Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Labsandchickens8]

Maybe I should post this on the injuries forum, but I find you people so knowledgeable and downright nice, I'm starting here
Below you can see the photo of my Bresse's raw bum below her vent. I of course ran to Google, read up on vent gleet and all the other things, told DH I had a chicken crisis and he needed to come help me. The hwn, Mirabel, did not have a discharge or odor so I don't know that it's vent gleet. She had 2 normal poops so I don't know if it's worms but I ordered Safeguard to arrive today. I'm worming everyone because of some runny poops. We've had an exceptionally rainy summer. I don't think I see worms but the egg laying sure is down.
I decided to give her an Epsom salt bath to get some matted poop feathers off the area and treat with Peck No More. She's head hen but she has seemed a little off and I'm afraid the other hens could peck her there since it's raw. I also wouldn't put it past her to pull out her own feathers if something is bothering her because she's a little manic.
The second picture is her in the box DH made her. Instead of sitting calmly in the box like the hens in YouTube, enjoying her spa bath, she cowered with her head below the hole until the very end. DH wouldn't let me relent and get her out until the time went off. So we sat out there for 20 minutes in the drizzle with her. At the end she finally poked her head out but I didn't get a picture.
Then we wrapped her in a towel, got matted poop off of her butt (DH) and treated with Peck No More. I've checked several times and she seems to be acting normal, for her anyway.
Told DH he wins the good sport award. He's a germphobe, but she's his favorite chicken.
The picture in the box is pitiful. The chickens on YouTube all seemed to enjoy their spa baths.
Any suggestions?

 

[Mother of Chaos]

Two and a half hours yesterday. On and off rain which while inconvenient is much needed.

"We will go foraging when you get off that chair!"
View attachment 4209266
This is something that is becoming very apparent now there is no male to keep the hens active. If I do stuff, they do stuff…

Is this common as chickens age?

I ask because ours seem in endless motion, except for their daily siesta between 11:30 and 3:30 or so. Lots of foraging, but frequent fits of the zoomies as well, both older and younger, and then suddenly stopping, as if they’re playing Red Light, Green Light (“Statues”?)

I often think that they’re burning more calories than they take in.

 

[thistlewick]

+ Before industrial practices were invented, the hens didn’t lay an egg (almost) every day. Breeding programs and crossing high productive breeds for even more eggs created unnatural laying hens.
If you have ex-batts, Isa browns or similar, you should know you chicken is different and needs different food than the old heritage breeds and the backyard mixes who lay sometimes only 60 and often about 200 eggs a year.

Yep, everyone here in this thread is already super familiar with those facts, so it was not necessary to repeat them.

 

[HiEverybirdy]

Maybe I should post this on the injuries forum, but I find you people so knowledgeable and downright nice, I'm starting here
Below you can see the photo of my Bresse's raw bum below her vent. I of course ran to Google, read up on vent gleet and all the other things, told DH I had a chicken crisis and he needed to come help me. The hwn, Mirabel, did not have a discharge or odor so I don't know that it's vent gleet. She had 2 normal poops so I don't know if it's worms but I ordered Safeguard to arrive today. I'm worming everyone because of some runny poops. We've had an exceptionally rainy summer. I don't think I see worms but the egg laying sure is down.
I decided to give her an Epsom salt bath to get some matted poop feathers off the area and treat with Peck No More. She's head hen but she has seemed a little off and I'm afraid the other hens could peck her there since it's raw. I also wouldn't put it past her to pull out her own feathers if something is bothering her because she's a little manic.
The second picture is her in the box DH made her. Instead of sitting calmly in the box like the hens in YouTube, enjoying her spa bath, she cowered with her head below the hole until the very end. DH wouldn't let me relent and get her out until the time went off. So we sat out there for 20 minutes in the drizzle with her. At the end she finally poked her head out but I didn't get a picture.
Then we wrapped her in a towel, got matted poop off of her butt (DH) and treated with Peck No More. I've checked several times and she seems to be acting normal, for her anyway.
Told DH he wins the good sport award. He's a germphobe, but she's his favorite chicken.
The picture in the box is pitiful. The chickens on YouTube all seemed to enjoy their spa baths.
Any suggestions?

