underwight chickens

[peehead]

I have a flock of thirteen chickens and a few of them have me concerned.
I noticed a couple of the older ones seemed listless and their feathers ruffled. I checked their wieght and and they seemed pretty light, thier breast bone was prominant so I wormed them just to eliminate that question.

I was thinking maybe since it has been so unusually cold this winter maybe they are burning more energy, so I started adding scratch for some bonus calories. but one of the hens hadn't shown any signs of improvement, in fact she seemed to become weaker.

So I moved her inside so I could monitor her droppings and food and water intake. she eats and drinks pretty good and her droppings seem fine. and she has become more alert in the past two weeks.

My question is what can I add to their diet to help them gain weight?

By the way I would leave the heat lamp on during the day but they never stay in the coop where its warm

 

[V Chic Chick]

Give her lots of nice treats, like grain for one thing

Give her time, we don't put on half a stone in a day so they can't do they equivalent either.

 

[pegbo]

Hi there, try some greens like cabbage, lettuce etc my girls did that last winter about this time I think they're as sick of winter as we are.

 

[bayouchica]

Hi, you may want to check them for mites,...even though it's winter they can be a problem.I've had a time with mites on my chickens.
Mites are easier to find at night with a flash light, check under their vent area and above.They can infest your coop area as well.

Miriam

 

[peehead]

Thank you all for the info.....she is getting more stronger everyday.
Thanks again
peehead