Pasty Butt?

[justduckie]

What causes pasty butt? I recieved the last of my chicks on Thursday and last night I had to clean every single one of their butts! Some were so bad I had to soak them to get the poo off. They liked the warm water soak, didn't like the picking off of the poo too much. Then I blew them dry on low and stuck them back under their light.

These are my third group of chicks this year and none of the others had pasty butt.

Oh, they are partridge cochins......the others were BRs, arucanas, 2 silkies, 2 (now 1) polish and a RIR.

 

[gumpsgirl]

This is usually caused by the stress from shipping, especially if the poor little things had a rough trip. It is also caused by the chicks getting chilled. Make sure they stay at 90* and away from any drafts. You will also have to clean the little butts off. Not fun, I know!

Members here have lots of different ideas on how to clean those fuzzy little bottoms up. I personally just soaked the poo with a warm paper towel and then pulled it off as it softened. They didn't like it, but it fixed the problem!

Good luck!

 

[cjeanean]

http://home.centurytel.net/thecitychicken/broodchicks.html

http://www.strombergschickens.com/stock/chick_care.php

BEST ANSWER:

http://extension.missouri.edu/explore/qa/poultry0003.htm

"Pasting-up" of the rear of baby chicks (feces sticking and drying below and then sometimes accumulating upwards to even cover the vent) may occur following stress or chilling. This condition also may occur if the young become too hot. Seriousness of this condition depends on the severity and duration of the stress and if the vent area becomes blocked and the chick unable to defecate. In serious cases this accumulation should be removed by carefully softening it with a cloth and warm water. Wear protective gloves and take care in the removal of the crusted material by gently washing and massaging it away. Place the chick into warm comfortable quarters. In fast growing and feathering birds, small accumulations of feces will disappear in a few days as the bird grows and the baby chick down is replaced or dislodged. In moderate cases the pasting only occurs in a relatively small proportion of the birds and is not a serious condition provided the stress condition is not continued.

Jesse Lyons
Animal Sciences

 

[cjeanean]

So I guess as long as the temp is right and stays right, it might be stress. I had the same problem with my first set of chicks, and they came out of it all right. I actually didn't clean it off at all (wasn't sure if I should), I would just check and make sure the vent was not glued shut. Just keep an eye on them, make sure they're warm enough/not too warm, and make sure they don't get glued!!!! LOL!!!!