Chicken Xperts. . . I Need feather help!(pics) . . UPDATE!!. pg.3

[claud]

Wow. Tough one.

Have you been hatching any eggs from your flock?
Did you ever see any sores on the bottoms of any of their feet?

First glance I thought mites(some are only visible at night).
Then I thought feather picking.

But seems you've eliminated those two......did you treat for mites? I know, I know, we keep coming back to that but it sure fits the scenario.

So, I tend to lean toward a deficiency.
Have you changed their feed before this started happening? New supplier, new brand? Is it wheat based? Just thinking......

 

[vfem]

Dumb question... but with the free ranging... you don't use any chemicals on plants, or grass, or special fertlizers?! Just want to make sure they aren't ingesting miracle gro?!

 

[azelgin]

farrier! :

Before I stick my idea out....Does Bob get to free range too?

Bob was in the breeding pen for a couple of weeks, before he got locked up. So, he has been "cooped up" for about 8 weeks. Before that, yes, he was out and about.​

 

[farrier!]

I did PM you. I was thinking maybe Selenium toxicity. I horses it can show up as brittle hooves.

 

[azelgin]

Quote:
Yes, I have hatched out a couple of batches. Fertility was about 85%
Haven't noticed anybody limping, or sores. Haven't looked that close at the bottom of their feet, Legs all look good. No scaley mites.

First glance I thought mites(some are only visible at night).
Then I thought feather picking.

But seems you've eliminated those two......did you treat for mites? I know, I know, we keep coming back to that but it sure fits the scenario.

So, I tend to lean toward a deficiency.
Have you changed their feed before this started happening? New supplier, new brand? Is it wheat based? Just thinking......

I haven't treated for mites. I wanted to find some evidence, before I went on a mite/lice killing rampage. Not all of them are chewed up. I have a couple of Dutch bantams in with them, that are beautiful. If anybody was going to get picked, it ought to be them.
I haven't change their feed, but I'm going to. We use a local brand right now. The only feed change was adding more protien (34% protien cat food & BOSS) when the first hen started looking so sorry.
I am really thinking they are getting something from our ground, that is screwing up nutrient utilization. Just need to figure out what to do about it.​

 

[farrier!]

This is the best I could come up with right away.
Yhttp://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/213302.htm

 

[azelgin]

farrier! :

I did PM you. I was thinking maybe Selenium toxicity. I horses it can show up as brittle hooves.

Got it! WOW! This is more the direction I'm leaning too. Makes more sense than anything else I can come up with. Now, I can put 2 and 2 together! The link won't come up for me right now, but I'll find out about this. Thanks again.

 

[azelgin]

Well, I think the mystery is starting to be brought to light, thanks to "farrier!". Right now, it looks like a chain of rare events, involving freeranging chickens, natural grasses, selenium toxicity, oxidized copper, chlorinated well water, mule hooves and a few other bizarre things, may be the answer. Many thanks to those with ideas and suggestions, regarding this puzzle. We'll see how everybody looks after the next molt!

BYC is a pretty cool place.

 

[claud]

Quote:
Yes, I have hatched out a couple of batches. Fertility was about 85%
Haven't noticed anybody limping, or sores. Haven't looked that close at the bottom of their feet, Legs all look good. No scaley mites.

First glance I thought mites(some are only visible at night).
Then I thought feather picking.

But seems you've eliminated those two......did you treat for mites? I know, I know, we keep coming back to that but it sure fits the scenario.

So, I tend to lean toward a deficiency.
Have you changed their feed before this started happening? New supplier, new brand? Is it wheat based? Just thinking......

I haven't treated for mites. I wanted to find some evidence, before I went on a mite/lice killing rampage. Not all of them are chewed up. I have a couple of Dutch bantams in with them, that are beautiful. If anybody was going to get picked, it ought to be them.
I haven't change their feed, but I'm going to. We use a local brand right now. The only feed change was adding more protien (34% protien cat food & BOSS) when the first hen started looking so sorry.
I am really thinking they are getting something from our ground, that is screwing up nutrient utilization. Just need to figure out what to do about it.​

What I was thinking was Biotin deficiency. Another symptom is sores on feet and poor hatchability.
The mites I was thinking are only visible at night - usually on roosts but are on birds at night then hide in crevices by day.
Good luck with this.

 

[azelgin]

[
Quote:
My understanding, based on the information I am putting together, is this was the problem. It looks like the damage was done several months ago, back in November/December, but upping the protein and some environmental changes, prevented more serious problems. Feather development was affected, but it didn't appear, until the feathers started going through the wear and tear in the life of a chicken. The older birds weren't affected as much, because there feathere were through growing (just my own theroy). Only a couple of the 14 month olds went through a "mini-molt". Nobody has done a full molt yet. Except my bantams. It explains why my bantams show no symptoms: they have already done a full molt and have new feathers that have grown since the problem took place. I am positive there are no mites, or lice. Sounds a little obstinate on my part, I know, but I REALLY checked these guys over. Several times. Day and night. BIG FLASLIGHT. 10 million candle power. I could have found fleas on a black cat in coal mine easier. I was getting ready to kill off poor Bob, just to get a better look at him. I worked on a ranch in NM, that had a mite/lice problem while I was there, so I know what I am looking for and where they hide. Pull off a piece of wood in a coop and there they are. Spread the feathers enough times and one will show up. I would have loved to have found mites on my chickens, or hiding in the cracks, instead of spending hours trying to find another solution. That would be an easy fix. Hey, this is all just my theroy of what is going on, but nothing else fits this well, so far. I'm going with it, for now. Thanks for putting some thought into this for me. I really appreciate it.