tumeric added to chicken feed as immune booster

[lalaland]

I'm researching how much tumeric to add to feed to boost immnue systems - I have mareks in the flock and it wipes out immune systems. Not sure tumeric will help, but can't hurt. Question is how much tumeric is needed?

Found some ag studies where 5% levels of tumeric to feed were the best (better than none, 1 %, 2.5% and more). I'm not good at math, what does that translate to?
I measure feed in scoops, a scoop is 4 cups, so 5% of 4 is....


also found this: Dosage for Small Animals:

Dried herb: 50-600mg/kg, divided daily, three times per day, to maximum palatability tolerance.

Decoction: 5-30g per cup of water, administered at a rate of 1/4 - 1/2 cup per 10kg, divided daily (optimally 3 times per day), and diluted or combined with other herbs. Higher doses may be appropriate if the herb is used singly and is not combined in a formula.



I like the idea of the water dose, as I can add that to the mash easily. grams....

anyone use tumeric and what dose?

 

[lalaland]

and this makes me doubt using it at all:

http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?pid=S1516-635X2012000100003&script=sci_arttext

but this makes me want to try it:

http://www.tanuvas.ac.in/tnjvas/tnjvas/vol6(3)/148-150.pdf

 

[centrarchid]

I have played with this issue and Mareks.

Tumeric, cayenne, and paprika at least as high as 10% of diet based on dry weight does not impact interest in food with healthy animals I looked at (chickens and largemouth bass). Even my dogs will consume the high cayenne levels after getting used to it. With birds I could get to bounce back from Marek's, I did use a vegetable / fruit / fish / cayenne / chick grower to stimulate appetite.

Point worth repeating is all birds I have had impacted with Mareks failed to survive more than a year. All. At this point I simply cull affected birds but leave others exposed but not affected alone.

 

[lalaland]

I have played with this issue and Mareks.

Tumeric, cayenne, and paprika at least as high as 10% of diet based on dry weight does not impact interest in food with healthy animals I looked at (chickens and largemouth bass). Even my dogs will consume the high cayenne levels after getting used to it. With birds I could get to bounce back from Marek's, I did use a vegetable / fruit / fish / cayenne / chick grower to stimulate appetite.

Point worth repeating is all birds I have had impacted with Mareks failed to survive more than a year. All. At this point I simply cull affected birds but leave others exposed but not affected alone.

was that grower a commercial product? would be interested in learning more about it. I'm really trying to build up birds exposed to marek's but not showing symptoms.

culling affected birds: do you cull as soon as you decide they are exhibiting sick behavior? or when quality of life starts dropping? I've lost two to mareks (path lab necropsies_ and some probable ones before I knew I had mareks in the flock. Now I have one with eye changes - she is dropping weight but still active and doing well. I could cull her now, but if she is enjoying life, figure I can wait.

 

[centrarchid]

was that grower a commercial product?  would be interested in learning more about it.  I'm really trying to build up birds exposed to marek's but not showing symptoms.

culling affected birds:  do you cull as soon as you decide they are exhibiting sick behavior?  or when quality of life starts dropping?   I've lost two to mareks (path lab necropsies_ and some probable ones before I knew I had Mareks in the flock.  Now I have one with eye changes - she is dropping weight but still active and doing well.  I could cull her now, but if she is enjoying life, figure I can wait.  

Culling done as soon as clinical signs suspected in part to save on feed. Some signs I pick up on are behavioral that kick in several days before classic signs listed for Mareks. I cull for anything that causes weight loss in adults which can also include worms.

Commercial grower is the Dumor Chick Starter 24% protein.


The Mareks I am messing with appears to have a reservoir that impacts flock only about this time of year. I suspect migratory songbirds are that reservoir.

 

[lalaland]

thanks for the explanations. I'm going to look for a bulk source for tumeric...