Only pooping 2-3 times a day

I have a 6 week old black australorp (just got her yesterday when I switched get out for my roo) and she only poops 2 or 3 times a day but they are HUGE..bigger than all my other birds' poops. It's like she's savibg them up or something..does anyone have any experience with this?

Thanks!!

Sounds like she was or is broody. They can do egg-sized poops when in that state. If her breast is bare, which you won't see but have to touch her to find out, then she's hormonally in that state, though whether or not her instincts are sufficient for her to even react to it is another matter entirely. Many hens go into and out of brooding state without ever actually brooding.

Best wishes.

If you really meant 6 weeks, not months, she's not broody. Are you sure she's only pooping that many times a day? My silkie poops huge poops compared to my other two bantams, she just always has. She could be pooping smaller other times as well.

Are they well formed poops with nice white caps? If that is your only issue, I wouldn't worry. Maybe someone else can weigh in though.

Ah, lol, I did misread that! 6 weeks... Yikes. Eh, was past my bedtime hours ago.

How big are the poops? More than twice the usual size? A slowed or 'sluggish' digestive system can cause that.

Best wishes.

The poops do have the white caps...they are literally (if not in a clump) between 5 and 6 inches long and can be as large around as 3/4- 1inch in diameter. I watched her do one yestrtday and if you listen closely you can hear her straining to get it out. I've noticed she has started having smaller poops but will still have 2-3 big poops a day. She is very cute and is still getting used to her new home here, this might sound crazy but I thought she was holding them in because she was nervous or didn't want to poop in her new brooder house (I'm not sure what her housing was like at the farm I got her from but I'm sure it wasn't a 40gallon storage tub that she's in now) and mess up the small space but she's getting used to it and sees the other little one (same age golden sexlink) pooping everywhere so it probably made her comfortable to do so. Thanks for all the help everyone! Chickens are such a joy I'm so glad I have my little beeps

Ps, her other poops are veryyyyy small. Like the size of a pencil eraser or two. And they're mostly only the ceacal (spelling?) poops

motherhenfran said:

The poops do have the white caps...they are literally (if not in a clump) between 5 and 6 inches long and can be as large around as 3/4- 1inch in diameter. I watched her do one yestrtday and if you listen closely you can hear her straining to get it out. I've noticed she has started having smaller poops but will still have 2-3 big poops a day. She is very cute and is still getting used to her new home here, this might sound crazy but I thought she was holding them in because she was nervous or didn't want to poop in her new brooder house (I'm not sure what her housing was like at the farm I got her from but I'm sure it wasn't a 40gallon storage tub that she's in now) and mess up the small space but she's getting used to it and sees the other little one (same age golden sexlink) pooping everywhere so it probably made her comfortable to do so. Thanks for all the help everyone! Chickens are such a joy I'm so glad I have my little beeps

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Are you absolutely, 100%, sure that these are her poops? Not some other animal? I mean, you say you watched her, but yikes... I can't imagine what 6-week old chook has the internal capacity to do 6 inch poops, many 12-month-old chooks do not have that physical capacity! Maybe she's not actually 6 weeks old then, maybe older?

Sounds like, all other questions aside, she is obviously not in good condition. Something is clearly wrong with her. I've never heard of anything like this though. I know they get slow and ineffective digestive and eliminatory systems from various things, including viruses, bacterial infections or overpopulation, deficiencies... It's also possible that she's internally deformed.

It's not crazy to think she may have been holding them in because of stress, though it would be highly unusual. They do hold their eggs in, sometimes; so theoretically it's at the very least physically possible and has a precedent. I've never heard of it happening with feces before though.

It sounds to me like a severe case of constipation. I'd give her something to help loosen it up, like some wholemeal bread with a generous dose of cold pressed olive oil, or just put out a dish of cold pressed olive oil if she'll drink it directly (lots of chooks will). If she's constipated, she may need probiotics or wet/soaked feeds and more fiber and greenery in her diet to help fix this before she prolapses because if it, because that's where extended constipation is headed.

It's normal for chooks and other animals recovering from constipation to then get diarrhea for a bit, because the muscles were strained, weakened, and becoming inefficient, and the microfauna/flora are sickened by the waste materials remaining in the eliminatory tract for so long.

Apple Cider Vinegar (with the 'mother' in it) in her water, in at least one water source anyway (always good to provide a plain water source as well) will help get the cilia in her intestines moving and functioning properly, to help shift things along at a normal rate of knots. In chicks, it even helps cause the cilia to grow longer than in chicks that never received ACV, which is a lifelong benefit that makes them more resistant to disease because the bowels are not so stagnant or slow-moving, which predisposes them to overgrowth of bacteria and the likes. Plus, it improves feed efficiency, and has a whole host of other benefits too including increased peripheral circulation. May sound like hooey to some, but there's been decent studies done on it by researchers working for commercial growers, as well as by scientists whose works were published on PubMed and other such generally reputable sites.

Best wishes.

@chooks4life they are definitely her poops (I see them come out of her). They are getting smaller and more normal in size and frequency but she still seems to struggle when she tries to go. She can be heard almost making the same noise my girls make right when they lay their eggs (so trying to push sonething out with lots of force). I will be adding ACV to their water bi usually do that or a small amount of gatorade. Her behavior is great, wandering around when I let her out of the brooder and even picking fights if the older girls try to be mean to her! She's a feisty little one!

Well, hopefully she comes out of this alright.

Best wishes.

Does she get any greens in her diet? Any chick grit?