weeks and a year! Shows you how you can't believe everything you read because they can't all be right!
My first instinct, after all that happened, was to say "I have to rebuild my flock" and that is why I impulsively went and ordered eggs. I felt like it was the thing I had to do. Maybe it was wrong. I guess I will find out. I just know that if I sit around being sad and grumpy about it, I will feel worse, so I try to find the solution to get me back on my feet.
I suppose I will be a test case and we will see what happens and everyone can learn from whatever happens. Now that the eggs are coming, I'm not going to just throw them out, so I will incubate and hope for the best. I just can't face killing the rest of my birds now, not when I have just dealt with all these deaths.
I like your idea of using some cull birds - ones that I am willing to sacrifice - and see what happens when they are introduced. I think that is what I will try, around the end of April, when things are warming up a bit more. By then it will be four months from the disease time, and better temperatures, and some of the babies from the basement (if any hatch) should be ready to go out. I don't want to get cull birds from an unknown source because then how would I know if they aren't bringing something in. That makes me nervous too.
Not trying to be a know it all here and i hope you know that ^_^
I just didn't want a repeat of what has already went on and you suffering further heartache.
I know all to well how these chickens pull at our heart strings. I guess i was the test case with the pox and yes those links on pox were different about carriers too.
I hope all goes well and if you need advice or help or just want to vent my heart is always open♥
Of course I know you are not being a know-it-all - no worries, it didn't come across that way to me. You are just trying to spare me from having to go through what you went through, and you know that I appreciate that very much. I was nervous every day to check and see how your birds were doing and hoping it was getting better but sometimes it was just getting worse. I hope it isn't like that with mine but who knows what will happen.
I am pleased to say that it has now been 5 days with no deaths, and that's pretty good considering where we started. I'm glad to have the ducklings too, they make me laugh.
I've haven't been up to being on much with this infection But i love the ducks maybe one day i can get me some.
5 Days and no deaths you may be at the end of the outbreak i got my fingers crossed.
Well i'm fixin to set my incubater been collecting eggs and wrapping them in plastic wrap. I have 36 and will collect this week then set them it's time for me to get my flock back to produceing.
All mine are happy and singing away and i have 9 hens laying but as always with bantams it's every other day.
Thats why i'm doing the plastic wrap to extend my egg gathering time so they don't evaporate and become unhatchable.
Well, good luck to both of you ladies!!!