Texas

[ChicKat]

 

[SlipsWife]

*if too graphic let me know and I'll delete from this board. I did post in injury/illness* I'm so upset for my girls.

What is going on?! Everything was fine until about the last week. We brought a rooster back in, he was one we sold a couple of years ago. He's calm, doesn't breed the girls in front of us so how hard he is on them I don't know. He's healthy, nothing apparently wrong with him. We had 16 pullets/hens (6-18 months) before bringing him in and we were getting 10-16 eggs a day. We are now getting 4-8. No obvious molting. 10x15 run, 8x12 coop, free range 1-2 hours a day.

We had to cull one girl a week ago, puss coming from her vent, she had been picked on by the others since her molt, she wasn't in the best shape but I didn't know who to safely separate her with. Everyone else appeared fine until we culled her, then we started noticing blood on eggs. I check them and noticed a couple with bloody vents/scabs. No mites, no obvious pests and I noticed the girl with the head sore. Blue koted all icky bums and head. Added wazine to water. No smell or reason to believe anyone has any infections at this time, just bleeding and scabs.

Could the rooster's spurs cause damage in this area?
Are they doing it to each other because the pecking order is thrown off?
Shouldn't a rooster stop them from hurting each other?
Is it parasites I can't see?
Is the head injury possibly from the rooster but the vents from something else or are the two related? (She could possibly have injured herself by some wire we have around the bottom to keep them from sticking their heads out and dogs getting them).
Is something (rodent?) getting them at nitght? They all roost on the top bar, I guess someone could go to the lower bar to peck but I haven't seen it.

I took out the two worse ones tonight (head spot and really bad vent). I would say 6 have some sort of injury, most are healing. Some are perfectly fine.

What do I need to treat with? Fungal spray? Parasite treatment?

 

[tony55]

Thanks for the welcome!

 

[ChicKat]

*if too graphic let me know and I'll delete from this board. I did post in injury/illness* I'm so upset for my girls.

What is going on?! Everything was fine until about the last week. We brought a rooster back in, he was one we sold a couple of years ago. He's calm, doesn't breed the girls in front of us so how hard he is on them I don't know. He's healthy, nothing apparently wrong with him. We had 16 pullets/hens (6-18 months) before bringing him in and we were getting 10-16 eggs a day. We are now getting 4-8. No obvious molting. 10x15 run, 8x12 coop, free range 1-2 hours a day.

We had to cull one girl a week ago, puss coming from her vent, she had been picked on by the others since her molt, she wasn't in the best shape but I didn't know who to safely separate her with. Everyone else appeared fine until we culled her, then we started noticing blood on eggs. I check them and noticed a couple with bloody vents/scabs. No mites, no obvious pests and I noticed the girl with the head sore. Blue koted all icky bums and head. Added wazine to water. No smell or reason to believe anyone has any infections at this time, just bleeding and scabs.

Could the rooster's spurs cause damage in this area?
Are they doing it to each other because the pecking order is thrown off?
Shouldn't a rooster stop them from hurting each other?
Is it parasites I can't see?
Is the head injury possibly from the rooster but the vents from something else or are the two related? (She could possibly have injured herself by some wire we have around the bottom to keep them from sticking their heads out and dogs getting them).
Is something (rodent?) getting them at nitght? They all roost on the top bar, I guess someone could go to the lower bar to peck but I haven't seen it.

I took out the two worse ones tonight (head spot and really bad vent). I would say 6 have some sort of injury, most are healing. Some are perfectly fine.

What do I need to treat with? Fungal spray? Parasite treatment?

 

[SlipsWife]

Thank you, I'm hoping someone will be able to help guide me on what to do, I feel like there's 20 different directions I can/should/could go. We've never had anything like this happen. At first I thought the egg decline was protest about the new nesting boxes but obviously that wasn't the case. When I first noticed the spots on vents I thought parasites but I've gone out with a flashlight at night and watch and checked everyone and I've never seen anything. I'm worried about treating the area this weekend (which was my game plan) with anything that might irritate their injuries and make them feel worse.

 

[RoosterCogburn7]

How exciting for you! My husband doesn't want a dog around anymore. We have a cat. I was raised with dogs: German Shepherds, fox terriers, Scotties, and Heinz 57s.

