Worried

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chicken lodge

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Hi, Really worried about one of our chickens, we have 11 chicken in all and one has a very sore bottom, with no feathers with some small areas that are very red, but some days dont look quite as bad, the areas on some days look like they might bleed.
She is eating well and seems happy with the rest of the chicken, all chicken wander around our garden.
The chicken are aprox 2 years old but we have only owned them for 2 weeks, so we are very novice to this, i have not noticed any mite, or tics and we are keeping the roosting box and house very clean.
Sorry if this sound like a stupid question, but i am worried about her. I dont think they are in moult.
Many thanks :?
 
Sounds like you have a feather pecker. Once the bottom is exposed it is a target and you either find the pecker or isolate her. Could try Nettex anti peck spray as also contains healing promoter. Check the others bottoms to see if any feathers are missing. The one with a perfect bum is probably the culprit. Are they Wyandottes by any chance?
 
Hi Thank you so much not sure what we have name wise anyway, but they look like as follows, we have 4 that are exbattery, the one with the sore bottom is black with orange feathers on the front, and we have some white ones and some black and white ones, sorry did say i was a novice.
I have ordered some anti pecking spray so i am keeping fingers crossed.
Many thanks again
 
Yes, sounds like she is being feather pecked. However, there are lots around with bare bottoms which come to no harm but I'd certainly spray lightly on the bare patches and more heavily on the feathers surrounding the bare patch as these will be the next to be pecked out.
 
I only ask because i have a hen that moults really badly and looks like she's been pecked and gets red raw pulling her own feathers out and getting help from others. she then goes back to normal in a couple weeks with no problems. but i always know it's her moulting because there are heaps of feathers everywhere, where as with a pecker usually the feathers are eaten in my experience. but this is my own experience of course.
 
Feather peckers will normally eat the feathers they have plucked. But this also sounds like it could be mite, feathermites are very hard to spot, and will leave bald areas that look sore. They live in the feather shaft which makes them near-on impossible to see with your eyes.
Try a mite powder, and treat them all. It certainly won't hurt to do this.
Moulting too can leave sore areas, loosing so many at once. Try using E45 cream applied daily to the sore area after the mite powder, that should sort it. Once her feathers begin to regrow, she will be ok.

JubesXX
 
One with the black feathers and orange front sounds like a Black Rock, or Rhode Rock as they have to be called if not bred in Scotland by the originator of the Rhode Island Red and Plymouth Rock cross.
All the small feathers in all our coops are eaten during the moult anyway. But a feather pecker will sneak up behind the other birds and get into their blind spot before taking bottom feathers. I've watched one do it. Even our cockerel got caught. When isolated the hen wouldn't eat pellets for a while -she was used to eating only feathers!
 
Thank you all for your advice, i dont have many feathers around the garden or in the coop, so i think it might be feather pecked, i have put some anti pecking spray on her and i will also do the mite powder just in case.
Can i ask another question please.
I have read that chickens like dust baths and this also might help so i have put down some ash from the fire, in a cat litter tray, but the chickens just dont want to know, i read that ash would be ok to use what do i need to do to make the chickens use it.

Many thanks again for all your advice.

:D
 
I do add about 1/5 sieved wood ash from a garden bonfire to the mix for their dustbath, but if you are burning coal or coke in your fire it would be best not to use this, as it will have high residual levels of petrochemicals. I also mix in about 2/5 silver sand, 2/5 dry earth (i sometimes use old compost from flower pots.) Then I stir in lots of redmite powder or diatomaceous earth, as this does two things - it keeps the dustbath materials very dry, thus more effective, and also the girls treat themselves with anti-mite powder as they use the bath.

You need a nice deep container, about 12ins -15ins as they scatter the dust all over the place if it's shallower. Mine is an old cut-down waterbutt, but the kind of plastic base used as a support for a large waterbutt, upside down, is also very suitable. A cat litter tray isn't really big or deep enough to be effective. They really roill around in it, it's very funny to watch. You need to give them at least 4ins to dig in, 6+ins is better, as they like to get deep down in for maximum effect and luxury, and it does get used up, so mix a nice lot to start with.

