Head Shaking

[keitorin]

My rooster has always shook his head around, i never thought much of it until yesterday, i looked it up and he could have an ear infection or gapeworms. he doesn't act like any things bothering him. he's the nicest rooster we've ever had and i'd hate for him to be ill. how can i be sure what is causing the head shaking?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

How often is he shaking his head? (Video?)

Mine shakes his head at times too - watch closely - does he shake his head when he has eaten? Could be adjusting the food in his crop.

Does he shake his head before or after he has made some of his various rooster noises? Crows, growls, etc.? Could be just a rooster thing.

Mine seems to shake his head when one of the ladies is near - he flops his wattles and comb at them

It could be something more sinister, I agree, so observing when he does this will hopefully give us more information. In the meantime, check out his ears to see if there are any mites/lice in them (check his head and neck too). Something else to check would be that his crop is emptying overnight - check it when he goes to bed (roosting) then first thing in the morning before eating/drinking. Night=Full, Morning=Empty.

 

[keitorin]

How often is he shaking his head? (Video?)

Mine shakes his head at times too - watch closely - does he shake his head when he has eaten? Could be adjusting the food in his crop.

Does he shake his head before or after he has made some of his various rooster noises? Crows, growls, etc.? Could be just a rooster thing.

Mine seems to shake his head when one of the ladies is near - he flops his wattles and comb at them

It could be something more sinister, I agree, so observing when he does this will hopefully give us more information. In the meantime, check out his ears to see if there are any mites/lice in them (check his head and neck too). Something else to check would be that his crop is emptying overnight - check it when he goes to bed (roosting) then first thing in the morning before eating/drinking. Night=Full, Morning=Empty.

he's very odd, now that i think about it he isn't even shaking his head, he just wiggles it back and forth. we checked one of my hens with a lot of symptoms for gapeworms and she didn't have any on the q- tip. we gave them some deworming medicine today and i hope they will all get better. he growls sometimes but i think it's just a rooster thing, he's very sweet and has never once attacked me or my grandmother. i'd hate for him to be sick! i'll get a video up soon, thank you!