Things are looking up in our coops. I spoke with our Chicken Vet today. The respiratory illness that spread through the Orpingtons was a virus. So antibiotics would not have helped them. TLC and luck were required to be a survivor. The good news is that we will NOT have to put down the ones that made it.
Seems my little groupings will be able to ride out the winter in their cozy quarters.
I think I could have used a course in ‘Chicken Parenting’ before stepping off the deep end last spring … I did not know that hatchery chickens were vaccinated against this kind of virus. And that the vaccinated birds could ‘shed’ the virus to unvaccinated birds. Birds that I got from individual breeders would not have been vaccinated. (I didn’t even know you COULD vaccinate chickens… ) I did notice that while the ‘fancy’ Orpingtons were getting sick … the little scrappy Red Sex Links were just fine.
There seem to be so many possible ways the virus could have found its way into our group. It’s a bit ironic considering at the same time we are all pretty much worn out in our human world from the COVID virus. Viruses … are nasty.
And yet how many times have I been to the doctor – either on my own – or with the kids – to be told that no medication was required – we were just fighting a virus. That ‘it’s just a virus’ admonition seems highly overrated now …
I’ll need to keep a close eye on our feathered ‘flerd’ members. Good food, low stress, TLC.
The Meadow View 