Recent content by Shrader

I've had a few chickens get sick and die recently. It seemed to be Merricks, and I thought the worst was over. Now one of my girls' comb has gone from its normal bright red to a dull orange color. Any idea why this is happening, and what I can do about it? Thanks.

So I found an ad on craigslist from a woman who had a chicken wander into her yard. She didn't know how to care for it, so she wanted someone with chickens to come get it. I have a small flock, and was eager to add to it, so i went out to get this hen. She was broody, sitting on a clutch --...

Wow, a whole month! Okay. Thanks.

A woman who lives near me has had a Rhode Island Red living in her back yard for the past few months. She's not sure where she came from. It sounds like she's broody -- she's been sitting on a clutch of eggs for a week or so. I'm going to pick her up this afternoon. I have 4 hens right...

Courtney, Thanks for the response. I wasn't clear, I meant to ask if there was any chance of contracting Marek's from the chickens eggs? Thanks again, Shrader

Thanks for all the great info. One of my chickens died suddenly last week. Now another is limping. I'm afraid it's Marek's. I'm off to the health food store now, to get the hypericum. SHould we not eat any of the eggs while I'm figuring this out? Is there any chance of human contamination?

Thanks to both of you. I just had a chicken suddenly die last week. She got really lethargic then put her head down and died. Now this one is limping. Does that sound like there's Marek's Disease in my flock? If that's the case, what do I do? Thanks.

This morning, one of my hens is having trouble with her right leg. She won't put any weight on it, and she's limping horribly when she walks. I picked her up and looked at it, couldn't see anything. What could it be? She's eating, laying, pooping normally. Seems alright otherwise. Any...

Rooster-Red, I'm not sure if she'd stopped laying. I did notice a few less eggs than usual over the past week or so. But I have (had) 6 chickens, so I"m not sure who was laying what. Thanks Renee. You grow so attached to the little squakers, you know? I was hoping she'd pull out of it. If...

Her poo was yellow and runny today.

Noodles, my 2-year old golden buff hen started acting lethargic yesterday. She stayed in the coop most of the day, and only ate a little. (I did see her eat and drink yesterday.) Today, she was still acting strange. When I picked her up, she hardly reacted. Then when I put her back down, she...

This was a repeated post.

Does anyone in the LA area have a source for organic feed? I've been ordering it online, and it's just so expensive to ship. Thanks.

Hi all. One of my chickens is acting a little strange this morning. She's keeping to herself, kind of hunched over and not eating. This just made me realize that I don't know of a local vet that treats chickens. I've called all around and can't find one. Does anyone know of a vet that I can get...

We have 5 Black Australorps, just over a year old. Each of them has gone broody at least once. Two of them have been broody on and off all year!