Chicken Online Checkup (Warning, Long Post)

[Kaiser Fertilizer]

Because coop is too small for that many birds.

Do you get snow load on the run roof?


Southern or Northern?

Here's how to add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!
View attachment 3217350
Souther

Thanks for telling me about that feature, I live in south eastern Indiana. Yeah I know it is partially because the coop is too small, but I think the problem right now is it's too hot for them in addition to the small coop. They stayed inside all winter, with no problems. Of course, I do need to replace the coop at some point at least, which I do plan on. The good news is another user provided me with a thread about someone who upgraded their prefab coop, which is something I hadn't thought about that much. I plan on doing so as soon as I can.

Also, I've never had bad snow load on my run roof. I designed it in an arched shape so the snow would slide off when the tarp is on, and I remove the tarp when we have bad snowstorms, so it at least takes a while before the the snow can really build up. When I'm concerned about to much weight from either snow or rain, I put up a heavy duty 2 or 2 and 1/2 inch PVC pipe pole to act as extra support, which I plan on buying more of. So no, I thankfully don't have problems with snow and rain buildup.

 

[Kaiser Fertilizer]

They are coming into molt. You didn't post pictures of the areas of missing feathers. The rooster doesn't help matters but they usually stop mating hens in molt.

It sounds like your coop is a prefab and way too small and under-ventilated for the birds. Please post pictures of the setup. I would not force them to sleep in it during temperature extremes. You likely need to expand.

The shell-less eggs could be due to a calcium deficiency. What are you feeding the flock? Do they have free access to oyster shell?

The cecal poop frequency is very normal as are dark poops after eating dark berries.

The leg, comb and wattle color all fade during molt or when the hen takes a break from laying. The colors come back with the hormone increase.

The rooster damage has to be molted out. You should also grab him at night while wearing a headlamp and give him a pedicure. I use heavy dry dog nail, pliers style cutters on the spur tips and his nails then round off edges with a heavy duty file.

Rub a little coconut oil into his comb while you have him down for his pedicure and see if that helps the comb. It doesn't look disconcerting to me.

The sneezing could be due to dust or ammonia build up.

Egg color varies from day to day with the same hen. Sometimes they lay slightly speckled or heavily speckled eggs. It's part of the normal variation of some hens.

Open mouth breathing with the wings held slightly away from the body are classic signs that the bird is hot and trying to cool down. I think it's the main reason why they refuse to enter their coop. Forcing them to do so could kill them.

I make sure never to "manually" put them inside the coop when it's extreme heat, or any time where I think it's way too hot. And even so, my coop includes a miniature run as part of the coop itself (separate from my large run, which they spend most of the day in). So they can leave the wooden part at any time, even if I put them inside. Yes, my coop is prefabricated, so It's really not an idea condition for them. I want to get them a new one but I don't have the money for it right now. I try to make it up to them in any way I can by letting them free range during the day and waiting a few hours after sundown to actually put them in, that is, if I do. 90% of the time I don't put them in but If I ever see signs of animals lurking around I try to put them away. I installed my own ventilation in the nesting boxes that is about 24in wide and 3-4 inches tall. Again, if they are desperate to get out of the heat they can leave the wooden part of the coop and go into the miniature run (that is part of the coop). Again, I try to do ANYTHING to make up for the small space, in terms of their health and happiness, since I know it's not great for them. And I try to get a new coop asap.

 

[Kaiser Fertilizer]

They are coming into molt. You didn't post pictures of the areas of missing feathers. The rooster doesn't help matters but they usually stop mating hens in molt.

It sounds like your coop is a prefab and way too small and under-ventilated for the birds. Please post pictures of the setup. I would not force them to sleep in it during temperature extremes. You likely need to expand.

The shell-less eggs could be due to a calcium deficiency. What are you feeding the flock? Do they have free access to oyster shell?

The cecal poop frequency is very normal as are dark poops after eating dark berries.

The leg, comb and wattle color all fade during molt or when the hen takes a break from laying. The colors come back with the hormone increase.

The rooster damage has to be molted out. You should also grab him at night while wearing a headlamp and give him a pedicure. I use heavy dry dog nail, pliers style cutters on the spur tips and his nails then round off edges with a heavy duty file.

Rub a little coconut oil into his comb while you have him down for his pedicure and see if that helps the comb. It doesn't look disconcerting to me.

The sneezing could be due to dust or ammonia build up.

Egg color varies from day to day with the same hen. Sometimes they lay slightly speckled or heavily speckled eggs. It's part of the normal variation of some hens.

Open mouth breathing with the wings held slightly away from the body are classic signs that the bird is hot and trying to cool down. I think it's the main reason why they refuse to enter their coop. Forcing them to do so could kill them.

Also here's a photo of their backs, it's not great quality. About the oyster shells, I don't have any but sometimes I wash the eggshells after I eat the eggs, microwave them, crush them down into feed size and mix it in with their food. I've heard it's a great way to get them more calcium, but If they need oyster shell's I'll get them that. I haven't had any problems with their shells other than those 4 eggs that one time.

 

[Kaiser Fertilizer]

Welcome to BYC. Where, in general, are you? Climate matters, especially when it comes to housing.

Dobie covered it well, but I'll expand on a couple points,



Here is some basic information about chicken housing,

The Usual Guidelines

For each adult, standard-sized hen you need:

• 4 square feet in the coop (.37 square meters)
• 10 square feet in the run (.93 square meters),
• 1 linear foot of roost (.3 meters),
• 1/4 of a nest box,
• And 1 square foot (.09 square meters) of permanent, 24/7/365 ventilation, preferably located over the birds' heads when they're sitting on the roost.

And coop ventilation: https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/repecka-illustrates-coop-ventilation.77659/



Yellow skinned hens loose pigment from their skin as they lay. One of the signs of a good layer in a yellow-skinned breed is that when she's approaching molt her legs will be pale and "bleached" whereas a poor layer wouldn't be so bleached.

This is one way people can decide who to keep, who to cull, and who to breed without having to use trap nests to keep daily laying records. You'd keep/breed the ones with the palest skin because they laid the most eggs.

I live in Indiana and during the winter they were fine with the small coop of course, because most of the time they seemed pretty comfortable. Even when it got below zero a few nights, the coop seemed room temperature. That was great then, but it's not great now. I think I'm going to secure the coop better and let them sit on top as they have been during the summer. I may even install some poles to roost on if that's nessary, and once it gets cooler they'll hopefully go back in the coop. I'm sorry if I'm being an irresponsible chicken owner... this is my first time owning any pet larger than a hermit crab. They are really my pets though, I don't really use them as egg laying machines. I love them as much as people love their dogs, because they are like my dogs. I want to get them a larger coop in the future and as I said in another response I will do anything I can to make up for the small space. Thankfully they seem fine other than their housing conditions. I keep their water and food clean, and so far the problems I listed here are the only health problems I've had.

 

[3KillerBs]

The tarp on the run of the coop isn't permanently mounted there (I take it off on cool and comfortable sunny days), so I may have to work out something to keep rain out still, in case I forget to put it back one day. My chickens never seemed bothered by the cold, and the area isn't too vulnerable to the winds in it's placement.

A lot of people in snowy areas cover their runs and put plastic around the run walls -- leaving 6-8" of venting on the top -- so they can be sure that the birds have a comfortable place in the winter.