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Top 11 Ways to Accidentally Kill Your Chickens

11 ways you can accidentally kill your chickens

Over recent years, many people have taken the plunge and decide to keep chickens.

Unfortunately, some people have done so without doing even basic research into the care and upkeep of their flock.

Subsequently, some birds languish or die simply from a lack of appropriate care or attention.

This is certainly something you don’t want and something which you can easily avoid.

We have put together some of the most common ways chicks’ or chickens’ health and survival can be severely impacted and what you can do to avoid these things.

Ways to Accidentally Kill Your Chickens infographics

11 Ways to Accidentally Kill Your Chickens

Accidentally Kill Your Chickens

Coop Fires

This is the number one cause of death for many chicks. Setting up the heat lamp safely is very important, not only for the safety of your birds but your property too.

The number of coop or barn fires caused by heat lamps that have not been secured correctly is depressing.

In springtime, people get ready for the chicks- preparing the brooder, bedding, etc., and of course, a heat lamp.

The heat of some type is needed to keep the chicks warm through their first few weeks of life.

I cannot stress enough to double and triple-check the securing of the heat lamp. If the lamp falls into the bedding, it will start a fire in less than two minutes as the heat from the lamp is intense.

I have recently used a heating plate for my chicks with great success and little fear of fire. I do, however, use a heat lamp on occasion.

I use a metal chain to suspend the fixture, duct tape to secure the wiring, and an extra securing with strong twine for securing all!

We have talked in our complete guide to raising chickens in winter about heating the coop during winter.

Adult chickens do not need extra heat over the winter. They can keep themselves warm enough; adding a lamp is not necessary.

Family Pets (Dogs!)

Dogs love to chase things- rabbits, cats, the mailman, and baby chicks.

It is their nature to do this, and expecting them not to chase chicks is a bit optimistic.

You can train dogs to interact with chickens, but it takes time and patience on everyone’s behalf.

Puppy playing with Chicken
You need to train them young!

Many folks have dogs and cats happily co-existing with their flock.

Training a puppy is best since they can be trained easily at this age. An older dog can learn, but the process will be longer, and many folks do not have the time or patience for correction training.

If you don’t have the time, ensure that your chickens are safe from your dog. Be aware that smaller terrier-type dogs will dig underwire, so you need to protect against that possibility by burying your wire mesh.

Lack of Security

Chicken is a favorite dinner for many predators- foxes, raccoons, hawks, and so forth, so you need to have top-notch security for your birds.

This is a good place to note that chicken wire keeps chickens in but will not keep predators out!

Many people have found this out the hard way thinking their birds are secure and safe, only to find it wasn’t.

Your coop should be able to withstand an assault from many different sources. Rats, for instance, will gnaw through the base or side of a run to access the feed, eggs, or small chicks.

Always check your coop perimeters weekly for signs of damage.

A good way to ensure they don’t eat through the coop floor is to cover it with half-inch hardware cloth. This prevents them from gaining access to your flock.

We all know how cute raccoons are, right? You won’t think so if one gets into your coop.

They are brilliant and can figure out how to open simple locks. It has been said that if a three-year-old child can open the lock, so can a raccoon. Use locking mechanisms that require an opposable thumb to open- raccoons can’t open these.

Foxes, coyotes, weasels will all try to dig into your run and coop. Be sure that your perimeters are safe, and remember to bury your hardware mesh.

Chicken Coop Buried Chicken Wire

Hawks are difficult to protect against if you pasture your chickens.

Birds of prey are protected species, so they cannot be trapped or harmed. If you have an outside run, try to cover it with wire mesh (chicken wire will do here). If that isn’t possible, string a thick twine or similar across the top of the run in a random fashion.

The idea is to disrupt the bird’s flight path and make it extremely difficult to enter and leave the run from above.

Poison

It is said that if you have poultry, you will have vermin. Rats, mice, voles, and chipmunks will all visit the henhouse looking for food.

There are several ways to deter these visitors, and one of them is the use of poison. Bait stations can be enclosed so that chickens cannot reach the poison itself, but the rodent will leave the station and die somewhere else.

If the chickens find the carcass, they will peck at it and possibly eat it- they can become very ill or die themselves.

There are three different types of poison in common use:

  • Bromethalin: This is a very potent neurotoxin that kills within twenty-four hours. This type of poison has no antidote, so you should not use it around livestock, pets, or small children.
  • Vitamin Based: Will kill within twenty-four hours. This does have an antidote but should be used cautiously when animals, birds, and small children are present.
  • Anti-Coagulants: Probably the most widely used poison around. It is slow-acting, so it takes time to be effective. Again, this needs to be used cautiously around livestock. If you suspect an animal has ingested any of these, call the veterinarian immediately.

