A very good article- full of humour and reality! Thank you! I live in a harsh winter zone in Canada, so our priority was insulation and then predators. We designed the coop and run so that we can keep out the obvious criminals- raccoons, foxes, fisher cats (pine martens), black bears, weasels, bobca...

Thanks, Mo. I thought I'd come in to share what I had learned. Luckily these hens are very friendly, I obtained them at less than 12 hours after hatch and they marched to the fron of the tiny cardboard box when I opened it. I swear they all chirped, 'Mother?'. So Ziofi was actually thumping over to ...

I agree, something in the coop has frightened them, check from the rafters to under the floor. Most likely a rodent, but you never know. I don;t think you have rat snakes there, do you?

I was thinking the same thing, Wendy. It's the time of year when the chemical makeup of some plants is particularly intense. Doesn't take much to disturb a chicken's gut. I'd be inclined to limit them to a run for a while and feed only layer feed to see if this makes a difference.

Hen is improving, and I am thankful that I handled this flock a lot from the first day I had them. Everyone in the coop now wants some olive oil by syringe and I figured it was a beneficial skill, so now they'll all take drops easily! Comb and feet normal color, 4/5 of mass gone. Hesitated on saline...

Thanks, manda.
Mass is now cylindrical and hen seems more uncomfortable.
I'm going to isolate her shortly.
hestiant to turn her over now to force a vomit, afraid of aspiration, but will continue massage, oil.

Very concerned about her.
Toes are again a bit blue.

Other things that work are baby oil, mineral oil and 'bag balm'. The mites are microscopic so you end up seeing the results of their damage, and you may have caught this before seeing redness. At any rate, treatment with the above substances can be done simply by rubbing on the legs. Avoid dunking t...

[homepage] [send pm] I've been having a crop problem with a broody hen, Zipfi, since day before yesterday (posting Friday pm). Started with massive crop Wednesday morning, slight blue tinge to top of comp and toes- concerned about her heart/circulation. She would drink but not eat and would find a q...