Sagging comb

[zigzag45]

Hello,
I have a 7 (or so) month old buff orpington that has a slightly sagging comb. Coloring looks good, might be just a slight tad lighter than my other one that's the same age, but not noticeable. She acts healthy, and seems good.

I sprinkle DE in their food, ACV in their water, and am feeding them a grower ration right now (I have some young ones I need to grow up a bit before I switch the group to layer).

One or two of the birds in the group have runny poo. I feed them yogurt off and on, it gets better, then comes back... don't know if that could be related or not.

All that to say, should I be concerned about the sagging comb? If so, what is that often symptomatic of?

Sorry about the pics, she's hard to get a good shot of.

Thanks!

 

[Wyandottes7]

She looks perfectly healthy. Not all chickens have combs that stand up straight. For example, Leghorn combs almost always flop over.

 

[cafarmgirl]

I agree, may just be normal for her.

You mentioned you have hens in the flock who seem to get runny poop on a regular basis you might want to consider deworming all of them if you don't already. The DE and acv will not prevent worms.

 

[K-12 Chickens]

Every chicken is unique; floppy combs in individuals of the same breed is one example. I have three red hybrid "Cherry Egger" hens and one out of the three has a very noticeable floppy comb; one of my five Barred Plymouth Rocks also has a somewhat floppy comb.

 

[zigzag45]

Thanks for the responses. It's nice to know she's in good shape.

I've wondered about worming them (I'm new to this, so haven't had to do it before). I have a bottle of Ivermectin (picked it up, thought I'd need it sometime), but I think it's the wrong kind. It's pour on, and my notes (from other threads on BYC), say to treat their water, 4cc's per gallon of injectable, giving them enough water for 2-3 days. I think I need to go shopping again... figures.

 

[cafarmgirl]

Ivermectin is has also become very ineffective as a wormer for chickens. It's fine for treating mites however. I would suggest Valbazen or Safeguard, both very safe and effective.

 

[Wyandottes7]

Ivermectin is has also become very ineffective as a wormer for chickens. It's fine for treating mites however. I would suggest Valbazen or Safeguard, both very safe and effective.

X2. Safeguard is especially good, as Valbazen is often quite expensive.

 

[zigzag45]

Thanks for the continued help.

I found this:
I've never used ivomec 1% injectable, I dont know the dosage to be given orally. However, it can be added to water to worm your chickens; 4cc per gallon of water, leave it out for them to drink 2 days in a row, then discard, it must be their sole source of water during those 2 days. 14 days later dose them with the safeguard 10% suspension liquid goat wormer; 3cc per gallon of water. Leave it out for 2 days, then discard. It must be their sole source of water. Discard eggs for 14 days after using the ivomec, and 14 days after using the fenbendazole.

and then below it, this:
Ivomec INJECTABLE cannot be mixed with water. Ivermectin POUR-ON can, but I have never seen a good published (backed by research) dose.

from this:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/423896/de-worming-chickens-with-goat-safeguard-fenbendazole

So, do you recommend that I start with ivermectin (pour on or injectable? I'll float either in water). Then, I'll get some Safeguard Goat Dewormer for the second round. Amazon has both Safeguard Goat dewormer and Safeguard Goat Suspension Dewormer, I'm hoping that's the same thing.

Am I overkilling?

Sorry, I've only been doing chickens for 10 months so I don't have an established routine or much knowledge.

Thanks!

 

[cafarmgirl]

I would skip the Ivermectin altogether due to it's lack of efficacy, no point in dosing birds with something that is basically useless. I would use the Safeguard 10% liquid goat dewormer or Valbazen and I would dose each bird directly rather then in the water. Dosing in the water is not nearly as precise a method but if one has many, many birds then dosing individually may not be an option. By dosing each bird you can make sure they get the exact required dosage rather then hit and miss depending on how much a bird drinks per day. In hot weather they would drink a lot more, in cooler weather they'll drink less so to me it's a much less sure way of getting the job done. To my thinking worm resistance is also a concern. When dosing in the water you are feeding worms low levels of wormer, a little at a time over several days. To me that seems like a very good way for them to build resistance to the wormer.

 

[zigzag45]

@cafarmgirl Very good thoughts - thanks for sharing.