Always use poison with extreme caution around any livestock, pets, and children. Animals can and do eat poisoned meat and become sick themselves.

Chickens and Chemicals Don’t Mix!

If you house your chickens in a barn or another multi-purpose building, ensure any chemicals are safely stored away.

Chickens are plain nosey and will investigate just about anything if they think it’s food!

Bleach, gasoline, oils, antifreeze should all be contained within a cupboard or placed out of reach for your hens.

Livestock medicines are potentially deadly to hens if they can access an open container. They are inquisitive creatures and will investigate almost anything, so be sure to close all containers tightly.

Chickens Roaming
I told you chickens were curious!

Glass, Wire, and Nails

While pecking around for grit and tidbits, they may pick up small pieces of glass, wire, nails, or other metal odds. The item is likely to lodge in the gizzard, where it can cause bleeding, infection, or even death.

If you are working on a project, clean up all your stuff. Have a small container on hand for any detritus to go into so the hens can’t eat them!

Dehydration

Each hen can drink around a pint of water in the summer heat a day. They absolutely must have access to clean, fresh water at all times.

I use three separate one-gallon drinkers for thirty hens, and I fill these days at least once. If you cannot check on your drinkers’ status frequently, buy bigger drinkers. It’s quite easy to figure out how much water they will need- one hen = one pint.

It is important to have more than one drinking station. Occasionally you will get a hen that will guard her drinker, so the lowest in the pecking order may get deprived.

Dehydration can quickly overcome a hen, eventually leading to death. If a hen has not had consistent access to water through the day, she will not lay eggs well for the next couple of weeks.

Dangerous Foods

We all love to spoil our girls with treats and special ‘tidbits.’ Please make sure you aren’t giving them something bad!

Here are some of the foods they should not be given.

Absolute no-nos’- chocolate, caffeine, alcohol, raw dried beans, moldy produce, avocados’ and salty stuff.

There is controversy over the humble potato– some people say absolutely no, others will feed cooked peelings or mashed potatoes to their flock. The potato and tomato are both members of the nightshade family, so if you’re cautious, it’s wise to stay away from them.

If you feed apples to your girls, try to remove the seeds as they contain trace amounts of cyanide.

Having said that, chickens have been trawling through orchards for years, and few have died from eating apple seeds.

Rhubarb leaves are also toxic to chickens. I have two hens that ate all of my rhubarb leaves last year! They are still alive, but I’m not sure what the long-term effects may be.

Accidentally Kill Your Chickens

Neglect

If you are reading this, you are unlikely to be neglecting your birds!

Some people expect their hens to be completely self-sufficient and do not buy any feed believing that the chicken can find enough to live on in the yard.

Certainly, in earlier times, this was the norm for chickens.

They would scratch around on the farm and gather enough substance to stay alive. You should also note that in the ‘old-time,’ hens laid considerably fewer eggs because their diet was bad.

Chickens can also be ‘hoarded’ just like cats and dogs. In these instances usually, animal rescue services get involved. In fact, many bird rescue places will try to rehome hens with responsible owners.

Garden Plants

We all love to let out girls patrol the yard and dispatch unwelcome guests such as caterpillars and bugs. Are your garden plants safe for them to nibble at?

Most people know that foxglove gives us digitalis, a potent medicine that lowers the heart rate. It is most definitely not for chicken consumption!

Some of the other toxic plants on the list are holly, lobelia angels’ trumpet, jimsonweed, pokeberry, sweet pea, honeysuckle, bleeding hearts, myrtle, and elderberry.

This is by no means a comprehensive list; these are just a few of the many toxic plants out there.

Interestingly, many of those plants mentioned are also poisonous to humans too! Chickens are pretty smart (mostly) and avoid things they should not eat.

Lack of Health Care/Checks

As we all know, chickens aren’t much bothered by HMOs’.

They do, however, need regular health checks. They can suffer from various pests and parasites, so it is up to the responsible keeper to regularly check each bird.

Parasites such as mites can make a bird so anemic that the bird will die. A worm infestation can cause birds to drop weight, and become lethargic and non-productive- gapeworm can even cause a bird to suffocate!

Every day when you see your girls, you should be making mental notes- Emily seems depressed today, Betty is preening excessively, etc. Each of these mental notes will guide you when you check your hen over.

Sometimes there isn’t anything obviously wrong, but you get the feeling of somethings ‘up’.

