. She had some small bumps on her comb when she started brooding a few days ago which I didn't really notice cause sometimes my chickens get scrapes, etc, but since starting brooding has developed scattered small white pustules on her comb and wattles and one by her beak is larger and scabbing over. As soon as she started brooding, I was so excited, I ordered hatching eggs in the mail (I have no roo) and they will arrive tomorrow. She's been looking a little worse each day since the symptoms started a couple days ago--I don't know if the brooding is contributing and making the pox worse. Her energy seems alright for the 15min/day she gets off the nest...she runs around, picks at grass, rolls in the dirt, eats, drinks and runs back to the nest. Should I try to break her broodiness for her own health? And just toss the new eggs coming? Or should I put the eggs under her to set cause the pox will just take its course? And if I vaccinate any chicks that hatch at a couple days old, will they be ok?
The eggs aren't that expensive, and I really love my hen...guess I could just scramble them and feed the chickens one tasty treat. I was so excited about the new eggs (blue egg EEs), I couldn't even sleep, and now everything seems so terrible...I hate seeing my hen with pox on her.
Also, I just learned that you can pretty cheaply vaccinate for fowl pox so this was all preventable!! For a $6 bottle of vaccine, which is cheaper than the iodine I just bought for $12 to help the pox heal (and cocci, newcastle, infectious bronchitis and marek's are all preventable with vaccines). I'll be doing some major vaccinating once everyone is healthy again. Yes, 2 other hens are showing the same symptoms and 2 aren't. I'm going to the vet Monday, which is the earliest they could fit me in, but I have no idea what the best thing to do is til then. I just hope they don't get wet pox!!!
