CHICKENS SICK ALL THE TIME, READY TO GIVE UP!

[aart]

Coop looks too small to me too, even if it is just a dry roost.
There might be enough roost length, but access to said roosts is very tight.
Could cause stress which can degrade overall health.

 

[Mrs. K]

Tighter confinement can really spread disease. While they are not physically confined to the roosting area, the urge to roost is artificially confining them to a very small area.

Set up some roosts in the run, put old shovel handles or branches kitty cornor through the chain link fence. I bet you will have birds spread out.

Mrs K

 

[centrarchid]

Can roost be elevated a couple more feet to allow collection of feces produced at night. Feces ideally dry when in contact with ground bids around. Also consider making so birds have an elevated place to eat where waste is trapped before falling to the ground.

 

[oliviaandjosh4]

We are about to move about half of them to the bigger coop anyways because they are already so big.

& of course once again today I have had bad luck! First, one of my chickens I have been treating with Corid has not been doing as well as the others, she isn't as weak as she was but still when I put her in the run of the pen the young roosters wanted to jump on her and try to mate her and when i pushed them off she would just lay there like she couldn't get up, so I separated her again.

Then, my 4 month old SLW hurt her foot/leg. I found her sitting in the coop and would hop when she would get up. She has her foot turned inward like she can't put pressure on it. Not sure what to do about this & sure don't have a ton of money to spend..

Finally, & sadly when I went to lock up the chickens for the night & did a head count, noticed one of my older hens was missing. Looked all around the yard & cannot find her so I'm thinking something might have got her

I didn't expect keeping chickens to be perfect all the time but I surely did not know how much can go wrong. I swear every week another one is sick or hurt or missing. And I will not have chickens if they can't free range. They were fine all day while neither my husband nor I was home none were missing up until after we had been home for awhile and went inside after changing out the waterers and filling up feeders...during that short time frame it went missing.

My husband doesn't want anymore chickens after this because of how disappointing it can be.. I'm in the same boat!

 

[centrarchid]

Reduce numbers / density and consider poultry netting. I have kept chickens free-range for a long time but never sustained without lots if consideration for predator management. Dogs used to be main input but now things line electrified poultry netting also used.

 

[Amina]

You say your roosters are stressing the others... how many roosters do you have? It's unlikely to explain your chickens getting sick, but if they are also getting injured frequently, it could possibly be that the hens and pullets are hurting themselves while trying to get away from an overmating situation.

 

[oliviaandjosh4]

In our small coop, we have quite a few. We are moving the big ones out today (they are almost 4 months old) into the big coop. And the others, we are selling or giving to our neighbor to raise for meat.
In our big coop we only have one almost five month old welsummer roo. I think the hen that hurt her leg did so jumping or falling off the roost probably.

 

[Free Feather]

Can I see the big coop?

 

[LoveThemBirds]

Im telling you flat out.

You should have a nice bedding,so your run isnt a MUDDY mess.And keep fresh water troughs,and give them daily food resources.Theya lsos hould

I hardly have time to cull they die so quick.. I am thinking it is Coccidiosis that my young birds have, I am gonna buy some Corid & treat all birds ASAP.

Do yall have any recommendations for cleaning out their coop/pen? Would sprinkling diamectaous earth (however you spell it) or something like sevin dust on the ground in their pen help in any way? I want to do it right so that I don't have to worry about it coming back..

make sure the coop is a deep litter method kind (Multch),perferbly.They may have mites.

 

[Free Feather]

For the dog kennel run, I would do a deep litter - make the run a compost pile. If not, it will get muddy and ucky with all those birds walking on it. Throw a tarp over the top of the run if you have one. It will give them more room to keep dry under since the coop is just a dry roost. Put some branches in the run, too. That way you can use the dog kennel like a coop. Clean the red coop as often as possible since there are so many birds in it. You could not properly do deep litter inside that coop.