2nd hen dying

[LindsayB]

Cat food has alot of protein, you can give them alittle bit of that every other day. Avoid the fish flavored ones though....they might make the eggs taste funny! mealworms and crickets are a good protein too. They will love you forever if you drop a few of those in the coop! But as far as protein goes, you can't do anything better than chicken! I know it seems wrong but the love it, and its good for them. Of course feed all the things in moderation.

I was dealing with a feather picking/eating situation a few weeks ago. I added manna pro conditioning feed to their layer pellets, it has 26% protein, I think.....even with that our barred rock was still eating the others raw. I went out one morning and she was actually eating their skin right off their backs...gross...soooo.....sadly, she herself got eaten...by us though lol

 

[StephanieD]

You could try a little tuna for protein or eggs.

 

[DTRM30]

Unused eggs are a great - and free - way to get them some extra protein. Any eggs you don't use yourself (or sell if that is the case) - just cook them up shells and all and feed them back.

Here is a link to chicken poo - it might give you a clue as it if it is normal poo, or not normal. A good place to start ...

http://www.chat.allotment.org.uk/index.php?topic=17568.0

I would also take the advise from other BYC members as above and check them for mites/lice and maybe de-worm them. If you conclude that none of those three things is the problem, then the next thing I would look into (providing they arent' showing signs of respritory illness such as snots, coughing, etc) - is the possibility of Cocci .....

http://ohioline.osu.edu/vme-fact/0018.html - info on lice and mites

http://ucanr.org/freepubs/docs/8162.pdf - Another site with info on lice and mites - I like this one - some good photo examples.

http://www.attra.org/attra-pub/PDF/coccidiosis.pdf - Info on Cocci

Outward signs of coccidiosis in chickens
include droopiness and listlessness, loss
of appetite, loss of yellow color in shanks,
pale combs and wattles, ruffled, unthrifty
feathers, huddling or acting chilled, blood
or mucus in the feces, diarrhea, dehydration,
and even death. Other signs include
poor feed digestion, poor weight gain, and
poor feed efficiency. Some symptoms can
be confused with other diseases. For example,
necrotic enteritis is a gut disease that
also causes bloody diarrhea.


Hope you find what's ailing them !

And PS - it is most certainly NOT your fault. Chickens get sick or pick up lice/mites/etc - it's a fact of life that just happens sometimes no matter what you do. And not having a rooster has nothing to do with hens that aren't feeling well or feather picking. My girls feather pick b/c they are bored and want out, but I can't let them out unless I'm there because of the neighbors dog.

 

[DTRM30]

Quote:
Tell that to my chickens who just had a few leftover chicken drummies for a treat last night..... Way back when (and probably still today) farmers tossed out all their kitchen scraps to the birds/ pigs ect. Why would it be bad for them? In moderation of course...

Rule of thumb is that you never give meat to animals that you eat or get product from. You want to keep them on a healthly diet. Fruit, veggies, grain, yogurt.

Bugs/worms/insects/frogs/mice are meat - mine go nuts over leftover chicken from dinner - that and spaghetti -