black spots on face?

[asteria01]

Hi, I recently acquired a black maran, about 11 months old. When I got her I noticed that she had some black specs on her face and wattle, but didn't think much of it since she's a black chicken.....until I looked it up, and saw that it could be a lot of things..... she's fairly new so idk her normal behavior as of yet, but her face doesn't seem to bother her. I tried washing some of it off but that doesn't seem to work. Any ideas to what it could be? I'm hoping they are just scars or bruises from pecking.

 

[CascadiaRiver]

My only thought would be freckles or scars.

 

[asteria01]

They seem to be mostly on the comb, and on the edges. I'm just worried that it can be fowl pox or something.

 

[Respiratie]

If it's just on the edges it could be from frostbite or from other chickens pecking her. Since you say she's new, the latter seems more likely, unless you've had her over a harsh winter or she came from an area with strong winter. Several Google searches turned these up:

http://animals.mom.me/chicken-comb-spot-disease-2116.html

Something helpful that I found on this mypetchicken page was this:
Quote:

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A: When a chicken gets a peck or a scrape on a comb or face, this will manifest as a black spot or scab, and isn't usually a cause for concern. If ALL of your chickens seem to have spots, if they are yellow or pussy, or if you are sure the spots you see are not from a scrape or peck, it might be a different problem. One possibility is that your chickens have Fowl Pox. Some information about Fowl Pox (or Avian Pox) is available here: https://www.backyardchickens.com/LC-diseases-AvianPox.html

There are a few different things that can cause lesions, however, and if you have any concern, we recommend you take your birds to a vet for diagnosis. ​

All the best!

 

[junebuggena]

Sometimes a mostly black bird will have dark bits of combs. It's called gypsy face. Usually, birds with gypsy face have black combs as chicks and as they grow and mature the black fades and disappears. Sometimes the black never goes away completely. I have two Australorps that still have black points on their combs.

 

[asteria01]

i see. i guess i will just have to keep a good lookout on it to see if it gets any worse then. thanks!

another question, but a bit off topic: she has a stinky smell to her. im not sure how to describe it, but she definitely has a whiff to her... that is not the chicken smell. its all over her feathers, not just the feet. the person i got her from said they tend to like to sit around the muddy water to keep cool... maybe its from that? it was a tiny puddle, but it was stagnant. i cant really think of another way she would get that stink. is there any way to get rid of that smell on her? the previous owner's husbandry may be questionable... but i guess thats what happens with craigslist sometimes.

 

[junebuggena]

You could try giving her a bath. Lots of people bathe their chickens. To get rid of the smell, you would need to be careful to wash all the way down to the skin, all over. If you don't want to, then make sure she has access to lots of dry dirt/sand for dustbathing. The smell should gradually lesson in a couple weeks.

 

[asteria01]

You could try giving her a bath. Lots of people bathe their chickens. To get rid of the smell, you would need to be careful to wash all the way down to the skin, all over. If you don't want to, then make sure she has access to lots of dry dirt/sand for dustbathing. The smell should gradually lesson in a couple weeks.

thanks!