Hen has poop on her butt or butt feathers

[WyncoopFlockMom]

I was putting the hens up for the night (I am currently training them to go to bed in the coop...they really don’t know how or why to go to bed at sunset!!) and I noticed one of my hens had poop on her butt or feathers. I’m not sure.

She has not been acting sickly or anything out of the ordinary. I have 6 hens total but only receive 3-4 eggs a day. I really need to watch which ones are laying and which ones aren’t. But I don’t think she is laying eggs.

I can’t provide pictures or anything like that until tomorrow because they are in the coop. Or maybe I need to go sneak a peek?

Any advice you can give? Do I need to panic? I have heard of washing their butts if they get gross. I can give her a bath tomorrow.

 

[MrFluffyandGirls]

Yes, you can wash her bottom. Probably a good idea to wash it and see whats going on down yonder. Could just be something she ate causing diarrhea or possible start of something like a imbalance like the start of a yeast infection.

 

[CluckerFamily]

If they aren't roosting at night but sleep in the nesting box or on the ground, their butts will get dirty. Do you have hens that produce an egg a day? Mine are EEs and they produce an egg every other day or every three days, they aren't high production chickens.
How old are your hens?

 

[WyncoopFlockMom]

Yes, you can wash her bottom. Probably a good idea to wash it and see whats going on down yonder. Could just be something she ate causing diarrhea or possible start of something like a imbalance like the start of a yeast infection.

What type of soap should I use to wash her bottom? Is there a specific soap?

 

[MrFluffyandGirls]

What type of soap should I use to wash her bottom? Is there a specific soap?

i always just use regular dawn soap or baby shampoo. I fill I little plastic dish tub with water and sit their but down on the soapy water like washing dishes and loosen and wash. then I use my sprayer set on the shower setting on my water hose to gently spray the soap off.

 

[WyncoopFlockMom]

If they aren't roosting at night but sleep in the nesting box or on the ground, their butts will get dirty. Do you have hens that produce an egg a day? Mine are EEs and they produce an egg every other day or every three days, they aren't high production chickens.
How old are your hens?

I am re-training my original rooster and hen, and my new 5 egg laying hens. The 5 newbies didn’t know how to roost as they came to me from a commercial place. I cleaned the whole coop, layed new pine shavings in the nesting boxes and coop, and close off the nesting boxes at night. I have 7 nesting boxes but only open 3 in the morning when I let them out. My husband built 2 small roosts about 6 inches off the ground to help teach them about the roosts. The coop does have 4 higher roosts but are really close together and only 1 hen sleeps up on the roost above one of the smaller roosts we built. Currently, there are 3 hens and the rooster on the small roost. 2 hens sleep in front of them and are not sleeping in any poop that I know of.

To my knowledge, my original hen has not layed any eggs so far. I have an idea of which hens are laying but have not seen with my eyes for proof. The 5 egg layers are Rhode Island reds and I have noticed that every other day I get 3 eggs and then 4 eggs. But I’m not sure which one is laying so I have to do some detective work and also write It down to keep track. I was told my original hen was about 2 yrs old so she may be passed her prime but when I have only had her a month and the 5 hens for 2 weeks. The 5 hens are under 1 yr old.

 

[WyncoopFlockMom]

i always just use regular dawn soap or baby shampoo. I fill I little plastic dish tub with water and sit their but down on the soapy water like washing dishes and loosen and wash. then I use my sprayer set on the shower setting on my water hose to gently spray the soap off.

That sounds easy enough. Knock on wood. I will give her a bath tomorrow to see what’s going on.

 

[WyncoopFlockMom]

That sounds easy enough. Knock on wood. I will give her a bath tomorrow to see what’s going on.

i always just use regular dawn soap or baby shampoo. I fill I little plastic dish tub with water and sit their but down on the soapy water like washing dishes and loosen and wash. then I use my sprayer set on the shower setting on my water hose to gently spray the soap off.

Is there anything I should look for? I’m a new chicken mom.

 

[MrFluffyandGirls]

Is there anything I should look for? I’m a new chicken mom.

LOL! Well nastier smell than you would expect, irritation, parasites...yeah it's pretty gross. You'll know what your dealing with better when you can see whats hiding under the poo. But keep your hopes up, she might just have diarrhea. Mine will get a little messy if eating things that have a high water content or in the summer if they intake more water it can happen.

Or you could just have a extra fluffy butt chicken that the poo got stuck to and built up and she might just need a trim so her poo don't stick to her feathers on the way out.

 

[WyncoopFlockMom]

I was putting the hens up for the night (I am currently training them to go to bed in the coop...they really don’t know how or why to go to bed at sunset!!) and I noticed one of my hens had poop on her butt or feathers. I’m not sure.

She has not been acting sickly or anything out of the ordinary. I have 6 hens total but only receive 3-4 eggs a day. I really need to watch which ones are laying and which ones aren’t. But I don’t think she is laying eggs.

I can’t provide pictures or anything like that until tomorrow because they are in the coop. Or maybe I need to go sneak a peek?

Any advice you can give? Do I need to panic? I have heard of washing their butts if they get gross. I can give her a bath tomorrow.

LOL! Well nastier smell than you would expect, irritation, parasites...yeah it's pretty gross. You'll know what your dealing with better when you can see whats hiding under the poo. But keep your hopes up, she might just have diarrhea. Mine will get a little messy if eating things that have a high water content or in the summer if they intake more water it can happen.

Or you could just have a extra fluffy butt chicken that the poo got stuck to and built up and she might just need a trim so her poo don't stick to her feathers on the way out.

I wiped away some of the poop with wet paper towels to see what I was dealing with before dunking her, don’t need her to be soaked if nothing going on. Guess what I found? NOTHING! That I can tell. I trimmed off the wet and oooooh feathers and will just monitor her for now. I will watch how much water she I takes. Should I be careful with the veggie and fruit scrapes that I’m giving them, since they contain water?