Dirty chicken. how to give bath

[ChickDaze]

I have a white leghorn. The ground she walks on is muddy, and she now has a dirty back. (Dratted roo. He wasn't supposed to be able to.) I saw a pamphlet on how to bathe one, but I don't have the vinegar it recomends. Also, would FINESSE work, or would I need to use the oatmeal flea and tick dog shampoo and conditioner? (This question is just because I am usually OCD about clean. I am not showing them.)

Thanks!

 

[mhhousley]

The most important thing is to have a dry dusty patch for them to take their dust baths in. This helps them stave off parasites as well. I see a lot of people who only let their poultry have access to nothing but muddy poopy ground. I'd take some grass seed and sprinkle all over the place. A lot of it will take hold. But there needs to be a dry dusty area. The chickens, provided they aren't constantly in mud will be able to clean themselves. As the mud dries, it will flake off. Plus they groom themselves as well. I can't stress enough though for them to have a dry dusty place to take baths. All mud and poop will lead to disease and dirty coops and eggs. Thats just my opinion.

 

[Stacykins]

Sometimes it isn't access to a dust bath, sometimes it just rains for days on end and turns everything into a muddy marsh. Just finally stopped raining after days of rain here, and while my girls aren't muddy, they could easily have gotten very muddy!

I have to give one girl a bath every few weeks because she has a chronic case of pooey butt and needs her butt fluff cleaned and trimmed to keep that in check. It is sort of a partial bath. I do it in the kitchen sink (which gets cleaned afterward) and warm water. I use a few drops of dawn dish soap, since it is what they use on oil soaked birds. The sink sprayer/hose is a godsend, too. Your girl may definitely NOT like a bath, so you have to keep a good grip on her with one hand, and with the other wash and rinse. Mine is used to it by now, so she stands nicely with her toes in the water and chatters even as she is getting her booty sprayed with the sprayer.

Afterward, you can either towel dry or blow dry. I towel dry since I don't have a blow drier, I find my girl always falls asleep while cuddled up in the towel.

 

[mhhousley]

Well, you could always lay your water house out in the sun and give her a gentle warm shower and wash the mud off. But typically it should dry up and flake off during their own normal grooming.

 

[azygous]

Yes, most chickens are "self-cleaning". However, there are those rare times when chickens appreciate a little help. For example, last week my Ameraucana Francie was in the wrong place at the wrong time and got pooped on her back. She was trying her best to preen it out when I noticed it, but not having much success with the awful mess.

So I filled a wash basin with warm water and a half a cap full of children's bubble bath soak, no tears formula. Usually I give the crew butt- touchups every couple of weeks, involving backing them up to the basin and splashing sudsy water on their rump until the crust softens. But this entailed pretty much a whole bath. Francie was fine with it, almost behaving in a grateful manner.

This children's bubble bath doesn't require rinsing, so I toweled her, then blow-dried her until she reached the damp stage, letting her finish by air-drying as it was a nice evening. This bubble bath liquid is also great for muddy feathered feet. Backing a chicken up to the basin is the best way to bathe feet as it makes them feel balanced and more secure.

I think you'll find that most chickens tolerate bathing much better than you'd think. And almost all of them adore being blow-dried!

 

[mhhousley]

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You guys must have much more tame chickens than me! I can hand feed them, though they are reluctant to do it... other than that and they scream bloody murder! hehe

 

[saladin]

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I'd venture to say that something else is wrong here.

It is not normal to have to bathe a farm animal.

 

[saladin]

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This is not just an opinion; this is the correct advice that you need to follow.

We generally only bathe chickens that are going to be shown or as a dip to help with parasites.

If it has been rainning alot and everything is wet then you can provide a dust bath in a plastic container set inside the coop. Also add some Sevin to it and it will help with parasites.

Farm animals get muddy. They also take care of it themselves over time. Washing a chicken depletes the feathers of their nature oils. Those oils repel water which they need! Even with Show Chickens we generally only was those that are White or extremely dirty (rare) and then it should be done one to two weeks before a show so that the chicken has time to get those feathers back in shape (oiled).

 

[Stacykins]

I know, Saladin. But I am quite fond of her, so I do it. None of my other birds have that issue, and she didn't have it until she got her adult feathers. I haven't found the cause yet, it isn't worms, a diet issue, etc.

 

[BitsyB]

IMHO, washing the occasional poopy butt won't hurt a chicken, in fact it can help them because flies can lay their eggs on poop, and maggots can hatch. Some chickens just seem to get that way more than others, even if there's nothing wrong with them.

Some people's chickens are more than just a farm animal to them, they are their pets, so they like to keep them nice.