Rooster shaking his head, but no sign of mites/head shaking in hens (video included)

[azygous]

HI I have the same or similar issue. I have 14 hens- all are happy, sexually active (he is a busy guy) and all lay eggs- we get 8-10 eggs daily on average. None of the hens do this. He started it a few months ago, he is about 9 months old. I see zero issues with his head ie mites, or other issues. I can try the things mentioned in this thread- but I was concerned it was some neurologic issue----thankfully other roosters seem to do the same thing. How do I post a short .mov file?

To start your own thread, highly recommended, go up above on the forum title page and click on the "post thread" button. To post a video, you must post first to YouTube and then copy the link and post that on your new thread. It will embed the video on this site so we can view it here.

Head shaking is common among all chickens and may mean nothing. But check the ears for swelling and signs of infection to be safe. Check also the chicken's throat for signs of infection.

 

[Sir Clucks-A-Lot]

I can try to, after I do a little bit of research on it, sure! I don't know if he'll like trying something like that, but if it might help him and it's safe I can give it a try. I just searched up vitamin E deficiency in roosters, and "involuntary head movement" is a symptom, so that could be possible.

Hey, one of my hens is doing the exact same motions. I was wondering if you had any success with the vitamin E treatments?

 

[mtsaz]

He just does it and it seems harmless. He is healthy, the hens are healthy and I think its just a quirk. If it were something else, he would have gotten worse, died or it would have become obvious (what the problem was). Its the same as it was over a year ago so I am not going to worry about it.

 

[Sir Clucks-A-Lot]

He just does it and it seems harmless. He is healthy, the hens are healthy and I think its just a quirk. If it were something else, he would have gotten worse, died or it would have become obvious (what the problem was). Its the same as it was over a year ago so I am not going to worry about it.

Okay, thank you!

 

[TundraGhost]

Hey, one of my hens is doing the exact same motions. I was wondering if you had any success with the vitamin E treatments?

I haven't been noticing my roo make this head motion in quite some time, I'm not sure when it stopped. But I didn't administer any Vitamin E supplements after, I looked for treats that are known for Vitamin E instead. I started giving sunflower seeds as a treat in moderation, I do know to be careful with sunflower seeds though, as they can be fatty apparently. Pumpkin seeds are another food that is listed as good for Vitamin E, and considering the time of year a pumpkin might not be hard to get! Wishing you luck with your hen, and if she's seeming healthy and has no signs of mites it might not be anything to worry too much about