First, there are so many variables to consider — not just disease pressure and the emergence of new variants, but also geographic location, proximity to other farms, temperature, litter moisture, housing type, ventilation, lighting, bird density, target weight and labour.

Then there’s the overwhelming arsenal of vaccines. Producers have a deep war chest of modified-live, inactivated, autogenous and recombinant vaccines that can be administered in a variety of ways, at different times — often in combination with other immunisations.

Every flock and farm is different and there’s no such thing as a blanket program. So how should broiler farms go about planning cost-effective vaccination programs? And how does one vaccine decision affect a poultry company’s options for managing other diseases?

Poultry Health Today asked two experts with extensive experience evaluating vaccination programs on hundreds of farms — Kalen Cookson, DVM, MAM, and Lloyd Keck, DVM, ACPV — for help in navigating the path to sensible, strategic and cost-effective disease protection.

Read more in Poultry Health Today here.