# National Poultry Improvement Plan



## OldBrickHouseFarm (Sep 30, 2014)

It's about an hour before dawn here and I'm heading out to start catching chickens and caging them up. The NPIP tester will be here in a couple hours to blood test every bird over 4 months of age.
I think that will be about 30 or so birds.

After dawn, they're about impossible to catch.


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## Alaskan (Aug 22, 2015)

Today will be oodles of fun for you.... I hope there isn't any rain.


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## zamora (May 26, 2015)

Ok, I'm a noob, why are they doing blood tests?


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

Hi, OldBrickHouseFarm! Yes it is tough catching chickens. If I need to I usually lock them up the night before and don't let them out til afterwords. Then stand at the door and do one by one as they come out. Or you can run around with a big dog catching net


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## OldBrickHouseFarm (Sep 30, 2014)

zamora said:


> Ok, I'm a noob, why are they doing blood tests?


The basic NPIP blood test is to detect antibodies for Pullorum-Typhoid. 
Pullorum disease and fowl typhoid were once common and devastating to the poultry industry potentially killing 100% of birds. Transmission can be vertical (hen to embryo), direct with contact with infected birds or indirect from feed, water or litter.
NPIP is a national program but administered by each state's Ag Dept independently. In MO, the testing is free. Other blood tests can be done at the same time for an additional cost. Those can be for Salmonella enteritidis, Mycoplasma gallisepticum, Mycoplasma synoviae and Mycoplasma meleagridis and Avian Influenza. 
Pullorum was once widespread and the NPIP began in the 1930s with cooperation between federal, states' ag depts. and producers. The last outbreak in MO was in 2004 and resulted in depopulation of all poultry on 5 MO farms and farms in 11 other states where infected birds had been shipped.
Most states require a pullorum free test within the last 90 days or participation in NPIP to be able ship poultry and eggs across state lines. 
Some states also require MG and AI clean certification for importation.
Right now all but 4 states are declared PT clean.
I only do the free P-T test so there are some states I can't ship to.



seminolewind said:


> Hi, OldBrickHouseFarm! Yes it is tough catching chickens. If I need to I usually lock them up the night before and don't let them out til afterwords. Then stand at the door and do one by one as they come out. Or you can run around with a big dog catching net


No chasing chickens for me. It's like herding cats.
I have some buildings built in such a way that I have to pull the chickens off the roosts at night in order to catch them. Only two larger buildings allow walking in, blacking out the windows and catching the birds during the day. 
These aren't calm birds. When the door is opened they charge out en masse like crazed banshees.


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## zamora (May 26, 2015)

Thank you for that information, I didn't know if it was something I as a backyard keeper needed to know about.


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## OldBrickHouseFarm (Sep 30, 2014)

Many breeders don't do it but to be legal NPIP is for hatcheries, breeders and other producers that will be shipping or transporting birds. Egg farms and broiler houses don't do it because they aren't going anywhere and their supplier hatcheries are tested.


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

Those are tough illnesses that can be transmitted through an egg.


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