eggs on feathers around the vent

[BeckyTal]

When butchering chickens today, the last one we did seemed to have a lot of very tiny eggs on all the feathers right around the vent. It also had some superficial skin damage in small spots. After eviscerating the chicken and moving the carcas out of the way, I opened up the crop, gizzard and intestines, and I didn't SEE anything, but I don't really know what I was looking for. I certainly don't want to give my family parasites, but also don't want to waste a chicken if it is fine to eat it. Any experience with this kind of thing?

 

[Molpet]

Lice eggs

 

[sourland]

Sounds like external parasites - mites or lice. Check the rest of your flock.

 

[Molpet]

https://entomologytoday.org/2016/07/18/battling-chicken-mites-with-bags-of-brimstone/
I put sulfur in the dust bath to prevent

 

[Molpet]

OH perfectly fine to eat

 

[Ridgerunner]

Yes, external parasites that do not live on humans, nothing wrong with the meat at all. Now that you know you have them you need to treat the entire flock.

You mentioned opening the intestines. I do that every time I butcher, looking for roundworms or tapeworms. I've never found any but I figure it is a reasonable thing to check. If one has them they all probably do.