Vaccinating Chicks

Marek's Disease is very prevalent everywhere there is poultry, and if your chickens catch it there is no cure.

Vaccinating chicks for Marek's is not hard once you get the hang of it, and worth doing to prevent losses in

your flocks.

What you'll need:

Vaccine
Dilutant
One 3 ml syringe
A number of 1 ml syringes (I use one syringe for about every three chicks.)
Rubbing alcohol
Cotton balls
Paper towel
Two carboard boxes

When you order the vaccine, it comes in two parts, the small vial with the wafer of vaccine itself, and the large

vial of dilutant.

You only need to refrigerate the vaccine itself, not the dilutant.

Vaccinating Chicks for Marek's Disease

Step 1

- Assemble your tools, and put a layer of paper towel down

onto the table on which you will work. You want a surface that won't

be slippery.

Step 2

- R

emove the metal top from the bottles of vaccine and

dilutant. Clean both with the alcohol on a cotton ball.

Step 3

- U

sing a sterile 3 ml syringe, withdraw 3 ml of dilutant from

the bottle.

Step 6

- P

ut the syringe needle tip back into the small vaccine vial (do

not put it in too much.) Inject the air into the vial (this breaks the

vacuum in the vial.) Leave the syringe needle in the vial, do not

remove it.

Step 4

- I

nsert the syringe into the small bottle of vaccine and insert

the dilutant. Remove the syringe.

Swish the small bottle around so that

the vaccine wafer completely dissolves. Then, pull back on the plunger

of the 3 ml syringe to fill it with about 2 to 3 ml of air. This is very

important.

Step 7

Remove the syringe from the vaccine vial, and insert it into

the dilutant bottle. Push the plunger down so that the contents of the

syringe (with the now dissolved vaccine) are released into the dilutant

bottle. Gently swirl the dilutant bottle so that the vaccine is evenly

distributed. Now you're ready to go.

Step

Put a layer of paper towel into the bottom of both boxes. Put

all the unvaccinated chicks into one box (the other box is to put them

in once you vaccinate them, so you'll know which ones have been

done.)

Step

Take a small syringe (the 1 ml ones that diabetics use are

perfect for this.) Fill it with 0.2 ml (two tenths) of the vaccine mixture

(which is now in the dilutant bottle.)

Step

Pick up a chick and put it on the paper towel in front of

you. Grasp it gently behind the neck, pulling up a small fold of skin.

Step

Gently inject the vaccine into the fold of skin. You will feel

a small bump growing under the bird's skin as the vaccine goes in. If

you insert the needle too far or not far enough, you will feel your

fingers get too wet, and you will have to start over with that one.

Step

Take the vaccinated chick and put it into the second box,

which is for the ones who have been done. When you're finished with

them all, put them back into the brooder right away so they won't get

chilled. Watch them over the next few days for pasted vent or other

reactions

ota Bene

Vaccinate healthy one-day-old chicks only.

Store the vaccine bottle in fridge, not over 45 degrees.

Cup the chick in your hand while doing this, as they often push
backwards with their feet. For the first several times it is helpful to
have someone hold the chick while you do the actual injection.

The dilutant bottle may be stored at room temperature.

Do not save the vaccine, it is only good for two hours after mixing.

This vaccination is subcutaneous. That means under the skin. You do
not want to put the vaccine into the muscles or veins of the chick.