Poo help please!

[Egluntyne]

would you advise people not to buy from hobby breeders

 

My answer would be, if you are asking me specifically, that I would advise people to do plenty of research and only buy from breeders, hobby or commercial, who have been recommended to them as being breeders of healthy birds, from whom there have been no problems subsequently, and who will offer refunds/take back hens who are ill, without a quibble.

 

Of course, you are quite right to say that any flock can become infected due to the activities of wild birds, there is no realistic way round that, as I'm sure most of us would not want to keep their hens indoors, so to minimise the potential, that and rigorous attention to cleanliness and diet is all any of us can do.

[Cheryl]

Hmmm.. ok, an idealistic answer but not very practical.. but thanks for that anyway x

[Egluntyne]

You are welcome.

[Redwing]

Thats quite realistic rather than idealistic, word of mouth recommendations and good customer service is how the best get their business

 

At the moment I have around a hundred chickens of varying ages, as you may know I breed to show and have hatched around 200 chicks this year

 

I havent had a case of Myco but am extremely careful where breeding stock comes from, I isolate it when it arrives and immediately isolate anything that shows any signs of any illness. I wouldnt hesitate to cull to stop a disease in its tracks

 

Anyone who has seen my set up will know that I have different places where birds can be kept individually and not all of my runs are together, some in buildings (where wild birds nest) and some outside - this flexibility means I have a better chance of controlling an illness than some other backyard breeders and lack of space and facilities is where so many people come unstuck. I'm not saying that I will never have Myco mind!

 

I can see how a pet owner could deal with myco very easily but anyone that breeds for any reason on any scale should really be aiming for a naturally disease resistant flock rather than applying a 'band aid' solution and knowingly passing the problem on

[Egluntyne]

I've been doing quite a bit of reading upon myco as there have had quite a few members who have had a dreadful time with this illness affecting their flocks.

 

As well as being passed round the flock via droplet infection, it can also be passed via transovarian transmission, ie from previously affected hen to her chick via the egg, therefore it would not be a good idea to use any hens which have been affected by the disease for breeding.

[loumabel]

Thanks for the advice Egluntyne but I don't have an intention of breeding from my girls. They are purely pets that give me a few bonus eggs (Occassionally!!!! ) Luckily we seem to have come through Myco with no casualties yet, fingers crossed it stays that way, I know other members have not been so lucky

[Egluntyne]

Am pleased to hear that things are improving.

[Cheryl]

Unless you buy eggs from a tested flock kept in lab conditions and then are able to raise them in similar sterile conditions away from dangerous things like air breathed in by wild birds, grass dirt etc,these nasty bacteria/viruses will show up.

And horroble diseases can blow in from an infected pidgeon quarter of a mile away so its very difficult to prevent, but something you must gear yourself up for, and treat.

[The Dogmother]

From experience, the best tactic is to know your flock well, check them regularly and be vigilant. If what seems to be a cold worsens and you can hear wheezing, bubbling or crackling when you listen to their chest (put your ear to their back between the wings) then they need to get to the vet pronto. Baytril is usually their first option as it's licensed for use on poultry, if the infection proves resistant then they will recourse to Tylan which is usually very effective.

 

It always pays to strengthen the immunity of your flock by dosing their water regularly with a good poultry tonic and adding garlic granules to their feed. Always, always quarantine new stock even if you know where they have come from and trust the breeder.

[loumabel]

been back to the vets today after 2 weeks of Baytrill, he has now given me Doxycyline to go in their water. Anyone heard of this? Its trade name is Ornicure. I have got 5 days supply and then we will see where we are from there and if anything further is needed. I am dosing with garlic and mint granules in their food at the moment, I usually use poultry spice and put lifeguard in their water or ACV and they still got sick. (not fair!!) I am also a clean freak and sterilise feeders and drinkers weekly although everday at the moment and also at the moment disinfecting the cube daily with F10 spray.

[Heidi-Hi]

With you Chucka Mama on this one! Goodness me, I'm gobsmacked after reading that!!! I remember that discussion quite well...

[Cheryl]

well done!

 

I sense that I am being got at for questioning some of the advice given on here, and now that I have had the experience of dealing with such matters myself, I have a right to. If this is going to turn into a witch hunt because I felt that some people were a bit over zealous in a negative way about having to deal with myco, then this is not a forum where people can throw into the pot their opinions, but one of hierarchy and intolerance.. To put you right I was merely trying to console poor Loumabel who was feeling the same as I was when I was faced with the same problem, and didn't know what to do.

[Chucky Mama]

Maybe this subject is still as little raw for you Cheryl. I don't see that you are being 'got at' at all. I did however take offense at what I perceived as a rather unfair slating of forum members who really did support you through that difficult time with some very good advice. You said that we were negative and advised you to cull your birds and we didn't. What we were negative about was continuing to breed and sell birds from an infected flock. The reason from giving this advice is all too clear when you read mercedes55'sthread about her having taken in apparently healthy but infected birds that subsequently infected her existing birds. She is going through hell as has Lomabel and you when you had it. Not only did mercedes55's breeder/supplier sell her infected birds but they also plan to sell those that she returned when they are 'better'. I don't see this as anything other than a discussion on myco and how we can all do our best to mimimise it's impact on all of our flocks. It is one thing being exposed to the natural environmental risks of a flock catching Myco but quite another buying infected stock from suppliers who are aware that they have myco.

[Mercedes55]

 

Try living in London and getting a vet to even just see your chickens less alone do a post mortem on them..

 

 

Can I just add here that there is a very good vet in St Albans who we found about from one of the members on here and now take our girls to. The guy who runs the place keeps his own hens in the house he lives in next door to the practice, so not only does he know his chickens, but so does at least one of the other vets working there. If you look on Google maps it says it's 25mins away from Southgate, so about the same distance from St Albans as we are

 

Heathfield Lodge Vets

[Cheryl]

Thanks for that I have made a note for some reason here in London the vets are pretty useless concerning chickens, in fact three actually refused to treat them saying they 'just don't do poultry'..

I did find one near here in Winchmore Hill, called Village Vets, the vet there called Simon is a very very nice man and was excellent when I went to him with my very ill Myco-chickens...