Tiny rooster question?

[my spoiled chickens]

Cute lil guy! I think he is a black breasted red(bb red)old English game bantam if you were wondering

 

[LaFleche]

But second question…he barely eats anything that I ever see which worries me! Is this normal? Don’t they eat regular chicken feed and scratch grain? About all I ever see him show any interest in are tiny pieces of cracked corn. A little bread, but I try not to give him that now that he’s in the coop in hopes he’ll eat more.

A good rooster will stuff the hens with almost all the feed he can get his beak on and only eat the leftovers.
To get him to eat something himself you may need to take him somewhere away and out of sight from the hens. Offer scrambled eggs with rolled fine oats and millet.
Twice a week during molting season I have to feed two of my roosters separately in the evening

How do you deworm a chicken?

You can use Safeguard liquid goat dewormer or Valbazen. Available at your local farm store.

But one foot badly swollen on top between toes and on bottom but no visible scab! Is that bumble foot???

It sounds like it, maybe post some pictures?

 

[SilverBirds]

Question on quarantine? Guess I was stupid! But why quarantine? Contagious disease??? Or what?

Chickens can carry many diseases and parasites without showing any signs of being sick until it's too late. Quarantining allows you to monitor the new bird for any subtle signs of illness that could have been spread throughout the rest of your flock. It's recommended that quarantine be for at least 2-3 weeks minimum. Since the rooster has already come in contact with your hens, quarantining won't do any good. Anything he may have had is now passed on to your girls. I wouldn't worry too much about it though. He seems healthy in the photos and it sounds like he's been in your yard for a while.

 

[Ridgerunner]

he barely eats anything that I ever see which worries me! Is this normal? Don’t they eat regular chicken feed and scratch grain? About all I ever see him show any interest in are tiny pieces of cracked corn. A little bread, but I try not to give him that now that he’s in the coop in hopes he’ll eat more.

He is not laying eggs. Hens that are laying eggs need to eat lot of food to make those eggs. He is small. He does not need a lot of food to maintain and fuel his body, not like a larger chicken does. He tidbits for his girls, shows them where food is so they can get enough nutrition to lay good eggs that will hatch and make strong babies. You may not see him eat much but as long as he is acting healthy I'd assume he is doing great. The vast majority of roosters with a flock do. I consider him showing the girls where food is and letting them eat it a good thing.

How do you deworm a chicken? Is that a common problem because it’s not one I’ve ever dealt with and I’m hoping it’s not because I already can barely make myself eat chicken anymore anyway!

Like any other animal and like humans, chickens can have parasites. Mites, lice, and worms are common ones for chickens though they can have others. I regularly check my chickens for mites and lice. After dark, I look in the vent area with a flashlight looking for mites or eggs. I've never found any. Dad's chickens had them twice in all of the years I spent growing up on the farm. Some people have a constant problem with mites or lice.

There are different kinds of worms that can infect chickens. They require different treatments. Gapeworm and eyeworm are fairly rare and require special treatment. The ones most people talk about on here are roundworms and tapeworms. These live in the digestive system and can drain energy from the chicken.

Roundworms are the most common. For part of their life cycle they use grubs, grasshoppers, or other creepy crawlies the chickens love to eat as part of their life cycle. They may be part of your environment, using other critters than your chickens as hosts. No matter what you do they can reinfect your chickens. if you are in this situation a regular worming schedule is probably a good idea. Sometimes you can get a localized infection and can wipe it out with treatment.

When I butcher my chickens I split some of the intestines open looking for roundworms or tapeworms. I've never found any so I've never treated my chickens for worms. I personally do not like to treat my chickens unless I have a reason to treat them.

They are your chickens. You can treat them for worms if you want to. There is probably a withdrawal period after treatment where you are supposed to not eat the eggs or meat. That withdrawal period will vary depending in which medicine you use.

My suggestion is to learn what a roundworm looks like and look at their poop regularly to see if you see one. Or you can talk to a vet and see if they will do a fecal float, look at their poop and see if they can find evidence of worms. Worms are a legitimate concern, they can be a problem. But not everyone has that problem.

 

[Marsha DeVaughn]

Cute lil guy! I think he is a black breasted red(bb red)old English game bantam if you were wondering

Yes, I was wondering! Thank you! I’ve never had a rooster period and do not think I would want a big one but this little guy is the cutest thing and super sweet!

 

[my spoiled chickens]

Yes, I was wondering! Thank you! I’ve never had a rooster period and do not think I would want a big one but this little guy is the cutest thing and super sweet!

You can spend good money getting a sweet OEGB so you are super lucky to have one just appear

 

[Marsha DeVaughn]

A good rooster will stuff the hens with almost all the feed he can get his beak on and only eat the leftovers.
To get him to eat something himself you may need to take him somewhere away and out of sight from the hens. Offer scrambled eggs with rolled fine oats and millet.
Twice a week during molting season I have to feed two of my roosters separately in the evening

You can use Safeguard liquid goat dewormer or Valbazen. Available at your local farm store.

It sounds like it, maybe post some pictures?

You can spend good money getting a sweet OEGB so you are super lucky to have one just appear

Really??? I had no idea!!!

 

[my spoiled chickens]

Really??? I had no idea!!!

They are a cockfighting breed so they are usually aggressive