This is being in tune with your flock and catches problems before they get out of hand. To ignore subtle warning signs is not a good policy and can be detrimental to the wellbeing of your entire flock.

Too Much Diatomaceous Earth

There’s a truth to the saying; too much of anything is a bad thing.

And when it comes to diatomaceous earth (DE), there isn’t any better way of saying it.

While DE is thought to rid chickens of external and internal parasites, too much can cause respiratory problems.

It’s easy to go gung-ho on the DE in your coop, especially when you know there are mites, but removing your chickens before dusting the entire coop is best.

The particles (the silty silica) in DE are easily inhaled and can cause your chickens to have breathing problems and even die if they’ve inhaled too much.

This is especially concerning if you keep your chickens confined areas where they can’t escape the dust from DE.

Mixing DE with other types of dirt and soil can help avoid problems, but whenever using DE, take care not to overdo it and suffocate your chickens.

Ways to Accidentally Kill Your Chickens: Summary

Accidents can and do happen even if you are a diligent and caring flock keeper. You cannot be perfect all of the time.

You are likely already doing many of the things mentioned here because you love your ladies!

We hope that this article has opened your eyes to a few potential hazards to your flock and made you think about your own situation and how it can be improved or changed.

Do you have any other accidents to add to the list? Let us know in the comments below…

Read The Simple Way to Tell How Old Your Chickens Are

Top 11 Ways to Accidentally Kill Your Chickens

65 thoughts on “Top 11 Ways to Accidentally Kill Your Chickens

  1. My chickens are well looked after – it’s like chook heaven at our place. They free range during the day in our large backyard which has native trees, fruit trees and ferns and lots of grass (lawn). I give my chickens organic multi grain, layers pallets and porridge on some mornings. I clean their coop out daily and ensure there is lots of straw and it is warm and dry and lots of fresh water. The chickens are healthy and looking very happy, but I haven’t had an egg for 7 months!!! They stopped laying early in summer (Dec/Jan). It is now winter so I expect no eggs until spring!. They are now 18 months old. Is this normal or are my chickens leading the good life and bugger the eggs!!

    1. Hi Pat,
      They certainly can be stubborn at times can’t they!
      7 months is certainly far too long- I don’t think its diet/water related because they sound incredibly well kept.
      I hate to ask this question but you’d be surprised the number of times people find a secret nest where their hens are going to lay- are you certain they aren’t laying whilst they are out roaming?
      Claire

      1. Hi Pat,
        My girls didn’t lay for 7 or 8 months because we moved and then winter came. All our girls just started laying again but one became egg bound and died quickly. Be SURE you’re giving them lots of calcium even when they’re not laying. Don’t want it to happen to you 🙁
        L

  2. Hi Claire, yes I’ve looked around in all the likely places – no secret stash of eggs found!!. They spend their energy running around the yard playing games most of the day and occasionally come up to the house (when I open the gate to let them roam further) to check on what we are doing. Back family room has glass windows ceiling to floor and they stand on the door mate looking in wanting to know what we are up to.When they were laying they were very broody, I always had one of the three in broody mode. I think they had a roster going…could it be that they are too well feed!

    1. Hi Pat,
      I’m completely at a loss with this one- but it seems very strange that the entire flock is effected.
      Have you tried moving them onto another brand of layers pellets with a high protein count?
      Claire

  3. Hi Claire, yes I’m at a loss too, I’ve mainly had them on the organic multi grains which they love or most of it. I’ve had them on mash but they didn’t like that much and would only pick at. I combined layers pellets with their grains but they don’t touch the layers pellets at all!!. Their poops look right with a dollop of cream on top and I also mix DE to the straw in their coop house to control any lice etc – not that I’ve ever seen any evidence on them. Not sure what else I can do other than wait for spring to arrive and hope!!.I might try a different brand of layers pellets but I’m not holding my breath.. Pat

    1. I would try a different brand and ideally one with at least 18% protein content.
      I’ve got my fingers crossed for you too Pat.
      Claire

  4. Hi Claire, I am at a total loss this morning as one of my girls was dead and another dying and crossed in my arms, when we went to care for them.
    The other seven have stood around, no clucking, not pecking and refused to go to the outside part of their area.
    The girls have been very healthy and happy and so this morning we were shocked to say the very least.
    Through investigation I realized that part of their outdoor pen had been buggered up (not broken in to) but certainly not as it was yesterday. We know there is a raccoon around but the pen was not accessed.
    I have to wonder if he attempted to get into the girls but was unsuccessful.
    My question is, could my two girls have been stressed to death?
    I closed the other girls in the house after an hour of them, basically, refusing to go outside. The seem to be slightly more responsive with the door shut.
    Strange, just very strange.
    Thanks so much for any input you can give <3

