Chicken covered in oil

[Rach4]

If anyone can please help many thanks in advance.

My chicken has fallen into a drum of oil. Unfortunatly the landlord left the lif off a drum, thinking it is crude oil/. I have washed her off with wool wash (earth product) it only had a small amount off detergant in warm water. I think I have majority of it off I towel dried her off and she has had something to eat and is drinking... but their is still oil on her feathers. Not sure if I should give a second wash and when to, only washed her about 30mins ago, but so worried about her. Please if anyone can help panicing a little for her

 

[Sunshine Flock]

I try to use natural products as much as possible, but I have yet to come to terms with natural dish soaps and their lackluster ability to cut grease.

So we're still using Dawn, and it really annoys me.

But seriously, a bath in Dawn would do her wonders. The toxicity of the oil versus an annoying company and its faux-blue dish soap?

Definitely Dawn. They widely advertise that it's the preferred grease and oil cutting soap used in wildlife rescue when there's an oil spill. It really does work, and fast.

Keep us posted on how she's doing.

 

[rosemarythyme]

I second the recommendation of Dawn dish soap. It might take several baths to get the oil out so you may be stuck in a cycle of warm soapy bath, dry, repeat, until it's gone. The problem is a bird's instinct is to preen any remaining oil off their feathers, and then they end up ingesting some of it.

 

[venymae]

I'm going to third the recommendation on dawn dish soap. You don't want that oil being absorbed into her body either through skin or preening. Nothing beats dawn for cutting oil/grease. (sorry seventh generation!)

 

[Sunshine Flock]

I'm going to third the recommendation on dawn dish soap. You don't want that oil being absorbed into her body either through skin or preening. Nothing beats dawn for cutting oil/grease. (sorry seventh generation!)

Ha, sorry indeed Seventh Generation. I really do need to investigate natural DIY dish soaps that cut grease. I tried a few but wasn't impressed.

If you don't have the traditional blue Dawn in Australia, the other colors should work just as well. I'm pretty sure I saw orange or yellow versions of the same brand when I was living overseas.

And if Dawn isn't an option for you, keep bathing her in the product you already used, since you say it helped. Several baths in warm water.

Also, what about her nose holes? As you can see I'm quite up to speed on chicken anatomy. Breathing holes? Beak breathers? Can they be flushed with warm water in a syringe, or should they be left alone? And what about her ears?

I'm so sorry this happened to your dear hen.

 

[venymae]

Nose holes should be left alone as it's very easy for chicken to aspirate on water. Not sure about ears

 

[Rach4]

Thank you to all for such vital and very helpful information. After a couple of frantic phone calls to supermarkets if they had the dawn soap, I typed in to google Australia's version of dawn soap, it came up as Fairy soap. My partner drove frantically to go pick up a bottle. Colour is blue YAY! After a further 3 baths I am hoping she is now one of the cleanest chooks in australia. Thanks to my beloved Rooster Boy Piper for loosing his thang I wouldn't have known she was in trouble. I was so frantic as I have raised her from a baby as a fox decided he would try to make a meal out of her and her mother and 3 siblings. The poor girl has only one eye from the attack and she was the only one I could save ( thanks to shoving the plastic part of the pen in her gob and giving her cpr... I know crazy chicken lady, but everyone deserves a second crack at life. She is now sleeping in the baby pusher very happily after enjoying her last towel rub down and her fave foods sultanas and corn. A very very BIG thank you to all

 

[Rach4]

I try to use natural products as much as possible, but I have yet to come to terms with natural dish soaps and their lackluster ability to cut grease.

So we're still using Dawn, and it really annoys me.

But seriously, a bath in Dawn would do her wonders. The toxicity of the oil versus an annoying company and its faux-blue dish soap?

Definitely Dawn. They widely advertise that it's the preferred grease and oil cutting soap used in wildlife rescue when there's an oil spill. It really does work, and fast.

Keep us posted on how she's doing.

Thankyou ever so much for your help so very apprecitaed

 

[rosemarythyme]

Good to hear! Hope she recovers without any further issue!

 

[Sunshine Flock]

Thank you to all for such vital and very helpful information. After a couple of frantic phone calls to supermarkets if they had the dawn soap, I typed in to google Australia's version of dawn soap, it came up as Fairy soap. My partner drove frantically to go pick up a bottle. Colour is blue YAY! After a further 3 baths I am hoping she is now one of the cleanest chooks in australia. Thanks to my beloved Rooster Boy Piper for loosing his thang I wouldn't have known she was in trouble. I was so frantic as I have raised her from a baby as a fox decided he would try to make a meal out of her and her mother and 3 siblings. The poor girl has only one eye from the attack and she was the only one I could save ( thanks to shoving the plastic part of the pen in her gob and giving her cpr... I know crazy chicken lady, but everyone deserves a second crack at life. She is now sleeping in the baby pusher very happily after enjoying her last towel rub down and her fave foods sultanas and corn. A very very BIG thank you to all

Amazing rescue story, my goodness. It's like out of a Netflix movie. So that trick I've seen used on humans works for chickens, too? And chicken CPR?

You're a hero!

And a double hero for saving her from the oil vat and finding Fairy Soap. I'll bet that soap has something extra special in it if it's made by fairies!!