black/dirty faces?!

[anp1792]

can anyone please tell me what is wrong with my chickens or what to do to help them?? i just noticed this last night they don’t act sick

 

[anp1792]

What have they been eating? Watermelon?

lol only their chicken feed & grass that i know of

 

[Sapphire Sebright]

It looks like dirt. Try rubbing at it with a damp cloth or brush to see if it'll come off.
If I had to guess, I'd say that they were drinking a lot and ended up getting their faces wet before going off and dust bathing. Chickens can get quite wet when they drink, especially if the waterer has an open top or if they drink from a puddle.

 

[CrazyChicken360]

Do you think they might’ve gotten into something?

 

[anp1792]

Do you think they might’ve gotten into something?

i tried wiping it off with a wet rag and nothing came off

 

[Wyorp Rock]

What have they been eating? Watermelon?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

lol only their chicken feed & grass that i know of

Ah ok. It looks like dirt stuck to their faces. Sometimes if they eat melon or something watery and sticky, dirt will really stick to their faces.
See if it wears off in time.

 

[raingarden]

Have the birds with dirty faces been under some sort of strees lately? Either environmental or emotional stress? Perhaps some sort of latent aggression?

 

[anp1792]

Have the birds with dirty faces been under some sort of strees lately? Either environmental or emotional stress? Perhaps some sort of latent aggression?

one of the chickens in the photos is a hen and the other is a rooster so the rooster has been getting on the poor hen but i assumed he’s just trying to show his dominance / pecking order like normal. and i don’t know why it would be happening to him too i don’t think he’s being picked on. that’s the only stress that i know of.

 

[raingarden]

one of the chickens in the photos is a hen and the other is a rooster so the rooster has been getting on the poor hen but i assumed he’s just trying to show his dominance / pecking order like normal. and i don’t know why it would be happening to him too i don’t think he’s being picked on. that’s the only stress that i know of.

Thank you. I have this theory (with no proof) that the transitory black comb syndrome is caused by stress. The black face could be an extreme case of the same problem.