what is normal preening behavior?

[kearly2015]

Hello,

We have 3 hens, all adopted locally around 10 weeks of age. They started laying eggs July 30th.

I posted a question about a neck injury on one of the hens last week (in the injuries section of the forums). It seemed minor, but it resulted in dried blood on her neck. A responder to that post suggested it was likely just a peck from another hen. But today she had more blood in the same area (right side of neck, near the ear), and the other hens are preening her feathers (at least we think that's what they are doing?!) This hen with the injury also has a toe that seems to have dried blood on it. Both signs of blood are on her right side. Could she be scratching her own neck, maybe due to mites, to the point of bleeding?

Our hens have access to a very large fenced area during the day (a former garden space). They dust bathe regularly out there.

They are secured in a hen house at night. The house includes 2 nest boxes. We use pine shavings and straw for their bedding. Perhaps I am not changing the bedding frequently enough? We are trying the layering method, so we cover up any chicken poops with fresh pine shavings each day, but only completely remove and freshen it once a month.

We live in a very arid region. It has also been fairly hot this summer (90's). The hen house is very well ventilated and has willow trees for shade. They have free access to food and water at all times. They do get into our compost bin sometimes -- although the one with the injury (a Plymouth Rock) is rarely seen in the compost. They also get meal worm treats and black sunflower seeds - probably a handful scattered on the ground daily shared among the 3 of them.

Thanks for any suggestions you can offer.

 

[Chicken Girl1]

Hello,

We have 3 hens, all adopted locally around 10 weeks of age. They started laying eggs July 30th.

I posted a question about a neck injury on one of the hens last week (in the injuries section of the forums). It seemed minor, but it resulted in dried blood on her neck. A responder to that post suggested it was likely just a peck from another hen. But today she had more blood in the same area (right side of neck, near the ear), and the other hens are preening her feathers (at least we think that's what they are doing?!) This hen with the injury also has a toe that seems to have dried blood on it. Both signs of blood are on her right side. Could she be scratching her own neck, maybe due to mites, to the point of bleeding?

Our hens have access to a very large fenced area during the day (a former garden space). They dust bathe regularly out there.

They are secured in a hen house at night. The house includes 2 nest boxes. We use pine shavings and straw for their bedding. Perhaps I am not changing the bedding frequently enough? We are trying the layering method, so we cover up any chicken poops with fresh pine shavings each day, but only completely remove and freshen it once a month.

We live in a very arid region. It has also been fairly hot this summer (90's). The hen house is very well ventilated and has willow trees for shade. They have free access to food and water at all times. They do get into our compost bin sometimes -- although the one with the injury (a Plymouth Rock) is rarely seen in the compost. They also get meal worm treats and black sunflower seeds - probably a handful scattered on the ground daily shared among the 3 of them.

Thanks for any suggestions you can offer.

Do you mean the deep liter method?

 

[kearly2015]

Yes, deep litter, thank you!

 

[Chicken Girl1]

Yes, deep litter, thank you!

"The Deep Litter Method is not appropriate during the warmer months since it does generate quite a bit of heat in the coop which you only want in the winter." I'm qouting this article for fress eggs daily, if you want to read the whole article you can by clicking the link: http://fresheggsdaily.com/2012/02/deep-litter-methodcoop-cleaning.html
I think it's great you have compost and stuff to throw to your hens.

 

[aart]

Your layering method with the bedding might create some heat, but it likely has nothing to do with the the bloody neck and foot.

An injury occurred that caused bleeding,
other chickens may have been attracted to the blood and are pecking at it, which can escalate into making the wound much worse.
It may also be irritating or itchy so the hen herself is scratching at it with her foot and the sharp claws may also increase the damage.

Inspect the wound closely and keep it clean, even fairly major wounds heal up pretty quick if allowed to heal.
Inspect the bird for mites or lice by parting the feathers down to the skin around vent, head/neck and under wings.
You might have to isolate her behind mesh to keep the other chickens away from it if they persist in pecking at it.

Hope that gets you on the right track.

 

[Chicken Girl1]

Your layering method with the bedding might create some heat, but it likely has nothing to do with the the bloody neck and foot.

An injury occurred that caused bleeding,
other chickens may have been attracted to the blood and are pecking at it, which can escalate into making the wound much worse.
It may also be irritating or itchy so the hen herself is scratching at it with her foot and the sharp claws may also increase the damage.

Inspect the wound closely and keep it clean, even fairly major wounds heal up pretty quick if allowed to heal.
Inspect the bird for mites or lice by parting the feathers down to the skin around vent, head/neck and under wings.
You might have to isolate her behind mesh to keep the other chickens away from it if they persist in pecking at it.

Hope that gets you on the right track.

x2

 

[kearly2015]

Thank you everyone! Her injury seems to have healed up and so far we haven't seen any other problems. We will be sure to keep an eye on it though.

We live in an extremely windy part of the state, so while I appreciate that deep litter method may cause too much heat, given the amount of air blowing into the coop area, I don't think it's a concern. They don't have direct wind on them 27-7, but their nesting box is not air-tight, so I am sure a bit of air circulates in there.

Thanks again.