The Poultry Doc

In episode 43, Dr. Blayne is back out at Nava Farms with Amory to examine a sick turkey hen with fowl pox and a young chick showing signs of coccidiosis in backyard chickens. Since the last visit, the flock has grown and so have the challenges, this time with both fowl pox and mycoplasma showing up at the same time.

Dr. Blayne walks through what fowl pox looks like, how it spreads, and what your options are when it starts moving through your flock, including whether vaccination can still help once an outbreak is already underway. He goes on to mention that keeping turkeys and chickens together can put your turkeys at risk, as they are significantly more susceptible to diseases like Mycoplasma.

And then there's the little one. A five-to-six-week-old backyard chick who is fluffed up, eyes watery, and just not feeling well. Mycoplasma? Coccidiosis? Both? Dr. Blayne talks through how to tell the difference, what a f***l exam looks for when checking for coccidia, when Corid is the right call, and how a poultry vet approaches treatment when more than one thing might be going on at the same time.

ThePoultryDoc.com is a website dedicated to bringing board-certified poultry medicine to backyard chickens everywhere. If you're in need of a poultry vet check out our Founding Feather Membership https://thepoultrydoc.com/founding-feather/

In episode 3 of our Marek’s in Minutes series, Dr Blayne explains how the virus is spread and why even the best biosecurity practices cannot keep Marek’s out.

This series is produced to educate,(not scare) keepers about Marek’s disease. Reports indicate 1-50% of unvaccinated chickens will develop clinical signs. The birds’s immunity, breed, genetics, the disease burden and the age of exposure all factor in.

New World Screwworm: What Every Backyard Flock Owner Needs to Know

In episode 42, Dr. Blayne Mozisek breaks down everything you need to know about the New World screwworm and why it's been making headlines lately. He walks through the history of how it devastated the US up until the 1960s, how the sterile insect technique was developed and proven on the island of Curaçao, and how the USDA and Panamanian authorities maintained a biological buffer zone at the Isthmus of Panama for decades- until recently, when the fly crossed the border into South Texas.

Dr. Blayne also explains what makes the New World screwworm different from a common blowfly, including how its larvae cause myiasis by consuming living tissue rather than dead. He covers what to look for, why you should not try to remove maggots from a wound on your own, how to report a suspected case to your local vet or the Texas Animal Health Commission, and the good news: there are proven treatments available.

For a full in-depth article on the history and current response, check out:
https://thepoultrydoc.com/articles/new-world-screwworm-7-vital-facts-to-protect-your-flock/

ThePoultryDoc.com is a website dedicated to bringing board-certified poultry medicine to backyard chickens everywhere. If you're in need of a poultry vet see our Founding Feather Membership:
https://thepoultrydoc.com/founding-feather/

For current information on the spread of the New World Screwworm:
https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animals/animal-health/livestock-and-poultry-disease/current-status/us-confirmed-cases-new-world

In episode 2 of Marek’s in Minutes Dr. Blayne discusses when backyard chickens get Marek’s disease and the source of the virus. He explains how, once a bird is exposed, Marek’s can be detected in the bird within days through PCR testing. And that chickens begin shedding the virus within weeks- even though the virus can lay dormant for months before keepers see any clinical signs in their flock. There’s still much more info about Marek’s on the way so stay tuned for episode 3.