Hi all, I have a chicken that always gets a dirty bum, to the extent I have to break off the hardend poo off the the feathers. I have tried cutting the feathers shorter, washing her and using vaseline, but with no improvement every 2 to 3 weeks I have to clean her off again. Any ideas how to stop ?
If said chicken is a hen, I would check her vent to see what's going on. We had similar symptoms with our favorite New Hampshire Red ("Little Red") and were so sad when it turned out to be a prolapse! Also keep an eye out for behavioral changes.
My hens get messy bums also but all are healthy and happy. My oldest is 8 years old. Not sure what is causing this. They all free range, get starter/grower non-medicated, plenty of free choice oyster shell, fresh water. Yes most will say no starter for laying hens but I have chicks too. With the access to oyster shell I'm not worried. Nice rock hard egg shells. I think I'm overdoing their favorite treats..bird seed and scratch. They get a bit each day. Maybe I'll slow down to just a few times a week. I know they'll hate me.
I have one chook that always seem to have a mesy bum as you describe- I also trim her feathers and have to bathe her every few weeks. At first I thought it may be a condition called Vent Gleet (bit like thrush) and strted to treat accordingly (ie) bathe then spray with anti fungal spay (athletes foot treatment) and then a anti fungal cream in and around vent (canesten). I did this for about a month and didn't really see an improvement. She is happy in every other way so I decided it was bothering me more than her and stopped treatment- I would say if she seems happy and healthy in every other way then dont worry about it!
