# Chick with a concerning vent



## gracewilderlovessilkies (11 mo ago)

My four day old chick had some poop dried to it’s bottom this morning so with a warm damp cloth, I cleaned it up a bit. Now it appears to have some blood on it with a bit of yellow(poop I assume) any advice on how to take care of this?


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## Lillith (10 mo ago)

Just keep it clean. Their skin is so delicate when they are that young that when you rub it with a cloth, sometimes it pulls on their feathers and tears the skin. I like to use Q-tips and warm soapy water to soak the poop, first, then ever so carefully work it away, never pulling at it. 

Also, I've had to separate chicks until they've dried and they're fluffy again after cleaning up pasty butt because when other chicks see that pink skin of the vent revealed by wet, flat feathers, they peck at it curiously, and sometimes they can cause a bit of bleeding. 

So, either of those things could have happened, but keeping it clean and hide the blood from the other chicks is most important.

If its blood IN poop it might be coccidiosis, but the way you described it sounds like the skin is bleeding.


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## imnukensc (Dec 5, 2020)

I wash chicks with pasty butt under warm running water to soften the poop so it can more easily be cleaned away. Not a fan of moistened Q-tips, paper towels, wash cloths, etc. I find the warm running water is lots easier than other methods. Of course, their little hind ends are dried well afterwards before putting them back with other chicks.

Pasty butt can be caused by a number of things, but proper brooder temp IMO is one of the most important things to consider and is also one of the reasons why I use a brooder plate instead of a heat lamp.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

You all know pasty butt can be stress caused by being moved. If peep just got there then that is not an uncommon finding. 

I prefer the warm running water too.


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