Two Chicken Health Questions

[dawg53]

@Meighan Save yourself some money and dont buy DE anymore. Liberally flush your chickens eye with saline solution, then apply a small amount of regular neosporin in the hens eye twice a day for 5 days. The neosporin will melt in her eye which is normal. If there's debris in her eye, the saline flush will clear it out. The neosporin will take care of any infection and wont hurt her eye. I've used it with success for certain eye problems over the years.
If the eye hasnt improved in 5 days, get back with us and we'll discuss what antibiotic to purchase, also a closeup pic of her eye would help if it hasnt healed.
As far as the scab on your other hens comb; it could be due to other hens pecking her if she's low in the pecking order, or an injury of some sort.
If it were fowl pox, other birds would be showing scabs as well, a pic would help. I've dealt with fowl pox.

 

[Eggcessive]

I agree with Dawg53. He has been around chickens for many years, and knows his stuff. Are you all feeding the chickens a layer feed, either pellets or crumbles? I like pellets better since there is less waste. They need that to be 90% of the food, and they can eat bugs and other things. Treats should be few and small.

They also need some chicken granite grit to help their gizzards grind up food, and some crushed oyster shell in separate bowls to take as they wish for extra calcium. Put out clean water daily and fresh dry feed. That is about all they need. Feed, and other products here are sold at TSC and other feed stores.

Of course if you see crawling bugs on their skin under their bottoms, you will need to get some Permethrin and a hand sprayer. You mix it with water, and spray the area where the bugs are located every 7 days at least 3 times to get rid of lice or mites. They lay eggs every 7-10 days, so the 2nd and 3 rd treatments get the newly hatched knes before they reproduce.

 

[WVduckchick]

Bless your heart for doing the best with what you were handed! And welcome to BYC!

Lots of advice and possibilities. I know it’s a lot to take in at once. I agree with the others so far. I’m in the “Don’t waste your money on DE” camp. Lol

Some pictures of all the birds and pics of your setup could do wonders for us to offer suggestions. Chickens scratch around and preen all the time, so what you see as scratching could be bad or perfectly normal! They “bathe” in nice soft clean dirt, so if you can give them access, they will do the work. Under a bush, etc. they will make a hole and roll their bodies in it.

Handling - some chickens like to be handled, but most really don’t. Eating from your hand is a good start, or let them hop on your leg. Most wont bite, and if they do, it’s not usually harmful. You will quickly find the ones that don’t like to be touched
To pick one up, or hold one, use a football style grab, from behind is easiest, trap both wings in your hands, and shift the body under one arm, like a football. Easy if they are cooperative to it.

Best of luck! And we’re here to help any way we can

 

[azygous]

You've received top notch advice from some of the most experienced people here on BYC. I'm glad you came here for help.

You can make your own saline solution by boiling a cup of water with a quarter teaspoon of non-iodized salt. If you have distilled water, it would be even better to use. Thoroughly dissolve the same amount of salt in it. Flush the eye twice a day and use the Neosporin each time.

Ask for Blu-kote or Blue-lotion and Vetericyn when you call the feed store. Blu-kote is an anti-bacterial/anti-fungal and the black spot on the comb of the one chicken may be helped with it. Blu-kote and Vetericyn are two very good wound care items to keep on hand. Use them both on the comb or any other wounds you discover. Use the Vetericyn first, let dry and then use the Blu-kote.

 

[True Patriot]

So glad you found us and joined. You'll get a lot of help here. Since so many people with more experience have already responded I will leave the medical details to them. It must be difficult having so many animals left for you to care for. There's a sister site, backyard herds that may be of help for the other animals. As far as the chickens, they really have some remarkable healing powers. They bounce back from injury and illness that you would think impossible. There are a lot of great articles you can read as you have time. They'll explain almost everything you ever wanted to know about chickens, and some things you didn't know you wanted. The best advice I can think of right now is relax, and enjoy the antics and entertainment they can provide.