Black splotches on comb & head shaking

[livin-green]

Okay--looked at several posts & lots of other photos...What do you guys think about the black splotches on his comb?

Here's the details--eating, drinking, defecating, breeding are all normal. Acts perfectly fine with no weezing, sneezing, etc.
The only thing I have noticed is that he shakes his head--like he's trying to sling water out of his ear or something.

I noticed this last year and was keeping a close eye on him, but NO other sympton came up. Mites?? I figure if it was any kind of pox or favus, it would have either passed by now or there would be plenty of other symptoms.

If you think mites, I do not use any kind of "toxic poison" on my flock, and I really don't want to start now. Does anyone know of a "homeopathic" type natural remedy?? I'm considering selling this cock, so I need to get this resolved as soon as possible.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Wendy'sChicksRock]

I would treat with food grade DE.. in feed and dust him with it.. the black spots look like hen pecking spots to me..
The DE is safe for human's to eat so its about as natural as you can get... here is a link to a great site abot the DE


http://www.earthworkshealth.com

 

[livin-green]

Thanks, Wendy..., so I'm assuming you also think it's mites??

I totally forgot to mention that I use DE in a covered dusting bin in their run. However, the bin was neglected over the fall/winter

, so maybe that's why it is flared back up...?? I was planning on getting it cleaned out & refilled today--guess I should hop to it, huh? I will pin him down and make sure he gets a good dusting, too!

 

[BrattishTaz]

This pic is blurry but I wanted you to see his comb. It was almost completely black after a hawk attack about two weeks before this was taken.
Click to enlarge

Your boy looks like my Archie. He always has some kind of marks on his comb

, they are caused by mosquitos (not this time of year), scrapes, pecks, or whatever else he does to himself. BO's have those big combs that always seem to get in the way. The black marks will heal over a short period of time and his comb will be perfect again....until he runs into something else.

My roo also shakes his head and always has (not excessively). I have checked for mites and lice but never found any. I do plan to treat though because I think my other rooster has lice from the neighbors birds. From what I understand DE is a good preventitive but not as good for treating an infestation. The guy at my feed store suggested Manna Pro Poultry Protector. It is a non-toxic spray that you use on the chickens as well as the coop. I have not used it yet but I did get good feedback when I asked about it on here. It cost me $12.99 for 16 oz.

 

[honeydoll]

My roo shakes his head in the same manner. I did worm in case it was gape. No change. It is a roo thing, I think. Those black spots look like peck marks to me.

Carolyn

 

[livin-green]

Thanks, I may check on that if it doesn't seem to clear up...I had bought permethrin at the co-op last year, but found it out that it will kill your cat, so that's out--never even opened the bottle. Thankfully!! And would you believe that it doesn't state anywhere on it that it's toxic to cats? That really irritates me.

I'll have to check on the Manna Pro stuff--thanks for the suggestion!

 

[livin-green]

Quote:
Thanks!! Hope that's all it is. I can say that he was always a "wuss" to the older hens in the flock, and he still goes in "on the sly" most of the time. So, he probably is hen-pecked!

 

[goldeneggtees]

Hi, we have a fire house right down the block, when the siren goes off, all the hens shake their heads. They sometimes do this when I talk to them loudly, could it be he's sensitive to a sound in his environment?

 

[BrattishTaz]

Quote:
Here are the ingredients if you want to check it out before you buy.

Again it is Manna Pro Poultry Protector

Active ingredients: Potassium Sorbate 1% by weight

Inactive ingredients: Water, Yeast, Citric Acid 99.9%

Works for fleas, mites, ticks, lice.

I'm going to try to find out if it can be used on cats.

 

[BrattishTaz]

Quote:
Mine does it when he crows in front of the sliding glass door.

I think it is the echo.