Rooster has horrible smell

[Ch8ckenhelp]

Yesterday I noticed an odd smell coming from my rooster, i decided to keep an eye on him from a distance and he's been shaking his head and doing that yawning thing that sick chickens usually do. I decided to wait on it, but I'm getting more concerned by the minute... I'm going to separate him tonight, since he won't let me pick him up during the day. Besides those symptoms, has been acting normal. He's been eating, drinking, growing, taking care of the hens, and his droppings look normal. I just want to figure out what's wrong with him and know if i can treat it. I don't want my whole flock getting sick...

 

[2 many chickens]

Check and make sure there is no hidden wounds. When my last hen had a gaping wound, she developed the worst smell.

 

[Ch8ckenhelp]

Check and make sure there is no hidden wounds. When my last hen had a gaping wound, she developed the worst smell.

That's a good idea, I'll check it out tonight but I'm like 80% sure it's coming from his mouth.

 

[townchicks]

Might have a sour crop, then. If at all possible, you really should catch him and address the issue now, while he is still acting ok. Chickens don't act sick until they are really bad, so they don't attract the eyes of a predator. Maybe you can lure him back to the coop with treats?

 

[Aapomp831]

Sounds like sour crop to me.

 

[Ch8ckenhelp]

Might have a sour crop, then. If at all possible, you really should catch him and address the issue now, while he is still acting ok. Chickens don't act sick until they are really bad, so they don't attract the eyes of a predator. Maybe you can lure him back to the coop with treats?

I can try when I get home. I had to to run some errands

 

[Aapomp831]

I can try when I get home. I had to to run some errands

If you can’t catch him then wait until nighttime when they turn into docile zombies.

 

[Ch8ckenhelp]

If you can’t catch him then wait until nighttime when they turn into docile zombies.

Yeah that's what i was originally gonna do. He's VERY big so he's kind of intimidating to a small woman like me lol. Even if i can get a hold of him, I'll probably need someone else to hold him down while I look him over.

 

[Ch8ckenhelp]

I'm almost home so I'll try to get him seperated. If I can't get him, I'll wait until tonight and update you all then.

 

[Ch8ckenhelp]

Ok so I got a hold of him and his crop feels normal, and the smell isnt nearly as bad as it was this morning. The only things that I saw wrong with him was a lot of poultry lice, which i already knew he had and i've already started treating that. He sounded a little congested but that was the only abnormal thing i saw. He's an orpington mix so he's very fluffy, but as far as I could see, there was no wound on him (besides a little cut on his foot, which was clearly not the source of the smell)
However, there's something I didn't think about before. The whole flock recently got dewormed, so it possible that the smell could be a side effect?