My 4 week old chicks look greasy

[DYEJOB]

My 4 week old chicks are obviously growing in their adult feathers, but they look very greasy. Is this normal? I'm not sure if chickens as a whole wash in water, or not. Anyone?

 

[RosemaryDuck]

My 4 week old chicks are obviously growing in their adult feathers, but they look very greasy. Is this normal? I'm not sure if chickens as a whole wash in water, or not. Anyone?

If you could post some pictures that would help greatly. Chickens don't 'wash' like ducks but they do preen. How often are you cleaning the brooder? What feed are they on?

 

[DYEJOB]

If you could post some pictures that would help greatly. Chickens don't 'wash' like ducks but they do preen. How often are you cleaning the brooder? What feed are they on?

If you could post some pictures that would help greatly. Chickens don't 'wash' like ducks but they do preen. How often are you cleaning the brooder? What feed are they on?

 

[DYEJOB]

Sorry I can't take a good picture, the red light heater doesn't work well for pics. But their bedding (soft pine) is changed weekly, and spot cleaned when needed. They preen non-stop, but omg are chickens filthy creators ?
I tend to obsess and I may be doing that here. The sand bath sounds good but I'm concerned about them eating it like the grit I add to their feed which is starter medicated feed.
My girls are growing in leaps and bounds, yet they are too young to put in an outdoor coop, since we live on the Oregon Coast and temperatures are still in the 40s.
Thanks for the questions, I hope this helps clarify ☺

 

[RosemaryDuck]

Sorry I can't take a good picture, the red light heater doesn't work well for pics. But their bedding (soft pine) is changed weekly, and spot cleaned when needed. They preen non-stop, but omg are chickens filthy creators ?
I tend to obsess and I may be doing that here. The sand bath sounds good but I'm concerned about them eating it like the grit I add to their feed which is starter medicated feed.
My girls are growing in leaps and bounds, yet they are too young to put in an outdoor coop, since we live on the Oregon Coast and temperatures are still in the 40s.
Thanks for the questions, I hope this helps clarify ☺

Sounds like you're doing everything right. Without pictures I can't tell you what's going on, but as long as they're active and healthy they're probably fine. Just keep an eye on them and watch for any issues. Hope this helps!

 

[DYEJOB]

Sounds like you're doing everything right. Without pictures I can't tell you what's going on, but as long as they're active and healthy they're probably fine. Just keep an eye on them and watch for any issues. Hope this helps!

It does, thanks so much ☺

 

[Mamatomany123]

Sorry I can't take a good picture, the red light heater doesn't work well for pics. But their bedding (soft pine) is changed weekly, and spot cleaned when needed. They preen non-stop, but omg are chickens filthy creators ?
I tend to obsess and I may be doing that here. The sand bath sounds good but I'm concerned about them eating it like the grit I add to their feed which is starter medicated feed.
My girls are growing in leaps and bounds, yet they are too young to put in an outdoor coop, since we live on the Oregon Coast and temperatures are still in the 40s.
Thanks for the questions, I hope this helps clarify ☺

Theyll be preening quite a bit because its uncomfortable when the adult feathers come in. I add in a dish of dirt for them to dust bathe in from the day I get them. They pick out rocks for grit,scratch, and dust bathe. At 2 weeks I section off part of the run for them and they spend the day put there.

 

[Boppo]

Did this wiki ever get off the ground? It was a great idea and the original idea was great, but the thread is certainly an unusable mess. I would work to help if people are working on the wiki.