This is gross,so i warned ya, I need help, no photos

[zazouse]

I just found one of my hens completely covered on her lower half of he body with something that smells like a rotting animal, i have no idea what this came from,( I free range) i have looked all over and i do not even smell anything but her,GROOSS she was fine when i left for Church

What she has gotten into or rather where she got into i do not know. It just smells dead and she is covered with a black gooey mess

This smell makes me hurl, so i say i got a one shot time to give her a bath,got the 3m mask out ,dish soap and a tub, just waiting for her to come out from under my house.

So has anyone know if dish soap will get the of death out or should i add something else.

Been haven chickens for 40 years and never seen nothing like this, just a skunky smelling Roo once.

 

[oesdog]

Put fresh squeezed Lemon in the water - it will get everything out even Decomp! You may need to use a few!!!!! Path labs use it to get rid of dead body smell ! So should do the trick and harmless to your hen!

Good luck with that!

Oesdog -

 

[suzettex5]

Sounds to me like she may have gotten into some septic tank seepage. Is that possible? Maybe a very old puddle of rancid water somewhere, and she fell/tripped into it.

I dont know if you can use tomato juice on a chicken, followed by Dawn soap (like bird rescuers use when they have birds with oil on them), but you could try it and see if it helps with the smell.

Sorry to hear your girls all icky- NO fun, poor thing!

 

[Suzie]

Do you have Tomato Ketchup ? Bathe in that and it gets rid of the smell! Amazing but it works on Fox poo with my dogs - shampoo has no effect! Good luck and keep your windows open!!!!

 

[AinaWGSD]

My guess would be nasty stagnant water. A friend and I went hiking with the dogs once and were having a debate about whether we were smelling the water along the trail or something dead in the underbrush that we couldn't see. Turns out it was the water....and the dogs just couldn't resist laying in it and rolling in it, and then shaking it off all over the inside of the car. We drove home (2+ hours) with the windows down even though it wasn't really warm enough for it because it was absolutely putrid (and her car still smells like it from time to time if the seats get wet). From what I remember, shampoo did a pretty good job on that smell, but to be safe I would use ketchup or tomato sauce (or google a recipe for home made skunk remover) to be sure to get most of the smell off.

 

[zazouse]

Quote:
Not from the septic or standing old water, definitely something soupy kinda dead.

Weird cause this hen is more a freeloader than a free ranger, she don't get to far from the nest area,feed bowl or roost, so if she got it around there or the house why can't i smell it to,

I am afraid my dogs are going to get a whiff of her and try to roll on her,

I can't just call for her i have 100s of chickens and they will all come running.

Heck even if she comes out i am gona have an awful time getting to work on her

mabe i will wait till tonight, i got to get her clean before she goes into lay an egg, plus i think this is pretty unhealthy for a chicken right?

 

[Mrs. BJ Hensley Jr.]

our septic sometimes leaks top water down the hill when it rains. the soil it runs into is so saturated and it is very humid here so it smells aweful. recently i discovered it has actually made a pond down hill. the up-churns from the septic mixed with the rancid mud is so terrible. id be looking for septic or a stream overflow near by.

 

[zazouse]

Quote:
I thought this might work just did not want to hurt her.

 

[Afrochicken]

ewww

maybe its sewage from a sewage leak??

good luck getting that stink off!

 

[zazouse]

Quote:
I live on 100 acres and there is no sewage leek,i am stumped, she just came out, i decided to wait till tonight that way i won't have so much help from the other chickens

.

Well at least i know the buzzards are flying around for a reason this time, she might better stay in hidding till night falls for she may get mistaken for something already dead