I'm raising winter birds indoors for the first time, and am dismayed to find holes in their feet. I've had that 5lb bird with callouses on his feet several times before, but this is different.
First of all, it is appearing in birds that way under 2lbs. IT worsens, and by 3lbs, it's really a problem. At first glance, it looks like a callous, but it's really a hole that occasionally goes right though the foot. 90% of the birds have callouses, 75% have DEEP 'callouses', and 20% have actual holes. In many of the birds, you can see that walking pains them. I don't see any blood.
The birds have been raised on wood chips and (mainly) hay. The flooring has been damper than usual- which prompted the switch to kiln dried wood shavings.
A processor I used commented on the condition of the birds, and stated that she often found birds from the hatchery (Moyers) to be sub-par. I just started using them this fall, and the change pretty much coincides with the move indoors.
Any ideas?
First of all, it is appearing in birds that way under 2lbs. IT worsens, and by 3lbs, it's really a problem. At first glance, it looks like a callous, but it's really a hole that occasionally goes right though the foot. 90% of the birds have callouses, 75% have DEEP 'callouses', and 20% have actual holes. In many of the birds, you can see that walking pains them. I don't see any blood.
The birds have been raised on wood chips and (mainly) hay. The flooring has been damper than usual- which prompted the switch to kiln dried wood shavings.
A processor I used commented on the condition of the birds, and stated that she often found birds from the hatchery (Moyers) to be sub-par. I just started using them this fall, and the change pretty much coincides with the move indoors.
Any ideas?
