Bulbous Chicken Bum

[Viva206]

Hi all,
I am brand new to chicken raising and inherited 9 hens and a rooster with a move. It's been 4 months and everyone seems to be doing good and on schedule with their molt.
I'm writing because one of the chickens is going through a hard molt (most of the others have done soft molts) and she has a swollen bum are. I don't know if this actually is swollen since I don't know much about naked chicken bums. It looks like it's the size of an egg? any advice is greatly appreciated. She's eating and participating like normal. She looks a little thin but I just assume that's because she's missing so many feathers.

Video of her snacking

 

[swamphiker]

To my eye it looks like a normal molt! Chickens have a funny-shaped butt that is usually covered in feathers. Chickens that are egg bound usually act ill (read more here), so if she is acting normal, she probably is healthy. If she seems a little skinny you can feed her higher protein feed to give her a boost during the molt.

 

[NatJ]

she has a swollen bum are. I don't know if this actually is swollen since I don't know much about naked chicken bums.

A good way to check what is normal: compare with other chickens.
You might be able to see it on other chickens if you spread the feathers apart.
Or you could run your hand over that area to check the shape on several chickens. If your hand is smoothing the feathers down as it moves, you can probably get a sense of what shape is underneath them.

(I don't see anything concerning in that photo, but comparing with other chickens is a hadny trick for anything that seems odd on a chicken.)

 

[6BeachChicks]

I’m not sure why, but my hen tiny had a red naked butt for forever. She is just fine now, all her butt fluff grew in. They look pretty simal in color, but I’m not 100% sure about the lump…

 

[Viva206]

To my eye it looks like a normal molt! Chickens have a funny-shaped butt that is usually covered in feathers. Chickens that are egg bound usually act ill (read more here), so if she is acting normal, she probably is healthy. If she seems a little skinny you can feed her higher protein feed to give her a boost during the molt.

Thank you for taking the time. We've been giving them grubs and scraps that are higher in protein since their molt started. I'll keep an eye on her to see if anything from the article sticks out. I really appreciate your time.

 

[Viva206]

I’m not sure why, but my hen tiny had a red naked butt for forever. She is just fine now, all her butt fluff grew in. They look pretty simal in color, but I’m not 100% sure about the lump…

I'll keep my fingers crossed! Glad Tiny is better now.

 

[Viva206]

A good way to check what is normal: compare with other chickens.
You might be able to see it on other chickens if you spread the feathers apart.
Or you could run your hand over that area to check the shape on several chickens. If your hand is smoothing the feathers down as it moves, you can probably get a sense of what shape is underneath them.

(I don't see anything concerning in that photo, but comparing with other chickens is a hadny trick for anything that seems odd on a chicken.)

How do you all catch your chickens?? The previous handlers spent a lot of time with them and the hens, as well as the rooster are all pretty friendly but I cannot for the life of me catch them. It's fairly comedic when we have tried but any tips are great. We've used a towel and COB to lure them to spaces in the past but it's not always successful.

 

[Sally PB]

How do you all catch your chickens?? The previous handlers spent a lot of time with them and the hens, as well as the rooster are all pretty friendly but I cannot for the life of me catch them. It's fairly comedic when we have tried but any tips are great. We've used a towel and COB to lure them to spaces in the past but it's not always successful.

Take them off the roost at night.

I have a head lamp with a red light that I wear. They can't really see me, though they know something is there.

 

[6BeachChicks]

How do you all catch your chickens?? The previous handlers spent a lot of time with them and the hens, as well as the rooster are all pretty friendly but I cannot for the life of me catch them. It's fairly comedic when we have tried but any tips are great. We've used a towel and COB to lure them to spaces in the past but it's not always successful.

They hate towels. Just thought you should know.

 

[NatJ]

How do you all catch your chickens??

Picking them up from the roost at night usually works well.

It is sometimes possible to work a chicken into an enclosed space or even just a fence corner and then grab it (this depends a bit on the chicken-- some are much easier than others.)

With some chickens, you can feed treats and then pick them up easily when they come close (it is rare for me to have chickens this tame, but it's happened a few times.)