Bathtime!

[ShockValue]

So some of my girls have been getting kind of crusty. Especially the Faverolles with their big beards, muffs and feathered feet.
I should have gotten some before and after pictures, because they really did clean up nicely. But the "just out of the bath" pictures cracked me up because they looked so miserable. After I washed each chicken I put them on the trampoline because it has a nice netting to keep them contained and it was clean so they wouldn't immediatly go roll in the dirt and cause mud.

After the shots here I did a quick pat dry with a towel and lubed up their combs/wattles with lanolin. After a couple hours locked in the coop (it was 80' but windy) and a couple hours running around outside before bed time, they almost looked like chickens again.

 

[N F C]

Hi, I have two questions:

1. What do you wash your chickens with...just plain water or do you use some type of soap?

2. Does a wet chicken smell anything like a wet dog, lol?

Thanks for sharing the photos!

 

[ShockValue]

We used a childrens shampoo so it was gentle and tear free.

My chickens have a slight (and odd) sweet smell. Not a "good" sweet smell, but it's mild so it's not offensive either. I don't know if that's a common chicken smell or it's just my girls. The bath didn't seem to change it much wet or dry!

 

[N F C]

Thanks for answering re: their smell. I really was curious. Guess I'll have to give mine the sniff test to find out, maybe after the next rain.