You need to know how to take care of chickens before you buy them. Just like any other animal, they can get sick and they have their own needs.
When chickens get sick, they need medication. Just like us, different illnesses require different medications. Sometimes, chickens get worms. Worms are a kind of parasite. A parasite is a living thing that lives by taking away from another living thing's body. Worms usually live in the digestive system. To get rid of worms, you need de-wormer. This paralyzes the worms so the chickens can poop them out. Outside of the chicken's body, the parasites die very quickly because the environment does not suit their needs. Another two kinds of parasite they can get are lice and mites. Humans get lice, too. But mites prefer birds. To get rid of these, chickens take what is called a 'dirt bath' or a 'dust bath'. They roll around in sand, dirt, or diatomaceous earth. Diatomaceous earth is a dust that's made from the shells of teeny tiny crustaceans. This stuff damages the mites' and lice's exoskeletons. They end up dying. Chickens, just like us, can get colds. They sneeze and wheeze because of bacteria in their respiratory system. To get rid of the cold, you need to separate the sick bird from the flock and feed it nutrient-rich food and give it medicine. You can mix most medicines in their water or get special feed with medicine in it. Whenever you get a new chicken, you can't just put it in your flock. You have to separate them for about a month to make sure they don't bring in new illnesses. Molting is when birds lose their feathers. This usually happens during the late Fall or early Winter. It does not mean that they're sick or dying. It just means that they're getting rid of old feathers and letting new ones grow in. During this time, they need extra protein. As we said before, soldier flies are great sources of protein. So are chicken eggs, which you can cook and feed back to them. Chickens have special needs because they live outside. During the Winter, they can get frostbite on any part of their body without feathers. The colder the weather, the worse it can get. Chickens that live in places with really cold winters need to stay warm. Chickens with a lot of feathers (and feathered feet) tend to do better in colder places. If it rains, chickens need a shelter. They can get cold if they stay out in the rain. It's a myth that chickens and turkeys will drown if they look up during the rain. However, they can still get very cold. Hens need a place to lay their eggs. They want some sort of bedding in it because it won't damage the eggs. They want a safe place to lay their eggs. It might be in a crazy place like on a tractor seat or under a chair, or maybe in a box. But, they will only lay in a place they feel is safe. These are some of the things you will need to know to take care of your cluckers. There will be more pictures of babies and chickens soon, we promise!
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Just two brothers
Nanners & Mashers are brothers who just want to share their birds with the world. Archives
April 2016
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