Birds need to be handled...you both need to learn how and learn to tolerate it.
I only handle birds off the roost at night, I don't chase chickens.
My cockbird is very large but pretty docile off the roost at night(once I get this wings pinned down-which can be hard as my hands barely reach around him) put him on my lap with a towel over his head and I can do anything to him.
Sometimes I have to put him on the table or floor cause he's too big for my lap,
my coop is in a large shed so room for a chair and card table...very handy!
I wear a headlight so see what I'm doing and have both hands free.
I would trim his butt feathers to about 1/2" from the skin, then look for bugs.
Might want to isolate him in a crate fr some observations, inducing collecting poop for a fecal float(your vet could probably do that).
Bugs Check:
Have you checked them over real well for mites and/or lice?
Google images of lice/mites and their eggs before the inspection so you'll know what you're looking for.
Part the feathers right down to the skin around vent, head/neck and under wings.
Best done well after dark with a strong flashlight/headlight, easier to 'catch' bird and also to check for the mites that live in structure and only come out at night to feed off roosting birds.
Wipe a white paper towel along the underside of roost to look for red smears(smashed well fed mites).
Isolation crate:
I'd isolate bird in a wire cage within the coop for a day or two....so you can closely monitor their intake of food and water, crop function(checking at night and in morning before providing more feed), and their poops.
Best to put crate right in coop or run so bird is still 'with' the flock.
I like to use a fold-able wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller mesh(1x2) on bottom of crate under tray.
Then you can put tray underneath crate to better observe droppings without it being stepped in. If smaller mesh is carefully installed, tray can still be used inside crate.
I only handle birds off the roost at night, I don't chase chickens.
My cockbird is very large but pretty docile off the roost at night(once I get this wings pinned down-which can be hard as my hands barely reach around him) put him on my lap with a towel over his head and I can do anything to him.
Sometimes I have to put him on the table or floor cause he's too big for my lap,
my coop is in a large shed so room for a chair and card table...very handy!
I wear a headlight so see what I'm doing and have both hands free.
I would trim his butt feathers to about 1/2" from the skin, then look for bugs.
Might want to isolate him in a crate fr some observations, inducing collecting poop for a fecal float(your vet could probably do that).
Bugs Check:
Have you checked them over real well for mites and/or lice?
Google images of lice/mites and their eggs before the inspection so you'll know what you're looking for.
Part the feathers right down to the skin around vent, head/neck and under wings.
Best done well after dark with a strong flashlight/headlight, easier to 'catch' bird and also to check for the mites that live in structure and only come out at night to feed off roosting birds.
Wipe a white paper towel along the underside of roost to look for red smears(smashed well fed mites).
Isolation crate:
I'd isolate bird in a wire cage within the coop for a day or two....so you can closely monitor their intake of food and water, crop function(checking at night and in morning before providing more feed), and their poops.
Best to put crate right in coop or run so bird is still 'with' the flock.
I like to use a fold-able wire dog crate (24"L x 18"W x 21"H) with smaller mesh(1x2) on bottom of crate under tray.
Then you can put tray underneath crate to better observe droppings without it being stepped in. If smaller mesh is carefully installed, tray can still be used inside crate.
