Topic of the Week - Maintaining a Healthy Flock

[Rillowen]

Clean,clean clean...... Along with lots of TLC and love.
1) Clean Water
We use small containers for water and electrolytes. That way we rinse out and fill several times a day so they always have clean water and electrolytes to drink.
2) We use dry hay from our field and clean coop every other day.
3) Lots of TLC. We pick up and inspect the flock one by one at least three times a day. This I believe is the most important part. They get used to being handled, so if they do get sick it is easier to get medicine, and care for them. You can catch illness, mites and bugs quicker because you know your birds and how they look when they are healthy. You know your birds and can tell when they are not feeling right.
3) Clean pools. We keep kiddy pools up even for Chickens and Turkeys. They will cool themselves on hot days by standing in the nice cool water. After morning swim time with the ducks if water is dirty we will clean them out and refill.
4) Good Food. We give our flock a very good variety of food. We give feed in small amounts, for the same reason as water. You can always give more. This way containers stay clean... And so does feed. We allow free range during the day. When you are making veggies or fruit for the humans cut up leftovers or peels for your flock.
5) Have an alternative coop to isolate quickly sick family members. Also have separate feed and water containers for your isolation coop.
6) Keep medicine handy at all times. Time can sometimes really matter when family members are sick. Always keep the electrolytes on hand.

Remember the first and foremost. Prevention is better than losing your loved ones.

Wow... complete clean every other day, constant food and water refils and picking up/inspection of each memer 3x a day??. I feel like you must spend the vast majority of your time in the coop then. That's great, and I am glad for you, but I can't afford that, neither can most of us i think. What medicine do you recommend keeping on hand?

 

[Sylvester017]

Wow... complete clean every other day, constant food and water refils and picking up/inspection of each memer 3x a day??. I feel like you must spend the vast majority of your time in the coop then. That's great, and I am glad for you, but I can't afford that, neither can most of us i think. What medicine do you recommend keeping on hand?

Teehee! Seems like no matter what meds we keep on hand, the one med a chicken will need might not be stocked in our chicken first aid kit... but there are bare minimum basics we keep ~ some we refrigerate & others kept in a cabinet.

Dry storage includes vet-wrap stretch bandage, scissors, adhesive tape roll, medicine dropper, mild antiseptic wash, round cotton pads (like makeup remover pads), bacitracin ointment.

Fridge storage would include a mild pet eyewash, VetRX, Corid, wormer product (your choice), chicken vitamins or supplements like electrolytes or probiotics, liquid children's tylenol, baby aspirin tablets , & any meds prescribed by a veterinarian.

People who have lots of birds will have need of more variety in their first aid supplies like syringes, tubing, scalpels, electric toenail files, just to name a few.

Cleaning routines & supplies are just a very personal need depending on environment, climate, number of birds, time, & $$$. And there's always a lot of advice given... some I find very informative & some will be irrelevant for my little flock.

4-bird flock

 

[Rillowen]

Teehee! Seems like no matter what meds we keep on hand, the one med a chicken will need might not be stocked in our chicken first aid kit... but there are bare minimum basics we keep ~ some we refrigerate & others kept in a cabinet.

Dry storage includes vet-wrap stretch bandage, scissors, adhesive tape roll, medicine dropper, mild antiseptic wash, round cotton pads (like makeup remover pads), bacitracin ointment.

Fridge storage would include a mild pet eyewash, VetRX, Corid, wormer product (your choice), chicken vitamins or supplements like electrolytes or probiotics, liquid children's tylenol, baby aspirin tablets , & any meds prescribed by a veterinarian.

People who have lots of birds will have need of more variety in their first aid supplies like syringes, tubing, scalpels, electric toenail files, just to name a few.

Cleaning routines & supplies are just a very personal need depending on environment, climate, number of birds, time, & $$$. And there's always a lot of advice given... some I find very informative & some will be irrelevant for my little flock.

4-bird flock
View attachment 4267179

Thank you for the detailed response!
I have pretty much all of the medical supplies, I'm a mom of 5 small kids.
We just started this year (although I did have chickens as a child/teen as well), I was thinking about stocking up on chicken medicines and felt a bit overwhelmed, Im glad to have a list. There are no bird vets in my area, so i will have to do it myself for anything we need, fortunately I have a pretty good medical/biology background, for instance im pretty confident in my bumble foot corrections, but for more chicken specific problems or how common they are im pretty new.