Recent content by Gresh

Glad to hear your hen is improving a little! The last fecal photo you uploaded was definitely encouraging. Your mentioning that she laid a strange, egg-like mass is also very suggestive. This often happens with hens that are getting over being egg-bound or other egg-laying difficulties: the...

Another reason I like EE's is that you can breed them to a general body type fairly easily (after all, many EE's are similar, having beards, pea combs, etc., though some don't). Also, one thing I find so abhorrent in standard chicken breeds is the obsession with exact coloration. Many a healthy...

That's probably a good idea. Letting her out (under supervision) a couple times a day for a 10-15 exercise with her friends would probably help keep her spirits up, not to mention keep her leg from getting stiff.

Sending it in for an autopsy is definitely a good idea. Of course, we're hoping you don't have to!

Hello, folks. After months of searching for the right breed for me, I have found that the breed I find the most appealing is not a breed at all: it's the Easter Egger, the unofficial landrace fowl of America. These birds are a bizarre assortment of just about any breed, but they all have one...

Hm, that sounds bizarre. Are the feather quills the full length of the normal feather, or are they shorter? If they're shorter, they could just be new feathers coming in...often the shafts are the only things showing, and then the feathers come out of the shafts later. Has the chicken molted...

It's possible she injured it while jumping down from the roost. She could have anything as easily mended as a pulled muscle to something more delicate like a hairline fracture. I suggest keeping her in a place where she doesn't have to do a whole lot of walking, and especially not jumping, so...

The pictures are too blurry for me to give you any real suggestions, but I wonder if it's some sort of mite that is causing the orange spots you mentioned. Mite infestations can stress chickens out very badly, if the infestation is severe enough. Then again, it could be some sort of poultry...

Given the general good health of the bird, I think that you don't have anything to worry about. Sometimes dirt can get on a chicken's comb and give it a dark blue or purplish tint that comes off if you wash the comb. However, it would help me more if you could upload a picture of the comb.

Hi there. Welcome to BYC and the chicken-keeping world! I think you'll enjoy everything your birds will have to offer you... Sounds like you've done well so far with the chick. As long as it is able to pass feces and you are keeping an eye on any additional feces that collect, she should get...

A lot of animals can dig up a dead chicken...I would reckon a coon could do the same thing if it were desperate enough. However, I do agree with rottlady that it seems indicative of a fox. Chicken wire is definitely not the best option. "Chicken" wire is really a misnomer...so many poultry...

Sorry to hear about the predator...that's a whole discussion in itself! If the problem gets bad you can always go to the "Predators and Pests" section of the forum...there's all sorts of helpful hints there! Have a good weekend, and Happy Independence Day!

No problem, glad to help. One thing I wanted to ask in my last post but forgot: how long have you been using the DE? Did you start using it before or after the feather loss? I have heard mixed opinions on DE...some praise it like it's fairy dust, then I've also heard others claim it can harm...