new owner wondering if my hen's butt is supposed to look like that

[Longton]

I am a proud and excited hen owner. I have 7 total, but only one is of egg laying age. She is around 6 months old and has been laying for almost a month. I have noticed lately that her butt looks pretty gross. Not white or yeasty looking, but just poopy and un-clean. Is this normal? I'm a little freaked out and think I may call the vet. I think I may be over worried though too, since I haven't experienced this before. Is it just from her defecating? Should I add anything to her diet, to keep her cleaner? Are there any suggestions on how to clean her off? Is this just what a laying hen's butt is supposed to look like? I change out their water regularly, and keep their food dry and clean. They eat a mix of poultry pellet feed, cracked corn and barley. I toss in fresh grass and leafy garden cast offs daily as well. I do not feed them meat, animal products, or garbage. I don't give them antibiotics either. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

 

[b.hromada]

First, let me say,

and

from S. Florida! Glad you joined us all! Sometimes our hens butts do get dirty. Do you mean like, poop is stuck to her feathers dirty? If thats the case, you may give her a bath, use some baby shampoo, and soap up her bottom well, this should dissolve all the poop there. I've got a couple little girls, and their butts always get dirty. Good luck. Maybe someone else will have more ideas for you too.

 

[poseygrace]

What breed is she? I've noticed some of my "furrier" breeds (Cochins, Wyandottes) tend to get poo stuck in the feathers on the vent area. I bring a warm bucket of water and rag to the coop, pick her up and dunk her bottom, then use the rag to "pull" off the poo. If it's really hardened, I'll use some scissors and just trim it out.

What does their poo look like? If they have diarrhea, it could be a sign of something serious. The poo should be in solid chunks, although they do get "the runs" when they are very excited or scared (mine get brown, runny poo every time I bring treats, LOL!) But if it's really watery and doesn't go away, I'd be concerned.

Good luck to you, and welcome!

 

[sheaviance1]

My hens look much worse around their bottoms when they have been dustbathing a whole lot. Then you have mud and poo, and it just looks terrible, at least until they shake real good, then they look normal.

 

[gritsar]

To save your chicken the stress of a trip to the vet's office - if you could even find a vet that will see chickens - you might try to collect up a "sampling" of droppings, i.e., a little bit from several piles and take that to the vet for a fecal float. Fecal floats are an inexpensive way to check for worms; usually under $10.

If not worms, then like the others have said, probably just a girl that gets poo on herself.

BTW, you don't want to confuse cecal poo with diarrhea or even loose stools from drinking alot of water when it's hot. All of my chickens have runny stools right now because it's extremely hot and they are taking in more water than feed. Cecal poo is normal - looks like melted chocolate - and happens every 6 to 10 movements.