    1. Hi Bonnie,
      I’m sorry to hear about your loss.
      It’s not uncommon for hens to die of heart attacks caused by panic…
      I’ve seen it before where a predator will only kill a single hen yet several hens have died due to panicking and having heart attacks 🙁
      I suspect this is the case here, but without seeing them it’s hard to know for certain.
      Claire

      1. Thank you for your reply, Claire.
        We think it is something else at this point as we have lost a total of 5 now with only 4 remaining and only one of them looks like she might do ok, but that’s what I thought yesterday before I lost one of my girls last night.
        We have treated them with parasite and worm killer but they just keep dropping.
        I’m sad beyond all words 🙁
        They were fine one day and started dropping the next, it just doesn’t make sense to us.

  5. I recently had one of my backyard chickens fall ill and die. I am at a complete loss as I have no idea why. The chickens always have fresh water a daily cleaned coop , food and shade. The other chickens all seem well . The chicken that died was the bravest in the flock . I found her in the morning with an odd posture and not wanting to move. She had no visible wounds or any mites . The day befor she was acting normally. Do you have any idea what could have killed her?

    1. Hi Linda,
      Sorry to hear about your loss. Without seeing your hen it’s impossible for me to say sorry 🙁
      Claire

  6. aloha, I live on Maui and have had hens for years. Recently one of our new 2mths old started loosing mobility in one leg dragging it and not able to getting around. Then by a week later the same began to happen with her other leg. Now she can not move at all and when she rolls on to her back she needs assistance to go back. It is so heartbreaking to see it is almost as she has some muscular atrophy. Could she have become sick as a result of swallowing an entire centipede? Keep in mind Hawaii Centipedes have a venomous bite that is 10x worse then a bee sting. Aloha and Mahalo, Lisa.

    1. Hi Lisa,
      I’m not familiar with Hawaii Centipedes. I would contact your local vet as they will be more familiar with the idiosyncrasies.
      Claire

      1. You can’t ask a vet that get the big island of Hawaii guide book it will tell you about them and other cool features ? glad I Outdoor help.

    2. Aloha! Sounds like Mareks disease. No cure. Only vaccine as chicks can protect from mareks. To be sure research it. I realize this reply is coming far tomorrow late but hope it helps for future flicks. My ohana is from paia!

  7. Poison should be an absolute last resort (and preferably not even then!). You might be saving your chickens but that rodent that is slowly dying is now going to become a meal for something else – a house cat, dog, a bird of prey, bobcat, etc. Make adjustments on your end as you need but poison hurts everything in the environment- you just don’t always see it.

    1. I have to agree with you. Poisoned small prey is someone else’s next meal. Poison should be a last resort, if then.
      A good way (a bit pricey however) to deal with rats is to try the electric zapper thing, it’s a battery operated “trap” (for lack of a better word) that kills rats instantly by electrocution. It sounds terrible but it really is instantaneous. (I will spare you the gorey details, but make *sure* the batteries are fresh, or you may turn your trap into a midieval torture device. — There’s a chart telling you how many rats can be dispatched before needing new batteries. Keep track!)
      Sorry I can’t recall the brand name, but you should be able to find out googling “battery operated rat trap.”
      Another MUST is to keep anything edible cleaned up. A crumb of bread is enough to attract mice, and a steady offering of say, dry cat food kept on the porch for muffy to help herself whenever, is an engraved invitation to RATS!
      It goes without saying that spilled feed should not be anywhere near the outside of the run, even if it only ATTRACTS mice; next stop is your kitchen!
      Not mentioned under “Poison” is any non-organic anything. Roundup (for the love of God, dont buy anything Monsanto has touched!); granular or pelleted snail baits; bug sprays (Essential Oils made into mosquito repellant are fine); insect killers (QUIT KILLING BUGS!!! Let them eat each other, like God intended! A report a few days ago said about a third of the world’s insects have disappeared– when a link in the food chain goes away, eventually so do we!)— anyway, these are only a few of poisons we’ve taken for granted for years, but they are verboten when raising backyard chickens.

