Chicken's comb

[RaniaH]

Being a new chicken mom, I worry about every little thing that comes to my girls. With that being said this evening I noticed that there was dried blood around my 15 wk old chicken. I just for in from cleaning it with a wet rag. To my knowledge I have noticed them pecking each other but I did notice that her comb is getting bigger. Is it possible/normal for a chickens comb to bleed when the comb comes in or gets bigger. When I cleaned it she didn't seem to be bothered by it, she was actually pretty calm. Any feedback or suggestions is greatly appreciated.

Thanks, Rania

 

[Michael Apple]

Likely the hen was pecked by another and that is where the injury occurred. Keep an eye on who the offender is. You can separate the bully form the other hens for a couple days and upon bringing it back into the flock, it will be lower on the pecking order. If that doesn't work, and the bully bird is injuring other birds, take the bully out to the car and burn the tip of the top beak back an eighth of an inch with a car cigarette lighter. It won't harm the bird or inhibit it's ability to eat, but will have some sensitivity and be less likely to pick at the others.

 

[RaniaH]

It's weird because I was with them all day and they were fine. The one thing I can think of is she was scratching by fence line. The root of I neighbor's tree runs right underneath my fence and there's a little opening. She may have stuck her head there and may have injured it accidentally. I will still monitor them just to make sure.