Tiny red balls in poop

[feather13]

Thanks, all, for your replies. I took two photos of the red dots this morning. The first is from a Phoenix who doesn't have any molting/weight issues and the second is from an Easter Egger who also has no molting issues. @aart : We don't have a poop board. The hens roost on poles all over the run. It's usually too hot here for them to use the coop itself for anything other than egg laying. There are always these dots in the poop, although some days more than others. They don't ever elongate or move like worms would. For reference, we use sand in the run that I clean every day and sprinkle with SweetPDZ. Thanks again!

 

[aart]

I think it's something they ingested, rather than intestinal shedding or blood from coccidiosis.
Are the red blobs hard or soft?

 

[getaclue]

My first thought too, was that it's something they're ingesting.

 

[MadGardener]

Well, doesn't look like quinoa!

Do your chickens have access to yard/grass/weeds? I'm not very familiar with weeds in your part of the country, but it sure looks like seeds to me too. If this isn't seasonal, then something that flowers/bears seeds most of the year could be the culprit.

 

[feather13]

Thank you for your responses! @aart the red blobs are on the more solid side (but not rock hard) @MadGardener the chickens free range in a 1/4 acre walled-in area that just has dirt and citrus trees. They don't eat the citrus, as far as I can tell, although they do sometimes eat the leaves. They also eat morning glory vines whenever they grow low enough to get to. We have bees, as well, but they don't eat the dead bees.

As long as no one thinks this could be worms or coccidiosis, I'll just keep monitoring them, stop feeding them snacks, and try to figure out why the three most aggressive hens have bald heads and throats and seem kind of underweight. From what I can tell, they don't get picked on by others, although they will sometimes chase and peck the more submissive chickens. [side note: RIRs and SLs are star layers, but kind of annoying, loud breeds lol]

Thanks again for all your comments! They are much appreciated.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

What color it the grit that you provide?

 

[feather13]

What color it the grit that you provide?

We don't provide any grit since the run is covered in washed, construction sand (based on the advice of this website: https://the-chicken-chick.com/chicken-coop-bedding-sand-litter/) mixed with PDZ, and our bare, naturally sandy, southern California soil when they free range. Should we provide grit anyway? I've checked the sand in the coop carefully and don't see any grains or little rocks that are red. Maybe they eat the sand and this causes issues?

 

[aart]

What color it the grit that you provide?

I thought of that but red piece is not hard.

 

[Prop toe]

Well one thing for sure if it's coccidiosis .Won't be much longer them heads get pale and their beast get thin Cheers

 

[Starburst]

Thank you so much! I'm going to attach two photos to this message. In one, you can see the featherless throat of one of the Sex Links (she's quite pretty, I don't know why her eyes look so disturbing here LOL) and in the other you can see the two SL and the RIR hogging up the treat bowl with their balding, shabby looking heads (I lured them with scratch lol to get a clear photo). They are bossy, but I've never seen them peck each other or other hens relentlessly or aggressively. Oddly enough, they are also the bony/underweight birds despite the fact that they're always first in line for food. Your poor Cupcake! It must be rough to still be molting.

Stress: My daughter has been around the chickens since they were chicks, but I'm the sole caretaker and her schedule is pretty erratic. I travel at least one to two weeks per month, but the rest of the time they either free range outside or spend part of the day in the big coop and run until I come home to let them out. The Crevecoeur and Phoenix always go broody when I'm away and it takes a day or two after I'm back for them to stop.

Protein: The hens are free-fed and have access to two waterers 24/7 (so there's never crowding). The others don't look as shabby, so I'm hoping they're all getting plenty of protein

Parasites: This is my first thought of what could be going on and maybe worms are just affecting these three more than the others. I'll go down before dark and see where they're roosting and in which order. When they had worms before, I could see some. But these are more like dots and don't seem to move (although maybe they're a different kind?) Hopefully I can get a clear photo of one, although sorry in advance for sending gross photos LOL. Upon closer inspection, these three also have black spots on their combs, perhaps fowl pox? I don't see spots on any of the other hens.

Thanks again for all your time and help!

Thank you so much for sharing these pictures! It helps to see what the bald spots look like, and the cause for them. Being underweight could be caused by parasites, but are your Sex Links and Rhode Island Reds actually underweight, or do they appear to be smaller when compared to your other birds? I know that you mentioned that your previous SL was much larger, but it could be that the bird was overweight. For example, the average weight of an RIR is around 6.5-7.5 pounds. I recall my own RIR looking pretty small in size, but she was pretty hefty in weight. Regarding their feather loss, it looks to me to be from feather picking/plucking, but, as @Wyorp Rock mentioned, it's a good idea to check for mites or lice, just to be on the safe side.

Stress: Regarding stress, the birds might be feather-picking when you're away because they might be a little bored without being able to free-range. It doesn't sound like your daughter's way of caring for them is bothering them. Rather, I think they might resort to broody behavior or feather-picking (which could be why there are missing feathers), when there's a change in their usual routine and they can't freely roam. This could also explain why you don't see the chickens usually pecking each other, as they only do it when you're away and aren't free-ranging. (Keep in mind that this is just a theory, and overall, your chickens sound like they're living a very happy life!)

Protein: It sounds like you're giving them plenty of protein, and I'm so glad that they have access to water 24/7! I'm not sure how many treats you give them, aside from their weekly mashed eggs, eggshells, quinoa, and spinach. Besides this, how often do you give them the other treats? (e.g. The black fly larvae.) While this does provide protein, they may need a little less if you give it to them a lot, as they don't hold a ton of nutritional value.

Parasites: As I mentioned above, while the bald spots do look like feather picking and plucking, be sure to check them tonight to see if they have any mites or lice. I'd love to know what you find out!
While spots on the comb can indicate Fowl Pox, my understanding is that the spots are generally larger, wart-like bumps (with dry pox), and can sometimes have a whiteish hue to them. From what I saw in your pictures, the bumps looked like it was most likely caused by a couple of pecks from a fellow chicken in the flock. (My chicken Jasmine often gets similar-looking spots when she's pecked. However, it's a little hard to tell with the pictures you provided, as they weren't focused on the comb.) All that said, I don't know for sure, but I wouldn't worry too much about them. Please feel free to correct me if I'm wrong on that!

Thank you so much for sharing those pictures, and I hope we solve this soon!