Chicken Died This AM - Feathers On Underside Sparse

[mrwiest]

Hello All,

Last night I went out to check on my girls before bed time, and noticed that one of my white leghorns was not up on the roost with the others. I picked her up to place her on the roost, and noticed several of the feathers on her underside near her vent were missing. I just assumed she was starting to molt, and didn't think anything of it. She was also acting a little bit lethargic, but I thought that was due to me waking her up.

Then this morning I went back out to check on them, and she was off the roost on the floor. She had passed within an hour or two. Up to this point I believe she was laying regularly, and seemed to be ok otherwise. Any ideas of what caused this death?

I also have another white leghorn that is showing similar feather lose on one of its wings, again, similar to a molt. Should I separate her from the flock until it clears up?

Thanks in advance!

 

[foreverlearning]

Check the vent and under the wings for signs of mites (tiny red bugs on the feathers) or lice (look like tiny maggots).

 

[mrwiest]

If they do have mites or lice, how do I treat it?

 

[foreverlearning]

Poultry dust (farm supply store) or Sevin (walmart garden section). Sevin comes in two powder forms now... The red bottle is 5% and is a chemical like poultry dust and the green bottle is natural. I have tested the natural on a rescue hen and it worked just as well as the 5% if you are going that route. You want to dust the birds, and retreat in 7-10 days as well as clean the coop. (7days for mites and 10 days for lice) My girls are very tame when they see the bottle (preventive maintenance for me) so I slowly flip them over and put some on their vent and under the wings. When they get up and shake it spreads it all around. If your girls are not used to it you may need help in holding them and try one of the other ways people do it. Some put the dust in a sock and pat the sock on the areas as close to the skin as possible. Others do a "shake and bake" method where they but the dust in a pillow case or bag, add the chicken in the bag keeping the head out, and shake the bag around them so they get completely covered. Keep the dust off of their head. If you have it you want to treat your entire flock. I haven't tried the shake and bake method but I have tried the sock. The sock works great but it takes me too much time to do with a large flock.