Pale Comb

[debducttape]

I noticed one of my barred rock hens has a suddenly pale comb. She's not even a year old, and they have all been laying well, considering the cold weather. I separated her from the flock and gave her a good look over. I cannot find anything else wrong with her. She does hang back a bit when they are squabbling over food, but that's really the only symptom I can see. No mites under the wings, feet look good, feathers look good, she is still pretty active. Any idea why she would be looking like this? Do I need to give her any supplements?

 

[Eggcessive]

I would look all over for signs of mites or the dark specks they leave. The chicken mite only comes on them at night, so you might look again at nighttime. Certain worms such as capillaria worms can cause anemia. Valbazen is very effective against all chickens worms at 1/2 ml given by mouth, then repeated in 10 days. If she has stopped laying, her comb could pale. Poultry Nutri-Drench and Poultry Cell supplements both contain iron. A vet might assist you in doing a fecal float on a fresh early morning dropping sample. Here is a good link for Valbazen in small amounts, and one on mites:
http://www.wholesalekennel.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=22_24&products_id=29
http://www.backyardpoultrymag.com/laura_e_john/