Bad case of pasty butt!

[Chikibabymom]

I recently became a baby chick mom and got one cockerel (Stanley) along with four pullets. They’re all about 1-3 weeks old and have had a pretty good transition into their new brood. But I’ve noticed that Stanley has a case of pasty butt, I’m not sure wether it was because of the stress he was put under on the first day but he’s been having pasty butt for all of the four days we’ve had him. I’ve tried gently wiping off the excess droppings with a warm wet rag but there’s one piece that’s almost fully covering his vent that won’t take off! I’ve also tried letting his bottom soak a bit in warm water (we call it a butt bath) to soften it but I’m afraid his vent will end up bleeding due to how stuck it is. For now he’s able to poop (although he has to push a bit) but I don’t want to lose him over a thing like this. Any tips to help?

 

[Willowspirit]

You are basically doing the right thing. To remove stuck on poop I add some Epsom salts and a tiny bit of Dawn dis detergent to the water. If that doesn’t loosen the poop sufficiently I put some vegetable oil on it to loosen it more. Olive oil is fine. I use a specially processed sesame oil.

If all of that doesn’t remove it, you can cut it out. I recommend baby nail scissors because the tips are blunted.

After you get it off you might moisten the vent with oil or Vaseline.

 

[Chikibabymom]

You are basically doing the right thing. To remove stuck on poop I add some Epsom salts and a tiny bit of Dawn dis detergent to the water. If that doesn’t loosen the poop sufficiently I put some vegetable oil on it to loosen it more. Olive oil is fine. I use a specially processed sesame oil.

If all of that doesn’t remove it, you can cut it out. I recommend baby nail scissors because the tips are blunted.

After you get it off you might moisten the vent with oil or Vaseline.

I’ve tried to gently wipe it off with the rag but I’m afraid I’ll tear his skin and end up making the situation worse. How do you suggest I add oil? Do I dip a rag into it and then dab it onto his vent or pour some drops onto the droppings directly? I’m just so afraid of hurting him since he already seems to hate it when I try to clean him :/

 

[Willowspirit]

The way I do all butt cleaning is using surgical gloves and my fingers so I put a drop of oil on my fingers and rub it on the stuck poo. It does hurt him a little the way you hurt when you clean a wound. But he’ll feel so much better afterwards when it’s done. The sticky poo irritates the skin already and pulls at his feathers which is uncomfortable. So a little ouch now is better than not doing it.

When you get to the oil part the detergent, epsom salt bathe will probably have really loosened it. He’ll be feeling better by then. You can do it!

 

[2 many chickens]

You may have to hold his rear end under running warm water for a bit while gently trying to break up the bit that is stuck. Dish soap works, I use dawn on my birds for things like that. Make sure you dry him up well so he doesn't get chilled. I also apply neosporin without pain relief on and near the vent for this with pasty butt and that helps prevent it from recouring. I only do that to the ones that had it. Also make sure your brooder isn't too hot or it can happen again and again.

 

[Chikibabymom]

The way I do all butt cleaning is using surgical gloves and my fingers so I put a drop of oil on my fingers and rub it on the stuck poo. It does hurt him a little the way you hurt when you clean a wound. But he’ll feel so much better afterwards when it’s done. The sticky poo irritates the skin already and pulls at his feathers which is uncomfortable. So a little ouch now is better than not doing it.

When you get to the oil part the detergent, epsom salt bathe will probably have really loosened it. He’ll be feeling better by then. You can do it!

I’ll make sure to run into the store and grab epsom salt ASAP, I’ve also noticed that his vent seems a bit irritated and swollen due to the pasty butt so I’ll make sure to clean him properly

 

[Chikibabymom]

You may have to hold his rear end under running warm water for a bit while gently trying to break up the bit that is stuck. Dish soap works, I use dawn on my birds for things like that. Make sure you dry him up well so he doesn't get chilled. I also apply neosporin without pain relief on and near the vent for this with pasty butt and that helps prevent it from recouring. I only do that to the ones that had it. Also make sure your brooder isn't too hot or it can happen again and again.

How do you suggest drying him? I would just make sure he was under the heat lamp to dry off for a bit but could that lead to complications? My brooders heat lamp is on one side and the other side is fairly cool so my chicks move from one side to the other depending on their needs but I’ll try to move the heat lamp a couple inches farther to prevent overheating

 

[2 many chickens]

How do you suggest drying him? I would just make sure he was under the heat lamp to dry off for a bit but could that lead to complications? My brooders heat lamp is on one side and the other side is fairly cool so my chicks move from one side to the other depending on their needs but I’ll try to move the heat lamp a couple inches farther to prevent overheating

I'd just wrap the Lil guy in a towel and hold him for a bit. Once he's no longer soaked you can pop him back in the brooder. Good luck I hope everything works out for the Lil guy!