  8. The store accidentally sold me 2 meat chickens. I hear awful stories about them dying with broken legs because they grow so fast.
    Can they live a normal life with my laying hens?
    Just in it for the fun and eggs not meat.
    Thanks

    1. Hi Kris,
      They can live a normal life, however it really depends on what you got from the store… Some breeds are selectively bred to grow so fast that it can be detrimental to the hen to keep them alive.
      Claire

    2. Hi ! I was told the same thing about meat turkeys. Everyone said they’ll get so big their legs will break under the pressure. WRONG ! I have had at least a 1/2 dozen of these turkeys and that NEVER happened. I fed them regular poultry food, layer pellets cracked corn, scratch feed etc and they were fine. They were free range as well so they got all the exercise they wanted and all the food they wanted. The only draw back I have found is that they don’t live very long. I generally got 3 years out of them, 5 was the longest. Their deaths were usually abrupt. I look out the window and they were fine, I look out an hour later and they’re dead. At least there was little to no suffering. If it sways you at all I have found the meat birds to have the biggest personalities, the friendliest demeanor and EXTREMELY lovable. I could talk all day about how funny and fun they were. I now raise heritage breed turkeys and they are nice but not one of them has been able to match the personality and friendliness of the meat birds !

  9. We live in the Mount Rainier area and get many different types of predators, eagles, hawks, raccoons, cougar, weasels, fox, and bear. People out here let there dogs roam free, so adding to the pets list, watch out for neighbors pets.

  10. Be mindful of open water sources! Found one of ours in the horses water trough today. Chickens can’t swim AT ALL. She actually could have just stood up (the water level was pretty low) but alas, chickens aren’t known for their smarts. She’s alive but is in shock. She’s under a heat lamp now, hopefully recovering.

    1. I had a bard rock hen who got spooked and accidentally ended up jumping into our pond ! My neighbor who owned the pond was going to get the boat out to rescue her, but as we looked we noticed she was swimming ! We watched her swim about 60 feet across the pond to the other side ! She popped out and shook herself off and that was that ! She wasn’t pleased with her decision to jump in the pond as she was “madder than a wet hen” when she got out but she was fine ! {Also note it was summer time} I had the same thing happen to a meat turkey who also swan the 60 feet out of the water but in her case it was about 35 degrees. I thought she was ok when she got out but an hour later she was with her friends standing in front of my sliding glass door shivering. I got her a hot towel and dried her off well and went back inside and again she was shivering. At that point I invited her into the house where the wood stove was going and told her to wait on the entry rug. She did and I went and got my hair dryer. I turned it on high and gave her a full blow dry. It was hysterical because she was putting her wings up so I could get underneath and turning slowly {all while staying on the entry rug} so I got everywhere on her until she was totally dry. She never got spooked or scared, you would have thought we played beauty parlor all the time ! {Refer back to what I previously said about the meat turkeys} All the while her turkey and chicken friends are watching this through the slider wide eyed ! Once she was done, I opened the door and prompted her back outside and that was that ! She was fine and the incident was all but forgotten. My neighbor did comment later that day about how nice she looked when she and the gang went back over to his place. He said “she looks so nice like she went to the beauty parlor !” I then told him about her “getting dried” incident !

  11. I have a chicken that has a swollen belly. I’ve tried deworming and gave her rooster booster. The swelling doesn’t seem to go down. I’m at wits end on what it could be. Could this possibly a poisoning or toxicity to something she ate?

    1. If she stopped laying then egg peritonitis may be the problem this is where the laying process goes wrong and the eggs get laid inside the chicken then fester causing infection and death. A vet can help early on but it isxexpensive !

  12. a hen ingested borax that was under stones to rid an area of ants. how serious can this be for our little girl ?

    1. It should be okay, I just wouldn’t eat the eggs for a couple days and isolate that chicken so you know which eggs are which.
      Claire

  13. You should put a cinder block in water troughs and bricks in buckets. I have a chicken with swollen area around her legs and she cannot walk. I have to shove grains down her throat so that she won’t starve. What sickness could this be?

    1. There are many reasons this could be happening. Sometimes chickens eating feed meant for putting weight on can be too much- causing them to get too big to move. I would read about Bumblefoot to find out more about what you’re describing.
      https://www.thehappychickencoop.com/bumblefoot-in-chickens/
      Diagnosing chickens on your own can be tricky so I recommend seeing a vet or professional to be sure if you are seeing the chicken’s quality of life being affected.
      Claire

      1. Hi I have 13 chickens – they have a big shed with laying boxes – I follow the layering on the floor system so it keeps the coup warm – but there is terrible lice or mites – every time I go to pick the eggs up I get them on me !! My husband doesn’t !

        What is the best thing to do here ?