What color are the parents? Are they large, medium, or small-sized? Rooster, if you put a warm hot water bottle wrapped in a towel and a ticking clock in the cage with the puppy, that usually quiets them down for the night. Would love to see pictures of the little fellow when you get it. What name do you have picked out? Does it have anything to do with John Wayne?

No. He is going to be named after a old friend of mine, Max. I chose John Wayne, not only because I like him, but when my Muscular Dystrophy manifested, I started to walk like that.

 

[Tumbling K]

Thank you, I'm hoping someone will be able to help guide me on what to do, I feel like there's 20 different directions I can/should/could go. We've never had anything like this happen. At first I thought the egg decline was protest about the new nesting boxes but obviously that wasn't the case. When I first noticed the spots on vents I thought parasites but I've gone out with a flashlight at night and watch and checked everyone and I've never seen anything. I'm worried about treating the area this weekend (which was my game plan) with anything that might irritate their injuries and make them feel worse.

Slips, I happen to know a few folks.....

@casportpony

@RavynFallen

@minihorse927

@WalnutHill

these ladies will be able to help you.

 

[KDMdesigns]

Kajira,
I had one of those growing up, it's funny how they can distinguish sexes and adjust temperament towards us lol Good Luck!

 

[RoosterCogburn7]

*if too graphic let me know and I'll delete from this board. I did post in injury/illness* I'm so upset for my girls.

What is going on?! Everything was fine until about the last week. We brought a rooster back in, he was one we sold a couple of years ago. He's calm, doesn't breed the girls in front of us so how hard he is on them I don't know. He's healthy, nothing apparently wrong with him. We had 16 pullets/hens (6-18 months) before bringing him in and we were getting 10-16 eggs a day. We are now getting 4-8. No obvious molting. 10x15 run, 8x12 coop, free range 1-2 hours a day.

We had to cull one girl a week ago, puss coming from her vent, she had been picked on by the others since her molt, she wasn't in the best shape but I didn't know who to safely separate her with. Everyone else appeared fine until we culled her, then we started noticing blood on eggs. I check them and noticed a couple with bloody vents/scabs. No mites, no obvious pests and I noticed the girl with the head sore. Blue koted all icky bums and head. Added wazine to water. No smell or reason to believe anyone has any infections at this time, just bleeding and scabs.

Could the rooster's spurs cause damage in this area?
Are they doing it to each other because the pecking order is thrown off?
Shouldn't a rooster stop them from hurting each other?
Is it parasites I can't see?
Is the head injury possibly from the rooster but the vents from something else or are the two related? (She could possibly have injured herself by some wire we have around the bottom to keep them from sticking their heads out and dogs getting them).
Is something (rodent?) getting them at nitght? They all roost on the top bar, I guess someone could go to the lower bar to peck but I haven't seen it.

I took out the two worse ones tonight (head spot and really bad vent). I would say 6 have some sort of injury, most are healing. Some are perfectly fine.

What do I need to treat with? Fungal spray? Parasite treatment?






I have a simple question for you, if you will. Do you have hardware cloth in your chicken coops, or chicken wire. Have you found any mice or rat droppings. The reason for this, is Chickens are most vulnerable at night, and these pests tend to be nocturnal and can harm your chickens by nawing on them. We have hardware cloth, and we tried traps, we tried snake shot, mint, sonic. What worked the best was hanging feeders (though the rooster's didn't care for them), the hens loved it. However, if you have the patience and the time, you feed them once a day. My kids do that when they come home from school. They feed each coop, and collect the eggs. So far, no mice or anything of that nature coming around because there is no food source for them.

 

[SlipsWife]

We have seen mice in the chicken area in the past. We started storing their food in a metal trash can and the food is elevated but not hanging. I have notice this past week that there is food all over the coop floor, I filled the container yesterday and it looks like 90% has been dumped out but the container is still on the stand (an upside down bowl that is the same diameter as the bottom of the feeder so there's no 'edge').

I do collect eggs often during the day, I will start feeding them once or twice a day and see if that helps, if nothing else it will help with the waste that's suddenly starting.