ok so my almost 6 month old cockerel has this black stuff all over his face(and some on his neck), it's stuck to his face, and it almost looks like dried up blood. He has the cut(very gross) on is wattle, i can see the flesh inside his wattles and he is breathing weird(kinda congested). And he has this swollen bruise type thing on his earlobe. His breath smells kinda funny, but not really bad or weird. He looks pretty healthy and acts healthy. I do have another cockerel, the same age, breed, size. I though this guy was the dominate rooster b/c he crows more, and is with is flock more. Any suggestions on what's wrong with him and how to treat him? Thanks Here's some pics: What is that on his earlobe? his entire face his eye thanks
He got a good old fashioned a$$ whooping! He fought with another rooster or even dominant hen and if none of your other birds have any sign of fighting, then your rooster in question has been shown his new position in the flock. He will be fine.
Quote:Thanks I was wondering if maybe he just got into a fight. We have around 20 hens........many that are bigger and older than him!!!! I know I've seen a few hens chase him off when he gets near them. Glad I've got nothing to worry about!
I'd say you are looking at the aftermath of the chicken equivalent to a good old fashioned bar fight with him as the floor mop. Get some warm water and wipe him down a bit to get the evidence off of him and, if you have any BluKote handy, dab him a bit on the waddle. Sounds like he might have been strutting his stuff a bit much and someone decided to take him down a notch or three. The breathing thing is probably due to some internal bruising to go along with the outer visible damage as well as a reaction to the pain of the lesson someone taught him. Just keep an eye on him and if he isn't better in a couple of days, you might want to separate him out for a bit.