        I am in the UK

  14. Hello, I have a chicken who has been down for a few weeks. She got better and then the next week she was declining and couldn’t walk. Now, she lays on her side. I left her in the ‘Chicken Porch'(yes, the coop is built like a small 300 sq. ft. house) and about 200 ants bit her and tried to eat her.
    I sprayed and picked all of the ants off of her but her thighs are swollen. What should I do?

    1. What were her symptoms to begin with before the swelling and ants? I would get her out of the area away from the ants so they don’t keep attacking her. Preferably a cool place that she can rest. Then keep an eye on her symptoms.
      Claire

  15. I moved two chickens from a friends house to my new coop. It was hot out but the coop is in the shade. We moved them in a crate on the back of a golf cart b/c it was down the street. We got them to the new coop, they walked out fine and even went into the coop and scratched around for a while. The kids and I watched them for a bit and then left for soccer. Two hours later when we came back, both chickens were under the coop and had passed away. We cannot figure out if it was heat or the transfer. I am devastated. Is this normal?

  16. i’m sorry for the late response. I don’t think it was bumble foot. I had her in a raised nest box that was made out of a 5-gallon bucket. I was at the end of giving her poultry cell and B-12 compound when she dropped her head to the side. I put her on the ground on my lap to see what was wrong, and she died in my arms.
    Also, my favorite Delaware hen was supposedly feeling bad, and slept in a corner. The next day, she was looking great. I left to do normal day-time things. I came out to put them away for the night, and she went missing. I found her under a raised rain-barrel, dead. What could be the cause of this SUDDEN death?

  17. Hello again, It’s problematic Meri.
    I bought chicks and put them under my broody hen. she has been trying to feed THEM, and hasn’t been eating. what kind of meds can I give her, and can I use red cell, which I use for goats?

  18. Hello, it’s Meri.
    A tip for feeding your chickens:
    I make a 100% complete diet and don’t feed them anything else. Here are the ingredients:
    Layena Pellets
    Scratch Grains
    Holiday Delight
    Oat and Sunflower Mix (Happy Hen Treats)
    Poultry Grit
    Rosemary (fresh)
    Lemongrass (dry/dead)
    By my self company, Lisa’s Farm <3

  19. Our last batch of chickens we had when we lived in Ontario, we had trained them and imprinted them on us. We could call them like a dog, they would follow me around every time I was outside and would come running every time I came out or home. They would run beside the truck with our dogs when we would come home. Unfortunately, our prized rooster was running after the me in the truck one day. I stopped and had to back up and I didn’t see him, I felt the bump and my heart sank. I got out to find him dead. The girls saw it happen. After that, the girls would only free range if I was out side, if I was in the house they would try to get in the house or stay on the porch until I came out. They can become like pets and I never thought I’d be attached to a chicken. Accidents suck, but our next batch of chickens we will imprint and train again, the benefits out weigh the bad. Happy, healthy & safe chickens produce a lot of eggs. Cheers!

    1. Yes. accidents and illnesses happen, and have turned me into the most overprotective ‘parent’ on the planet. The chickens now spend more time indoors with me than they do outdoors in their ‘chicken run’. This started when my Granita ate a string: It had fallen on the ground after we opened a feed bag. She must have thought it was a worm! She nearly suffocated; the Veterinary Specialty Center gave her oxygen, and tried to locate the problem; she survived; they referred us to a local veterinarian (Phoenix Animal Hospital), where Dr Winters kept her alive, force-fed her and kept looking for the problem. Strings don’t show up on X-Rays, and someone may possibly have doubted my story. But at last, he found it! I think more than a week had passed. It was that difficult to locate! So, yes; be extremely careful about dropping things on the ground or the floor. By the time she recuperated she had become a ‘dog with feathers’ and is now a regular refrigerator-raiding member of the family. The other chickens aren’t far behind…they’ve all ‘imprinted’ on us, and we on them. Other things that could look like worms are those little twist ties from bread wrappers and those that wrap electrical cords. I try not to drop things, and to pick up anything that falls before any chicken sees it.

  20. Another great article written with so much sincerity regarding the wellbeing of your own and our ladies. Thank you as always Claire for the awareness « nudge ».
    Lynn

  21. I had a huge rhubarb plant in the chicken run. The run started out as a flower garden, then the chickens (a hen and a rooster) moved in from the neighbors(!). The neighbors were okay with that, so I built a coop and enclosed the flower garden as the run. Back to the rhubarb. I never knew of them eating it, but they LOVED to dig down under it on hot days. It was quite cool in there! Some of the leaves were 2′ across, and plenty of them, so it was a nice hidey hole for Red and Chiquita.

