what am i doing wrong

[barred rock]

my 13 week old barred rocks poo is runny what am i doing wrong with their diet

 

[Colored Egg Farmer]

you need more info what food. etc free rangeing colore etc.

 

[barred rock]

ive been feeding them scratch feed with things from the garden and the occaisional bread

the poo is clearish with a brown tint

 

[lurky]

Scratch is not feed, its a treat. You need to get them grower feed.

 

[Greyscale Rainbow]

Ditto what Lurky said.

They should have been on chick crumbs from hatch to around 6-8 weeks, then grower crumbles until 18-21 weeks. After that they need layer pellets or mash.

What you are doing right now is the equivalent of giving your child chocolate bars and crisps all the time - they may like it, but they won't grow up to be healthy on a diet like that.

Grower pellets and layers pellets are available at feed stores and the occasional pet shop - I know when I buy grower pellets I don't want to buy 20kg, so I buy it from the pet shop.

 

[arlee453]

I agree that you need to switch to a good grower/starter or layer feed depending on the ages of your chickens. Follow the directions on the bag as far as when to switch over to what feed - it varies slightly from brand to brand.

On the other hand, there is a wide range of 'normal' for chicken poop. Sometimes it's firm, othertimes more runny, sometimes brown, sometimes lighter, sometimes really really smelly, sometimes not so bad.

An occasional runny poop I wouldn't be concerned about at all. It might be some plant they free ranged on that is making the bowels a bit looser.

What you NEVER want to see is blood in the poop - that would indicate a potential infection or parasite, OR completely watery poop that persists.

 

[JennsPeeps]

I agree with arlee453. My chickens have a wide variety of... secretions, most of which I've stepped in barefoot.

You'll notice that the colors change depending upon their diet. Right now my girls' poo is very green due to them foraging in the back yard all day.