What to do about my dirty hen . . .

[sammi]

I'd go with play sand..a kid's old swimming pool would work..anything that will hold it and keep it clean.
you add some poultry dust to it..
do check for mites as above poster suggested.
and check her droppings.

 

[FarmerDenise]

When my chickens look very dirty, and it isn't just loose dirt, I give them a nice warm soapy bath in our bathroom.
I have found a tub that is just the right size. The chicken can stand up in it and the water covers her back. I fill the tub with very warm water adding a bit of mild soap to the water. Then I gently lower the chicken into the water. They usually relax into it very quickly. Then I just massage the feathers, basically bathing them the same as you would a dog. Once I have swooshed them around in the soapy water for a while and also let them enjoy the warm bath, I take them out and rinse them under the tap with very warm running water. Then I wrap them in a towel, using a second one to dry them off as best I can.
Then I sit with them and blow dry them on low to warm. This usually takes about an hour. At this stage they are usually not completely dry. I feed the chicken special goodies and give her fresh water. I keep the chicken in the house overnight to make sure she gets good and dry before I put her back outside.
In the summer when the weather is nice and warm I bathe the chicken in the morning, towel dry her and often let them out after that, because it is actually refreshing for them.
I check the temperature of the water and the dryer on my own hands constantly, it has to feel ok to me, not too cold nor too hot.
If I need to bathe a chicken again within a week, (some gunk just doesn't come off that easily) I will give a "rinse bath". After the soap is rinsed from the chicken, I run a fresh bath and add about a tablespoon of some cooking or salad oil to the bath. Then gently put the hen in, swoosh her around and take her out, proceeding with the drying as above. This gives the feathers a light coating of oil to replace that which I washed off.
My hens like being clean and seem to enjoy most of the process. I don't go crazy bathing my chickens, most of the time they manage just fine on their own, but there are those times when nothing but a bath will do the job. So taking a couple of hours or so bathing her to return her to the nice fluffy butt chicken with bright feathers is worth it.