Hi all,
I have several, possibly related, but possibly unrelated things going on with my little flock and I 'm hoping that someone here can help me figure it out.
My BB Roo was acting very lethargic this afternoon. I watched him for quite awhile and his appetite seems normal but I noticed his comb has a bluish tint and looks dirty, like he's had his head in the dirt. When I went back out later to close up the coop and check on him again this evening, he was sitting, not on the roost, but in one of the nesting boxes that no one uses. I also noticed one place where someone had had green diarrhea, but only saw that one spot and not again, and none in the coop when I cleaned this morning.
I also have 3 hens, 2 Ameraucanas (or EEs, not sure) and a RIR hen, all have been great layers. We have not had *any* eggs from the 2 Ameraucanas in 3 days, and I have been noticing lots of white feathers (from one of the ameraucanas only) in the run, in the coop, and in the yard when they free-range. Other than not laying, they seem themselves. The RIR is laying as normal.
Here's the last and maybe most vital clue: We all went through Issac when she blew through here the other day. The chickens were battened down in their coop, but once the winds died down on the 2nd day, I went out in the rain and opened up their coop so that they could be out in their run. It's a covered 20 x 20 run. I had their food hanging from the ceiling in the middle of the run in one of those large galvanized feeders and a home-made plastic bowl to cover the top. I had stocked them up with food before Issac made landfall, but when I checked the food on day 3 post Issac, i found that the food had gotten wet and grown a bit of mold. I cleaned it out, bleached and dried well and then filled it up again. But now all of this is happening and I'm wondering if they have eaten moldy feed and this is what is causing these various symptoms.
Do you think that is it? Or does the Roo have 'blue comb'? Or is it the stress of the storm, too?? Do you have any advice?
TIA,
Denise
I have several, possibly related, but possibly unrelated things going on with my little flock and I 'm hoping that someone here can help me figure it out.
My BB Roo was acting very lethargic this afternoon. I watched him for quite awhile and his appetite seems normal but I noticed his comb has a bluish tint and looks dirty, like he's had his head in the dirt. When I went back out later to close up the coop and check on him again this evening, he was sitting, not on the roost, but in one of the nesting boxes that no one uses. I also noticed one place where someone had had green diarrhea, but only saw that one spot and not again, and none in the coop when I cleaned this morning.
I also have 3 hens, 2 Ameraucanas (or EEs, not sure) and a RIR hen, all have been great layers. We have not had *any* eggs from the 2 Ameraucanas in 3 days, and I have been noticing lots of white feathers (from one of the ameraucanas only) in the run, in the coop, and in the yard when they free-range. Other than not laying, they seem themselves. The RIR is laying as normal.
Here's the last and maybe most vital clue: We all went through Issac when she blew through here the other day. The chickens were battened down in their coop, but once the winds died down on the 2nd day, I went out in the rain and opened up their coop so that they could be out in their run. It's a covered 20 x 20 run. I had their food hanging from the ceiling in the middle of the run in one of those large galvanized feeders and a home-made plastic bowl to cover the top. I had stocked them up with food before Issac made landfall, but when I checked the food on day 3 post Issac, i found that the food had gotten wet and grown a bit of mold. I cleaned it out, bleached and dried well and then filled it up again. But now all of this is happening and I'm wondering if they have eaten moldy feed and this is what is causing these various symptoms.
Do you think that is it? Or does the Roo have 'blue comb'? Or is it the stress of the storm, too?? Do you have any advice?
TIA,
Denise