You also need to place the dustbath in a dry place, or invent a 'roof' such as an old table on top, as it won't work if it gets wet- they like it really nice and dry so the sand etc can get between their feathers.

It may take a little while for them to get the idea - if they seem to be ignoring it, you can train them to go into the dustbath and begin scratching around by scattering a little corn on top of the mix, then they'll find out it's safe and interesting.
 
We use kiln dried sand. Get it from the builders merchants. Its used for brushing into the gaps between block paving to stabise then and is quite cheap -and its already dry. Its finer washed sand really.
 
If you're using a good covering of wood chip in the coop, they may well be dusting in there. Marigold has covered all aspects for creating a dust bath.
After all the years I've had chickens, I still take time out to watch them dusting as they look so contented.
 
Chuck said:
If you're using a good covering of wood chip in the coop, they may well be dusting in there. Marigold has covered all aspects for creating a dust bath.
After all the years I've had chickens, I still take time out to watch them dusting as they look so contented.
Click to expand...
You should see me in the bath Chuck!!! :lol: :lol: :lol: ;)

JubesXX
 
jubilee said:
Chuck said:
If you're using a good covering of wood chip in the coop, they may well be dusting in there. Marigold has covered all aspects for creating a dust bath.
After all the years I've had chickens, I still take time out to watch them dusting as they look so contented.
Click to expand...
You should see me in the bath Chuck!!! :lol: :lol: :lol: ;)

JubesXX
Click to expand...



:shock:

























:-)12



:lol:
 
Steph! Get your mind out the sewer!! :o
I mearly ment you can't beat a good splash around!! :lol: :lol: :lol: :-)10

JubesXX
 
Hi everyone,
I have 11 chickens and they are a mixed bunch some exbattery and the others are a mixed bunch of ladies, but there seems to be a lot of bullying going on at the moment, all the chickens have free run of the garden and they can go in and out of the chicken coop when they like.
I have a couple of chickens that seem to get picked on more than the other so they seem to hide under or near the bushes out of the way as well.
I was thinking about getting a cockerall to try and stop this, is this a good idea, and if so could someone give me any ideas on what breed i should get.
Many thanks :-)17
 
Sounds like a good flock there! :D

Firstly just ensure you have plenty of room for all your birds, 11 active hybrids will need space. If you think of an absolute mimimum of 1metre square per bird, you are along the right lines! ;)

Squabbling, restless behaviour (pacing..) are all signs of stress that can be caused by the birds not having enough space to roam and scratch about. I am not saying this is the case with your birds, however if birds are cooped up and then able to roam a larger space in the daylight hours this actually itself can lead to stress on the birds part particulary as the clocks have just gone back!

When loooking at behaviours such as pecking, bullying, weightloss, odd bald patches and pacing,it is always a good idea to stand back and consider the enviroment they are contained in for clues as to what is causing the problem in the first instance.
 
I agree with Foxy, except that i would put the minimum space needed per L.F. hybrid higher than 1 sq. metre. My run is 12 sq. metres and no way would i put 11 birds in there, i have 4 and could possibly go to 6 but no more, plus time in the garden most days. It sounds as if yours have an interesting area to roam in, in your garden - how big is this?

Adding a cockerel may well only give you more, different problems, eg the neighbours' reaction to his crowing, as well as added pressure on space, if this is indeed an issue, and may not do anything to address the hens' social issues.
 
Foxy is right about space. It's very important to keep them happy because if they are not squabbles will start and a cockerel won't help much. The old poultry books quote 4 square yards per hen in a permanent run and 15 square yards free ranging. People try to reduce these well tested formulas and it will be problematic. Trouble with cockerels, apart from noise, space and extra food, is the damage they do treading hens. They usually have a favourite who will get a real bashing -even with a saddle on. We've had to take three hens out so far and re-house them. One cockerel spent weeks staring across the Orchard looking at his favourite, but she won't be going back.
 
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