Raising chickens

[cathyg]

I am raising my first bunch of chicks. They are 5 days old and cute aS can be. I do have one chick however who seems to have no feathers on his butt all the sudden. Anyone know what might be going on and what I should do ?

 

[4H kids and mom]

Even as young as a few days old, chicks begin working on their social structure (pecking order) of their "flock". It could be that the featherless tailed one is somewhere towards the "bottom" of that pecking order, and is being bullied a little by others on 'top'. Or, your brooder may be too small for the amount of chicks you have. If chicks or older chickens over-crowded, they will feather pick, too. Or, if this chick has a pasty bottom, or other injury on its 'backside' other chicks will be drawn to picking at it, which could also be causing the sudden feather loss.

Maybe you could tell us a little more about them. What breed are they? What is your brooder set up like? How many are you raising? These may help others answer in a little more detail.

 

[cathyg]

I have 50 babies, 6 Buff Orpington, 6 Black Austalorps, and 38 Cornish Cross Broilers. They have a 10 x 6 foot (estimate) space with 3 heat lamps, two waters and two feeders. They are all together right now. I thought I would separate my layers from the broilers when they feather out and move to the outside pens.

Am I suppose to do anything with the ones (maybe two) that have a pasty bottom ?

 

[SarahF]

i am also a new chicken mom, the first day i picked up my 6 chicks, one had no feathers on her butt and looked very sick. she died that night. so just keep an eye on it, and like others may suggest, add some vitamin/electrolytes to the water, may help. but who knows, i'm new. good luck!

 

[iwanteggs]

According to what I read. Pasty bottom can kill a chick. Moisten the area with warm water and pick off the paste with your finger nail.

 

[Rebel Chicken]

Take a warm damp washcloth or papertowel and clean off the chick's bottom. You might have to do this a couple times a day. You might even have to pick some of it off. The chick will kick and scream and actlike your killing it, but it'll be fine. If you just leave the pasty butt it stops up the chick and kills it.

 

[AccidentalFarm]

After you have cleaned the pasty butt(s), you can wipe some vaseline on to help keep things from sticking again.

 

[boilerjoe_96]

Let me guess the chick with a bare bottom is a cornish cross?

I am raising them and that happend to a couple of mine. If it is the same it is not so much of a poppy butt, just lack of feathers(or fur or what ever baby chicks have). I too tried to clean the birds and figured out there wasn't much there to wipe off...

I think it is normal. Look over on the Meat Birds board. I had asked about bare belly's. Seems like others have the problem as well. The issue is they are bred to not have a lot of feathers. So what is there wears off easily. Most of my CC's do not have much on their bellys all the way back to the vent.

 

[hen whisperer]

Hmmm... I have hens that are missing many back and wing feathers after mating but they're older. Males are still aggressive when they are young and I did have a young deformed hen that missed many feathers and looked kind of like an eagle. Those are just some suggestions, though. By the way just put eggs in the incubator they're going to hatch in three weeks yay add ons to my other chickens!