  22. Your list didn’t include water. I had a baby chick fall into the waterer which was only 1/2 inch deep but it couldn’t get out and by the time I found it, it was stiff…we managed to save her though but was shocked that, that much water could chill them when they were inside the house in the warm kitchen.

    1. I know this post is a year old, but this advice is freely offered to all!

      After we lost a fluffybutt to a waterer, we started using marbles or those large decorative glass beads that are flattened on the bottom (people of a certain age, like my adult sons, call them dragon’s tears) in the waterer base, ALL the time, as soon as they are hatched until they are at least 3 or 4 weeks old! Even if they are with a mama hen, I do this! They can get their beard down between the glass marbles/beads (even the mama hen can), to access the water, but they can’t drown themselves (or even get soaked!) in the waterer base!

      I would strongly suggest anyone about ready to hatch out some babies definitely hunt down the local store’s toy aisle for a bug bag of glass marbles, or the local big box store’s craft department for a bag of those big glass beads! Better safe than sorry… trust me, finding one of your darling new fluffybutts dead in their waterer base is heartbreaking!

  23. One thing that I always look for is a “dirty butt”… it could be caused by abdominal swelling from infection from either impacted egg issues or cancer.
    Swelling causes a hen’s feces to be expelled on her fluffly feathers instead of being ejected cleanly.
    Or if your hen starts to waddle like a penguin… again from body cavity fluid building up and causing so much swelling their legs are malpositioned.. When this happens, things
    “can” be done, but probably best to euthanize… I’ve been to vets, had x-rays, ultrasound, surgery and antibiotic therapy… I’m finally resigned to euthanasia…(BTW, can you please tell me why a vet insists on an “exam for a fee” when you bring a hen in to be put to sleep? The cost is already prohibitive, give us a break, please!)

    1. I have a hen with these symptoms, dirty butt, yellowish poop which smells weird, abdomen is swollen, waddles, comb is a little dark and sort of dusky on comb tips. Poor appetite, goes under a bush and just sits there. She got better from a past episode, but only for a couple of months. What is wrong with her???

  24. Hello an easy way to boost their protein levels is feed black sunflower seeds (shell on) to them, this should be with a good quality feed of layers pellets (avoid corn ) its about as nutritious as a pencil, it is hard for your girls to swallow too, alway make sure plenty of grit is available for them (I use oyster shell, it gives them extra calcium, they need both calcium and protein this time of year, it helps not only egg production and nice hard shells but also gives the birds needed minerals to help develop new feathers after their moult

  25. I learned about “hardware disease” the hard way, by losing five of my six chickens to it. I only got confirmation when I took my beloved Plymouth Barred Rock to the vet for an X-ray. Sure enough, there were little pieces of hardware cloth in her gut. I went right to the hardware store and bought a huge magnet and scoured the run and garden with it. Since, I have been fanatical that any kind of staples, wire, screws, nails, etc never make it into the area where I keep my flock. It was the one thing I didn’t account for when first starting out.

  26. Citrus fruit – Citrus fruits probably won’t kill your chickens, however they do cause a drop in egg production. Fed in moderation is ok.

  27. My chickens ate some weeds with diesel sprayed on it. I don’t know how much. I put them back in their yard. Are they going to die? If not, how long should I throw their eggs away?

  28. We had a cricket infestation last summer. The chickens couldn’t keep up with the the little pests. Is there a way to control the cricket population without harming the chickens. I almost put out poison but was afraid the chickens would eat the poisoned crickets and die. Do you have any ideas? Also have fire ants.

  29. Hello lovely reading everyone’s messages. My problem is with one of my hens that became broody and sitting on the other hens eggs. She’s not laying her own eggs anymore. I’ve done the cold water dip, separated her from the other girls so they can lay their eggs as she becomes territorial over the nest boxes. She’s become a bit better but will she lay eggs again?

    1. Gosh, I don’t know why I’m only seeing these messages now!
      For broody hens, I use the cold water dip, and then put them in a wire cage where air can circulate up their bottoms. This usually sorts them out within 2-3 days. Alternatively, I let my usual girls lay and then shut the pophole so the broody hen can’t get to the nesting box. Again, takes about 3 days to break the habit. And any broodies have always laid again.
      Sorry this message is so late, but hopefully it’ll help you for next time…and there WILL be a “next time”! I’ve noticed, once a brooder, every summer a brooder!

  30. If anyone can help us please. We had four hens. We spent so much time caring for them. I bought pine shavings so we could do the deep bedding method. Unfortunately, two chickens have died and we have no idea what to do. If anyone has any suggestions on what we can do please help.
    Thanks.

