This isn't an emergency yet, judging by how she is still bossy and eating like a horse, but one of the Taichou Twins (7 mo old Light Brahmas, alike as two peas in a pod) has a pretty poopy butt. She is eating and drinking with relish, runs over when I throw out scratch, acting totally normal, but the poop on her butt is black/dark brown. It's not just pieces of poo, it looks like somebody smeared it. (So gross) It is pretty cold winter here, so not everyone is laying yet. Today, however, is unseasonable warm. Is this something I need to take care of with a butt bath, or let it go? My chickens are friendly enough, but do not particularly enjoy being petted, and definitely do not like being picked up. Will a bath stress her out, or is it imperative that the poop come off? Here is the best poop butt picture I could get without her knowing the paparazzi were stalking her. Normal? Bath worthy?
Normal? Yes. Bath-worthy? Entirely up to you though in CO, this time of year, care would have be taken to dry her VERY well before release back into those temperatures. We just had a recent go-round with a few of our fluffy-butts. Was kind of unsightly but didn't appear to be impacting their enjoyment of life. Two reasons we took scissors to their bums: Why wait until it becomes a health issue? Easier to do a bit of a messy, smell trim now than something potentially worse down the road They were pooping on my breakfast. We don't wash/refrigerate eggs and the poop-smears were getting tiresome to scrub right before using the egg Chickens have been doing just fine for thousands of years without us chasing them around with lights, heaters and wash-tubs. Our overzealous desire to provide the best possible care to animals on a very blurry line between livestock and pets is both blessing and curse. Do what you feel is best for your little ones.
Thank you so much for your quick reply! I think I'll try the trim before the bath, especially considering how cold it is. I have noticed a few pretty poopy eggs, and I'm thinking that might be why. This is my first backyard flock, so I think I'm being a bit overprotective.