Hey Two Crows

[chickie farmer]

Two Crows, maybe you can help me. I've got a rooster with a very red bottom since last summer and it looks wrinkled. He is eating and pooping well. I can't find any mites on him. I went in at night with a flashlight and checked his bottom and a small bare skin above his tale feathers. I also used a magnifying glass and looked for mites but didn't find anything. He scratches all over and his neck feathers are ruffled. I think that is from the hens pecking on him. One hen follows him around just to pick out feathers. I've been giving them protein but it doesn't help. I used blu cote on him because the other hens were pecking at it. The next morning I found out who was doing the pecking by their blue beaks. He is a barred rock and very protective of his girls. I fenced him off from the girls once last summer so I could check them and as soon as he was separated from the hens he went ballistic. attacking the chicken wire, pacing up and down, looking at every small opening trying to get through. and finally he jumped on the top of the barricade (chicken wire) and bent it over and got back with the chickens. then everything was fine with him. Now I have hens who are bare on the bottom and their backs caused from him. I have 7 hens and one roo. I bought a couple of saddles last summer for a couple of hens and the feathers wouldn't come back. but since I took it off of one, they started growing back. I washed one of them and it shrunk about 2'. I still have one left for one of my hens but I afraid the rooster would challenge me again. The last time he attacked me I held him to the ground. then he got up and walked away. So now he has been really nice to me since last summer. I'm putting seven in the nest boxes just in case of mites. One hen is getting a red bottom also and I checked her also for mites. Nothing. I could post this in the health site but thought I'd ask you first. I read your answers and you seem well informed. We are glad you are here to help.

 

[TwoCrows]

Two Crows, maybe you can help me. I've got a rooster with a very red bottom since last summer and it looks wrinkled. He is eating and pooping well. I can't find any mites on him. I went in at night with a flashlight and checked his bottom and a small bare skin above his tale feathers. I also used a magnifying glass and looked for mites but didn't find anything. He scratches all over and his neck feathers are ruffled. I think that is from the hens pecking on him. One hen follows him around just to pick out feathers. I've been giving them protein but it doesn't help. I used blu cote on him because the other hens were pecking at it. The next morning I found out who was doing the pecking by their blue beaks. He is a barred rock and very protective of his girls. I fenced him off from the girls once last summer so I could check them and as soon as he was separated from the hens he went ballistic. attacking the chicken wire, pacing up and down, looking at every small opening trying to get through. and finally he jumped on the top of the barricade (chicken wire) and bent it over and got back with the chickens. then everything was fine with him. Now I have hens who are bare on the bottom and their backs caused from him. I have 7 hens and one roo. I bought a couple of saddles last summer for a couple of hens and the feathers wouldn't come back. but since I took it off of one, they started growing back. I washed one of them and it shrunk about 2'. I still have one left for one of my hens but I afraid the rooster would challenge me again. The last time he attacked me I held him to the ground. then he got up and walked away. So now he has been really nice to me since last summer. I'm putting seven in the nest boxes just in case of mites. One hen is getting a red bottom also and I checked her also for mites. Nothing. I could post this in the health site but thought I'd ask you first. I read your answers and you seem well informed. We are glad you are here to help.

If you are sure this is not mites, or aggression which is a possibility, the only other thing that comes to my mind is a fungal or yeast infection. This can cause feather loss and really red skin. So if these were my birds, and I was sure they had no mites, I would get some vaginal cream. I use the Gyne-lotrimin, (ingredient Clortrimazole) on chickens with sour crop with huge success. Not so much with Monistat. Anyway, I would get some Clotrimazole and rub this onto to the red areas. I would do this every day for a couple weeks. At the same time, I would get them all on probiotics in the water daily. I use a product called ProBios that I get on Amazon. But you can use human grade as well, although more expensive this way. 1 capsule opened and dumped into 1 quart waterer changed daily. Always change probiotics daily and make a new batch.

Also, make sure they are on a good diet. If you don't like the brand you are feeding switch. If you are feeding a brand with Marigold Extract, (for coloring up the yolks), I would get them off that. Marigold can cause allergic reactions and even anaphylactic shock in humans, so I am sure it could cause rashes and allergies in chickens. I would also add some cooked ground turkey or beef fed to them a couple times a week for some high protein food for good feather growth and oils for the skin. Meat will do wonders for health and feather growth, but keep it to a couple times a week.

This is what I would do if this was happening in my flock. Give this a try and keep me posted! Feel free to post in the emergency section for more help should none of this work.

 

[chickie farmer]

Thank you Two Crows, I will try the vaginal cream. I have them on Armada egg layer pellets with 16% protein and it doesn't have marigold in it. Three hens look great with no feather loss and they roost next to the rooster every night. except one has a small bare spot on the front neck of it from pecking at it. about the size of a 50 cent piece. but I haven't seen any there either. I also have a hen (13 months old) that it's back and bottom are starting to turn redish. I will check again for mites before I try your suggestions. I try to help others on the forum but this one had me stumped. Again, thank you. I'll update later to let you know how it's working.