  31. “The potato and tomato are both members of the nightshade family so if you’re cautious it’s wise to stay away from them”…
    Believe it or not, I called our vet to get more antibiotics for our poorly birds recently, and the vet (a poultry expert, no less!) told us to feed them “tomatoes or any red food as chickens like the colour red”!!
    I know spuds and tomatoes are of the belladonna species and did actually comment on this to my husband at the time.
    I’m pleased to read that I’m not going mad in wondering if tomatoes could be poisonous to the girls.
    As it stands, we stuck to strawberries and raspberries. Neither of which appealed.
    Suffice it to say, I won’t be using that poultry expert again…especially as one girl died within 12 hours of said advice, and the other had to be killed after 5 days as she became so poorly.
    Thankfully, the other ladies didn’t come down with it – I’d have been devastated as I’d spent £100 on new girls a few months beforehand.

    1. The biggest worry about tomatoes is their leaves. They don’t have the same issue with peelings as potatoes do (especially any peelings with a green tint to them), and don’t carry any of the poisonous properties in their fruit. Plus, they have lots of great vitamins that are good for anyone (or any critter) in them, too.

  32. I, too, had a hen die an inexplicable death. She seemed fine all day but, in the evening, when I was giving treats she didn’t appear so I went to look for her and found her on the coop floor, dead. I’m very careful with my flock and read and research everything.
    I also wanted to mention, our chickens free range in a large fenced area that we, initially crisscrossed clothesline over, as suggested. Our local eagle flew under it, twice, to get to our ducks. After another close call, with a hawk, we put bird netting, over the lines. With that, and a scarecrow, we haven’t had any more problems with flying predators.

  33. When I was a young boy I had mishandled one of my grandpa’s chickens and I was told the story I kind of remember it but I don’t know if it’s true I had grabbed the chicken up from the the yard and I held it wrong I held it more like a hug I was only like two or three years old and it suffocated the chicken quickly as my grandpa was trying to explain to me how to hold the chickens properly he said here and go get another one and he said we hear you pick it up and hold it from under the wings not above the wings is what I was doing was it caused the other bird to suffocate and it couldn’t breathe cuz the way I was holding it was holding its rib cage clothes and it wouldn’t so just in that short amount of time and suffocated the chicken and I was wondering if that’s true. Has also told my grandfather respond to the the saying do you know what that white spot is on on the top of chicken s*** is boy? He said that’s chicken s*** too.

  34. Last night I had to take my beautiful little hen Chilli to the vet as she had not been well for a few days and when I got home yesterday she would not eat or even move from the spot she was standing in. She was making weak faint noises instead of the loud noises and purring sounds she usually made. The vet examined her and said she found a ‘mass’ in her stomach which she believed was cancer and she was having trouble breathing. I cant believe Chilli could have hidden this illness from us for so long as she was running around our yard and eating and drinking only a couple of days before. I have read that chickens can hide sickness but this seemed so sudden. The vet only gave her about 2 days. I made the decision to put her to sleep so she had no more suffering and now I am wracked with guilt. She had such a wonderful personality. She wasn’t just a backyard chicken, she was part of our family. We rescued her from a battery farm 6 years ago. I miss her so much already. I just needed to share this with people who would understand how I am feeling.

  35. When I was growing up we raised 1500 laying hens for eggs to sell to a local hatchery. One day I noticed our German Shepard dog was “playing” with the chicks in the yard and had killed about 10 of them. I hollered to Dad, who picked up one of the dead chicks, swatted Duchess over the nose with it, pulled her ear, and told her NO MORE! She left them alone after that!
    One thing I will add about poisons: Before we had chickens here at our current place, I had done a lot of shooting with a pellet gun, as well as some other firearm target shooting.
    When my Chiquita hen got sick, I was baffled. She kept getting weaker & weaker, some good days, some bad, until she finally died. Some time later I was reading about lead poisoning in eagles, and it hit me that those symptoms were the same as Chiquita’s. She must have picked up pellets or bullet fragments while free-ranging.

  36. I have 5 chickens laying 5 eggs a day ever since I got them. 2 off them have a white substance on there ears. They seem like it doesn’t bother them at all but it bothers me. Simply because I have no idea what it is and dose it harm them. Is it contagions because I just bought 10 more a while back. I cant find a vet in my area that takes care of chickens so I’m lost on what to do. If you don’t know what it is can you recommend a book that I can buy to help me out. Thanks for any help you can give me in advance. Patrick

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