This looks like a lot of hens' bums at the end of the laying season. We have a few who always end up with bare bums and dried poop on feathers. By mid-winter, they have bodacious fluffy butts again.

If her butt wasn't a ton worse than this photo prior to the bath, I'd leave her be. No need to stress her over a poopy butt.

When someone really needs a bum bath, I do a fast rinse of the backend with warm water while cradling the bird, and then rub dry with a cloth I'm ready to part with. If you can get even little poop off, the bird can do the rest with dustbathing and preening.

I'm one of those big fans of worming, especially if your birds have spent a lot of time on wet dirt. We've had enough positive worm results on fecal float analysis that I feel confident in treating on a certain schedule. You may want to enlist a vet to test some chicken poop to get a better sense of the wormload you're dealing with. You'll rarely see worms in poop.

 

[Labsandchickens8]

This looks like a lot of hens' bums at the end of the laying season. We have a few who always end up with bare bums and dried poop on feathers. By mid-winter, they have bodacious fluffy butts again.

If her butt wasn't a ton worse than this photo prior to the bath, I'd leave her be. No need to stress her over a poopy butt.

When someone really needs a bum bath, I do a fast rinse of the backend with warm water while cradling the bird, and then rub dry with a cloth I'm ready to part with. If you can get even little poop off, the bird can do the rest with dustbathing and preening.

I'm one of those big fans of worming, especially if your birds have spent a lot of time on wet dirt. We've had enough positive worm results on fecal float analysis that I feel confident in treating on a certain schedule. You may want to enlist a vet to test some chicken poop to get a better sense of the wormload you're dealing with. You'll rarely see worms in poop.

Thank you so much! Another overreaction I guess

 

[Mother of Chaos]

Thank you so much! Another overreaction I guess

No, not at all! A very sensible reaction by a new owner who’s learning the ropes, like so many other of us!

 

[Perris]

photos of the roos are welcome on this thread as well.

Ok, here's up-to-date photos of the youngsters, who are 18-21 weeks now. Glais

Merioneth

Nybro

Wig

I'm keeping (at least for now) Visby

Talgarth

Lulea

and Edfu

I'm sure I've already posted loads of photos of the old guard: Killay, Fforest, Gwynedd, Tintern, Nefyn and Hensol.

I wish I could show those frightened of roos and cockerels how calm it is here despite the presence of *14* roos; maybe it comes over in the photos. A few of the youngsters have started crowing, but no-one's acting like a jerk, yet. The observant will have noticed one missing: Erddig. His toe never properly recovered from the fracture or dislocation he suffered around 12 weeks, and when, at the end of July, it became swollen and started bleeding and he was clearly suffering with it, I euthanized him. He had a good year and a month. And he may have sired Glais, Hay, Merioneth, Talgarth or Wig. RIP Erddig

 

[RoyalChick]

Ok, here's up-to-date photos of the youngsters, who are 18-21 weeks now. Glais
View attachment 4209407
Merioneth
View attachment 4209408
Nybro
View attachment 4209409
Wig
View attachment 4209410
I'm keeping (at least for now) Visby
View attachment 4209419
Talgarth
View attachment 4209411
Lulea
View attachment 4209412
and Edfu
View attachment 4209414
I'm sure I've already posted loads of photos of the old guard: Killay, Fforest, Gwynedd, Tintern, Nefyn and Hensol.

I wish I could show those frightened of roos and cockerels how calm it is here despite the presence of *14* roos; maybe it comes over in the photos. A few of the youngsters have started crowing, but no-one's acting like a jerk, yet. The observant will have noticed one missing: Erddig. His toe never properly recovered from the fracture or dislocation he suffered around 12 weeks, and when, at the end of July, it became swollen and started bleeding and he was clearly suffering with it, I euthanized him. He had a good year and a month. And he may have sired Glais, Hay, Merioneth, Talgarth or Wig. RIP Erddig View attachment 4209425

Well they really are a good looking bunch!