Dust bath?

[Old Ben]

So I’m a new chicken owner, and I have a dumb question. Lol get that a lot huh? Anyway, I’ve heard of dust baths of course, but I have never seen one. And being that I just got them today, I’m acting well. Like a mother hen. So a few are sitting down on the ground and scratching under them, this is a dust bath and not a chicken with a bad leg? One or two do it a lot. I’m pretty certain it’s just a dust bath. But I wanted to be sure.

 

[sharkerbaby]

yep, they're dust bathing and being pretty sedate about it. Be forewarned, when they really get into it, they might flop onto their side and looking like they are convulsing - legs kicking, wings flapping, feathers fluffed out, shaking vigorously - it's quite a sight.

 

[lovingmyhens]

So a dust bath is simply a chicken, any age, getting down and dirty in the dirt. They will roll around and throw the dirt up and over themselves. They get all contorted trying to get covered in the dirt. You can go to YouTube and search chicken dust bathing and see them in action. It’s really funny. The dirt helps them control the bugs