Deep Dark Brick Red Poop

[Maeschak]

Hello all-

I have a chicken (no clue which chicken) with really oddly colored poop. I've looked through hundreds of pages of chicken poop pics and haven't seen anything similar.

The poop overall looks very healthy in shape and consistency (firm, minutely grained, shaped like the top of an ice cream cone, even with the white cap occasionally).

Anyway, it is uniformly deep red/brown (more on the red side). It looks sort of like a 'red' clay you might use in an art class that has been hydrated to a good modeling consistency. I don't have pictures due to the rains we are having but if you have seen this color you will know exactly what I am talking about.

And it definitely is not a smattering of blood or the like- it is a uniform clay like consistency and color.

So has anyone ever seen this?

 

[rebrascora]

It sounds like the colour my Marans are pooping at the moment... past 3-4 weeks. Do your girls free range at all? Just guessing it might be dietary. My Marans hop out of their pen every day to forage in the garden but I see this colour on the poop board a lot whereas the welsummers who are good girls and stay in the pen seem to be a more normal colour. It's night time here so I can't get a photo for you to compare. My girls are healthy and active and just come back into lay so I'm not overly concerned about the colour of their poop.

 

[Sassysouth]

Do you have a picture you can post?

 

[staceyj]

I see you're in Maryland, (my home state!)
what's your soil like there?
what have you been feeding?
Do you have a garden or compost pile?

 

[Maeschak]

Do you have a picture you can post?

Not at the moment due to rains but I'm not sure I could get one even if it wasn't raining as I don't think the color would come through correctly.

 

[JudysMuscovy]

My girls poop is sometimes like that and I have determined it's the feed. Something they ate.

 

[Maeschak]

It sounds like the colour my Marans are pooping at the moment... past 3-4 weeks. Do your girls free range at all? Just guessing it might be dietary. My Marans hop out of their pen every day to forage in the garden but I see this colour on the poop board a lot whereas the welsummers who are good girls and stay in the pen seem to be a more normal colour. It's night time here so I can't get a photo for you to compare. My girls are healthy and active and just come back into lay so I'm not overly concerned about the colour of their poop.

Yes, they free range on a farm so they have access to cow poop (which they gleefully pick through!), pasture, stream, woods, compost, or anything they can get to. (Cow feed has not changed). My chicken feed is non-gmo locally produced. The only recent change is that I have control over is the chicken mineral I use. I buy the mineral bulk from the farmer so the tag didn't come with the bag. All the chickens eat this feed with the new mineral and it looks like only 1 chicken (or very very few chickens) are pooping this color.
I guess there is one other change- about half of my 3 dozen strong flock are fairly new layers (so perhaps hormones?)
And all the chickens look healthy and active- actually the poop is so well formed and healthy looking besides the color I'm not very worried- I'm just extremely perplexed at the color! I can't find a similar picture anywhere.

Actually, you know what it looks like? When a dog eats way too many bones and the calcium turn a dogs poop whitish...the poop is the same old poop but white... Only the chickens poop is a deep dark terracotta red.

 

[Maeschak]

I see you're in Maryland, (my home state!)
what's your soil like there?
what have you been feeding?
Do you have a garden or compost pile?

Yeah! Maryland!
Right now the soil is wet- but it is normal farming soil found outside of DC. Not really sure how to describe it. It is suitable to corn, soy, hay grasses, etc. feed is non-gmo from a farmer near PA (corn, wheat, soy, mineral). I did just change chicken mineral, however. But- only 1 or 2 chickens are pooping this color out of 3 dozen chickens.
And yes, they have access to compost plus pasture, crop land, trees, cow patties, etc.

 

[Maeschak]

My girls poop is sometimes like that and I have determined it's the feed. Something they ate.

Yeah, that is what I'm starting to think.

 

[staceyj]

Until you have a chance to get some good photos - and please DO!
Don't be shy!
Poop is a VERY popular subject here!

Blood in poop is bright red when fresh (active bleeding). Blood is
dark or black, when it's old or digested (from a bleed higher up the GI tract).

Aside from a pile of forgotten beets in your compost pile I can't think of anything that would change the color so vividly.

It's probably whatever supplement you have begun feeding them in this magical mystery packet. I'd personally want to know exactly what is in it though, because I don't like the idea of not knowing, so maybe you should ask.

Other than that,
I'm going to guess that somewhere on your property there's a finger of really delicious (minerals) "Virginia clay" running through, one of them has found it and shared her secret with just a few friends.

Clay is full of minerals and "micro-nutrients".