Vitamins?

[Squirrelgirl88]

I saw a post mention a rooster's comb turning dark on the ends and someone mentioned vitamins. I thought maybe our rooster had experienced frost bite - ohio winters suck after all. But now I'm wondering if it is something else.

What vitamins would be suggested? Is there something else I should be looking for? We've only had him a few weeks, he's not 2 years old yet. I've also just treated him for scaling legs.

 

[CMV]

Have you checked him for bugs and worms? They are the most common of the "simple" poultry problems. Here's a link to a good bug page:

http://ohioline.osu.edu/vme-fact/0018.html

Check him over and let us know what you find.

 

[Squirrelgirl88]

OK - inspection shows no sign of lice or mites on his feathers or skin. His legs look much better after just one treatment with bag balm. I cleaned his legs again today and greased him up again - he hates me by the way.

But his comb actually changes colors through the day! It was bright red this afternoon and then gets dusky later. Is this just a temperature thing?

I have read about ACV in the water, and will start adding that this week. How often on the ACV?

And my first question again - do they make vitamins that I should be giving them?

 

[CMV]

Temperature does affect comb color. Don't worry too much about variances in comb color because that is only an imperfect indicator of health in poultry. The only time I worry about comb color is if the bird is showing other more meaningful signs of illness.

You can use Poly-Vi-Sol without iron marketed for infants. There is also a product called NutriDrench for poultry. These are vitamin supplements appropriate for use in poultry.

I rarely use ACV so I can't tell you a set schedule for its use. Sorry.

I hope this helps. Good luck with him.