how to clean white hens?

[frizzleman74]

my 4 month old leghorn somehow got pooped on all over her back, and it is beyond disgusting. Should i not worry about it since she so young, will she go through another juvenile molt? Or should i bathe her? What can i use to make her more white? Any suggestions? Thanks!

 

[Pinky]

You could try misting her with water and it might make her clean it off herself.

 

[bobbieschicks]

My 25 week old Snow White has similar issue - I've been waiting for a really nice day (and when I have the time) to wash it off of her if she doesn't clean it off sooner. I'm hoping to do it tomorrow since it's supposed to be in the upper 50s. It's gross and I doubt she enjoys having such a gross butt. I think it started when she was laying those softshelled eggs. It doesn't interfere with her laying or pooping - but I am going to attempt to help her remove it anyway.

I plan to use warm tap water in a milk jug to wet down the area and hopefully wash it away without having to soak her in a tub. I don't want to have a wet chick on my hands. Especially with weather dipping down to the 30F temps at night.

 

[yakfishgirl]

We have a 20 week old white leghorn who LOVES dust baths. We don't clean her after these. However, she also got rained on by the girls on the upper roost. My 14 y.o. used two big buckets with warm water, one with a bit of baby shampoo and the other one was just rinse water. She dunked her halfway down in the water and gently worked on the worst spots. She then dunked her in the rinse water. She wrapped her in a fluffy towel and some gave her some floor time in an empty bathtub lined with more "dog" towels and the bathroom heater. When she was dry, she returned to the coop.

We had to do this twice and the chicken hasn't suffered from it!

 

[project7030]

I have a white jersey giant named Mae. But shes affectionately known as Mae Mae the dirty bird. She is filthy all the time. I havent bathed her yet, but I will this summer. Shes always covered in dirt, and she also has a crusty butt too.

 

[rolffamily]

I was at a Co-op Kids Contest where a ag teacher was judging meat chickens. He gave a short talk on showing your birds at the fair. His method of washing a bird was to fill a rubbermaid tote with warm water - enough water to submerge the bird up to the neck. Set the chicken in and walk away for 15 minutes. The chicken wil wiggle around and pretty much clean herself without getting hurt or getting away. Remove and dry with a dryer set on low.

Of course, you would want to do this on a warm summer day.

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

I have one dirty/filthy/poopie butted chicken whom I've had to bathe on numerous occasions. I've brought her into the house and bathed her in the kitchen sink. The right side sink is filled with warm, soapy water, the right side sink is filled with warm clear water into which I've poured about a cup of white vinegar.

The chicken in question is very tolerant of the procedure and I'm sure feels so much better when she's done. The soaking off and cleaning of the nasty rear end can take a good 20 minutes, followed by good dunking in the rinse water. I then gently blot her with an old towel and blow dry her off, which can take over 30 minutes because I don't want to put her back outside into a Colorado winter if she has any dampness left.

I don't know what is wrong with this girl though. In a week she'll need another bath. I've taken her to the vet and tried everything suggested on this forum and yet, every time she poops it runs down her back end and sticks. She is shaped sort of differently than my other White Plymouth Rock and I suspect that she has some sort of physical deformity, although she contributes her share of eggs every week.

I'm trying to get up the resolve to butcher her, but I'm having a really hard time since she is so tame and agreeable in general.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

What I used to do with my California Whites who had that happen was to take my warm water hose that we have outside and spray them off with it whilst holding them. I do believe that they appreciated it. But since it is wintertime I'd blow them dry with the hair dryer too.

 

[kcfuerst]

Quote:
On occasion my hens get what I call poopie butt like the one in the photo. I just trim it all off with scissors. It not only gets rid of it, it removes the potential for it to happen again.