change in rooster's behavior with hens

[CannedMonster]

Just a suggestion - since he went to new ground - you may want to get a fecal float to rule out Coccidiosis. If the crop is not emptying completely overnight, then I would continue to work on that as well.

Thank you.
His poops are fairly normal but he has a lot of moisture/water around them in the bedding.
I’m not sure what chicken diarrhea looks like but I didn’t think that was it.
I did treat him with a small pea sized amount of Safeguard 10% paste a week ago Sunday.
Thankfully his crop emptied completely last night.

 

[NewFlockOnTheBlock]

http://extension.uga.edu/publications/detail.html?number=C954&title=Nutrition for the Backyard Flock

This lists the needs of each stage. Hopefully helpful.

Helpful for sure, thank you!!!

 

[NewFlockOnTheBlock]

So, turns out Scratch & Peck grower feed is 17% protein, compared to 16% in their layer feed. Worth switching for just that slight increase?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thank you.
His poops are fairly normal but he has a lot of moisture/water around them in the bedding.
I’m not sure what chicken diarrhea looks like but I didn’t think that was it.
I did treat him with a small pea sized amount of Safeguard 10% paste a week ago Sunday.
Thankfully his crop emptied completely last night.

I don't want to interrupt or hijack this thread from @NewFlockOnTheBlock - my apologies to them.
If he is still not doing well, you may want to post on the ER forums so we can give you more suggestions.
fwiw - depending on the size of the "pea" that you gave him, you may have not given him the correct dosage (too much/little). Fenbendazole (Safeguard) dosage is by weight, so the dosage is .23ml per pound of weight. The 1 time dose, then repeated in 10 days will treat roundworms. It would be better to give it for 5days in a row, this will treat most worms that poultry can have.
I would still think about Coccidiosis if he does not improve - Corid can be found at most feed stores in the cattle section. But it's still a good idea to get a fecal float if possible.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

So, turns out Scratch & Peck grower feed is 17% protein, compared to 16% in their layer feed. Worth switching for just that slight increase?

I think it is. I went from 16% to 18% an saw improvements. I also like allowing my hens to self regulate their calcium consumption. I would see calcium deposits on many eggs when I fed a layer. Now I hardly ever see a weird shell.

There are so many ways to feed based on your birds, and whether you feed other stuff. It can be confusing initially. I feed all kinds of poultry species, and ages, as well as roosters that don't need that extra calcium that's in a layer. A all flock was perfect for me with a separate bowl of oyster shells for the calcium needs.

 

[Shadrach]

I don’t know if your rooster is unwell or not.
Every year here it’s the same. The hens stop laying and the roosters stop feeding them. Occasionally they may drop a bit of something nice for the hens but most of the time they just want to eat. They get less tolerant of the hens bickering and become generally more bossy and chase the hens away when they get in their space.
When the various groups get let out in the morning the roosters often chase their favorites for a few moments in a hopeful fashion but the hens shy off and the roosters get the message that they’re not interested. The roosters combs become less bright and fleshy and they tend to doze more during the day and eat what they find.
I honestly don’t think protein levels have anything to do with it. When the hens start laying again the roosters have gone back to normal every year.

It seems to get forgotten, the only thing a rooster is interested in is furthering his genes. That is all he is interested in.
No laying hens; no interest.

 

[CannedMonster]

I don’t know if your rooster is unwell or not.
Every year here it’s the same. The hens stop laying and the roosters stop feeding them. Occasionally they may drop a bit of something nice for the hens but most of the time they just want to eat. They get less tolerant of the hens bickering and become generally more bossy and chase the hens away when they get in their space.
When the various groups get let out in the morning the roosters often chase their favorites for a few moments in a hopeful fashion but the hens shy off and the roosters get the message that they’re not interested. The roosters combs become less bright and fleshy and they tend to doze more during the day and eat what they find.
I honestly don’t think protein levels have anything to do with it. When the hens start laying again the roosters have gone back to normal every year.

It seems to get forgotten, the only thing a rooster is interested in is furthering his genes. That is all he is interested in.
No laying hens; no interest.

My LF cockerel isn’t breeding the pullets as much now.
I think we tend to think of sunlight affecting hormones more with females but it affects the males too.

 

[chickengeorgeto]

With proper fermentation, mold or other harmful organisms do not have a chance to grow because the beneficial bacteria and yeast will push them out...

The wine industry use to pour out 25% of the wine that they produced every year because of bacteria infections. Considering that v. Vinofera wine grapes naturally contain the yeast needed to make good wine, that seems like a whole lot of spilled vino all because of bad "bacteria".

Truth in posting: I do like to soak my feed for small fowl when feeding them in the Summer and early Fall. The idea is to get them to eat more food not less. I also added some "shipping" medicine that is normally fed to cows etc. to minimize the negative effects of long distance shipping or travel. This shipping medicine contains minerals and vitamins but no drugs. Look up VetRx. I also added cod liver oil.

 

[NewFlockOnTheBlock]

So, feed store was out of grower feed when I went just now, but they will get some in a couple of weeks and I'll try switching at that point. It doesn't look like they carry it regularly during the cold season as almost nobody is hatching and raising chicks in our part of the state right now.

Look up VetRx.

We've got some in the kitchen cabinet right now I've been adding it to the chickens' water. Also tried to apply it to our rooster's comb and wattles and under his wings but he hated it so we gave up.