 

[TwoCrows]

Thank you Two Crows, I will try the vaginal cream. I have them on Armada egg layer pellets with 16% protein and it doesn't have marigold in it. Three hens look great with no feather loss and they roost next to the rooster every night. except one has a small bare spot on the front neck of it from pecking at it. about the size of a 50 cent piece. but I haven't seen any there either. I also have a hen (13 months old) that it's back and bottom are starting to turn redish. I will check again for mites before I try your suggestions. I try to help others on the forum but this one had me stumped. Again, thank you. I'll update later to let you know how it's working.

Definitely use the probiotics too. Fungal infections can effect their insides as well. When one part of the body is off, so is the others. The probiotics will help heal them from the inside out. If this is a yeast or fungal infection, just applying the cream might not stop it from coming back unless your work on the insides as well.

 

[subhanalah]

It's the same with people! Any yeast overgrowth starts in an imbalance and overgrowth of yeast in the gut! Amazing.

Keep in mind, you may not be able to see mites.

 

[chickie farmer]

A month ago I had them on probiotics for 2 weeks because their stools were all watery and looked like mush. They did get solid with a few watery ones. and 2 weeks ago, they started getting watery again so I gave them probiotics again and now they are more solid again for about the last week. So far, so good. I am using a galvanized waterer. with plain water right now. I'll put the probiotics back in. How long should I use the probiotics? I'm going in to town today to get some vaginal cream. I've been giving them some cut up hot dogs 2x a week and they look like buzzards chasing after them. I rinse the salt off of them first. I did notice that they are pulling feathers on the rooster and the rooster has spikes 1" long (which I have to take off) constantly riding only two of my nicest hens. I have 2 saddles to put on them but one of them shrunk in the washer. I didn't use the dryer.
subhanala, I looked for mites on their bare skin at night with a magnifying glass and a flashlight, but didn't see anything on any of them. 3 out of eight of them still have all their feathers.

 

[TwoCrows]

I would stop with the hot dogs. Those things are way over processed, over salted and spiced, and of course mystery meats for sure! I would go with plain old ground beef or ground turkey. Real meat with nothing added.

I would also not use a galvanized waterer. Those things can leech zinc and other metals into the water that could be harmful. There could be some metal that is causing a reaction or over dose of a mineral. So if I were you, I would go with plastic. Especially when you add things to water with metal. Never use ACV in a metal container either.

Next, I would separate all roos and allow the hens to regrow their feathers. Keep all feather pickers confined or put pinless peepers on them. You need to stop the feather picking, increase the feather growth and allow these areas to heal.

Use the vaginal cream in case this is fungal, keep up with the probiotics, add some good real meat, separate all feather pickers and separate roos from hens. This is what I would do if this was happening in my flock. I might even consider another brand of food in case the one you are offering is not all that it should be.

 

[chickie farmer]

Thanks TwoCrows, Sorry I didn't respond earlier, we lost our electricity and it just came back on. I was wondering about the hotdogs with the salt in them. How much turkey burger should I give my 8 chickens. Half a lb? We don't eat hamburger because sometimes it tastes like some other animal with a real bad taste. I'll pick up another waterer (plastic). I didn't think the metal waterer was good for them for adding antibiotics or vitamins. But I can't use plastic on the heater in the winter. I put 2 saddles on the worst ones but one of the hens kept pulling on it until it got one side off and when I tried to snap it back on, the rooster was right behind me tapping my heals with his beak. I only have 1 roo with 7 hens. I have to make an addition to the coop for a few more hens. I have a 6x8 coop with a 12 sq. ft. run. so I'll have to separate the run and coop and switch the run chicken wire back and forth over the pop door. I closed the pop door yesterday and had 2 of the worst hens in the coop. I couldn't find the cream you suggested. I couldn't find it at a pharmacy either but I did find Clotrimazole 7 so I used that. The rooster let me know that she heard the noise the hens made when I opened the pop door. He only pecks my boots now. I've looked for higher protein food at Family Farm and Home but they didn't have any for chickens.OH, I have leftover pork, is that ok for chickens?

 

[TwoCrows]

I would go with ground beef, chicken or turkey. Only give them each about a small handful a couple times a week. The cream you found should be fine too.

 

[chickie farmer]

Thank you, I'm having a hard time trying to separate my hens but with a 6x8 coop, I can't see it possible. If I split the coop, either way, they either will have food and water and no nests for eggs and vise versa. plus having trouble getting onto their roosts. I'll probably have to wait and build another addition on the side of the coop. I was out there for 2 hours trying to figure it out. I have to take off the spikes on the rooster again pretty soon, they are about 3/4" long. That is where the feathers are going on their backs and I've only seen one hen plucking feathers on the rooster and she don't on any of the hens. I can't just separate him because he just goes wild until he finds a way back with the girls. He actually fights the fence. He once started digging under the fence I separated them with. I'm afraid to try to put cream on him because he finally quit attacking me and I don't know if he'll start again.Thank you for your help. I'm sorry to bother you so much. I'll figure out something.