Avian Pox ?

[RUGER]

Ok a TWRA officer picked up my friends bird yesterday to have some tests done on it.

My friend and I were talking a few minutes ago and he said he asked the officer if chicken barns could be the cause of this.

He told my friend he wasn't familiar enough to comment.

Sooo what do ya'll think?
Is this going to become a more and more common sight and problem?
Do you think if we do see a drastic increase in this disease, are the multiple chicken barns that have been popping up over the last few years coupled with the use of their poop as fertilizer the cause??

 

[SKFOOTER]

I think the evidence does point to it.

 

[REN]

isn't that the suspected cause or the rumor of the cause down Rocks way? i thought i saw him post about that one time.

 

[woodsman87]

I do not believe that chicken houses nor the poop fertilizer is problem. If studies prove otherwise I will believe them of course. I am just skeptical about it. I think it has everything to do with the nesting success.

 

[RUGER]

I don't know anything about the disease or what causes it other than what I have learned over the last few days.
Never heard of it before.

I do know that farmers are using the chicken poop, can't remember what they call it, as fertilizer more and more.
I also know for a fact that a LARGE majority of the chickens that die in the houses are just chunked out the back door of the barn into piles along with the actual poop and that is what is then spread all over fields.



Turkey use these same fields, so I can see where it might cause problems.

As I said though, I dunno.

 

[Boll Weevil]

Perhaps it's too early to tell if chicken litter is a definitive cause, but I'm certainly glad someone's looking at it more closely.

I can also understand the reservation to comment. If a battle is potentially brewing between agriculture, fish/wildlife, and other environmental constituencies I'd definitely want it to be backed up by quanitative data/findings.

That'll be a dog fight for sure.

 

[woodsman87]

Chicken litter ain't good for wild turkeys that is for sure, and there is some merit that makes this argument believable. I still do not believe that the chicken litter is the main cause of the population declines in my part of the state.

Let me say this though, since winter break up has started happening, I am seeing more hens that what I have the past 7-8 years. I feel like it is a good sign.