Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Pecking.
The dreaded plague you hear about where chickens will literally peck each other to death
isn't something that should ever occur on a backyard farm. Debeaking chicks (cutting the tips off
their beaks—standard practice in commercial chicken operations) isn't something you'd ever need
to do because you will give your flock proper care and feeding. If you have a flock that is turning
on each other, you have a flock that is overly stressed, overly crowded, or way too bored. When a
flock has enough room, a good dust bath, and a new plot of grass to tear up, they won't be think-
ing about pecking each other.
Egg eating.
Occasionally you will have a situation with a hen that is eating eggs. This usually hap-
pens after an egg accidentally breaks (a good reason to maintain proper bedding levels within the
coop and nest boxes) and the hen eats the egg. Once a hen develops a taste for it, it's unfortunately
all too common for that hen to progress to breaking the eggs open on her own. My father-in-law
says only half-jokingly that the best cure for an egg-eating hen is the stew pot. There's usually not a
cure for this behavior, so the hen will need to be removed from the flock.
Respiratory problems.
There are two main causes of respiratory problems that I've seen in chickens.
One is caused by getting damp and chilly, especially in the winter if the chicken coop gets water-
logged or mucky. The second cause is a buildup of ammonia from the chicken manure. If you open
the door to the chicken coop and it smells, it is already too strong for your chickens and needs to be
cleaned out right away. Provide fresh air and good ventilation, as well as protection from the damp
chills. Make sure that manure isn't soggy and too strong by laying down plenty of straw.
thOrny MatterS
One unusual cause of respiratory problems you might not expect are gnats that fly or crawl into the
chickens' sinus cavities at night and suffocate them. While we haven't had this problem in our flock, if you
have a chicken die unexpectedly, check to see if you have a gnat problem. Good ventilation will help, and
you can spray your window screens, or areas where gnats are seen flying, with a soap and water mixture to
kill the gnats when they try to fly in.
Parasites (internal and external).
Dust baths are one of the best provisions against a major infes-
tation of mites or lice. Mites and lice will weaken the flock by drinking their blood and making
them more prone to illness. With regular dust baths and quarantining newcomers to make sure
they aren't infested before introducing them to the flock, you shouldn't have too many problems.
Medicated powders to repel mites can be sprinkled in the nest boxes or dust bathing area if abso-
lutely necessary, but we haven't had to use any of the harsh chemicals in more than 10 years.
Internal parasites or worms are minimized by rotating your chickens on their pasture areas so they
don't overgraze in any one area. There are deworming medications that can be added into their
water, but we use them very rarely in our personal flocks.
