# This Doesn't Look Right



## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

My Buff Orpington pullet came today. We put her in a cage and she and Atari pecked it out. Raisin stood over her, and she accepted dominance. She and Petal fought so I had to break it up. She's back in the cage now, but she is behaving oddly.
She's eating her own feces, which are a sticky, watery whitish puddle with a few black, hard lumps of poo. She is lifting up one leg and curling her toes, then putting it down slowly.
This is very concerning: she will stiffen up, and then she will twitch/roll her head rapidly to one side a few times in a row. It looks very strange and honestly creepy. Her voice is a little hoarse, probably from clucking a lot while being shipped. I felt her crop because I was worried about impacted or sour crop. I don't know what sour crop feels like, but her crop felt a little heavy and slightly squishy...I'm very worried about botulism and Merek's. She stumbles a bit when she twitches her head. Please, tell me what is going on. 
She is between the age of 15-18 weeks and I got her from Murray McMurray Hatchery and she was free range there.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

You really need to quit looking for zebras when you hear hoofs.

The bird was stressed by the move. Then you take her and toss her with the others so they can pound on her and stress her even more. Leave her in the cage, don't put her in harm's way until the others are more accepting of her.


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## Maryellen (Jan 21, 2015)

Like robin said. Let her destress for a while . 
This is why I always sell 2 chickens and buy 2 . A buddy helps them in a new flock with intergration. And never just put a single chicken into a new flock. The existing flock can kill a new chicken.


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## Maryellen (Jan 21, 2015)

Just because a hatchery says they were free ranged doesn't mean squat


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## Maryellen (Jan 21, 2015)

I bet she has wry neck from what you are describing she is doing with her neck


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

Maryellen said:


> I bet she has wry neck from what you are describing she is doing with her neck


She does this about every 10-15 minutes, from what I can tell. She panted a little when I picked her up and she was flapping a lot. I let her be and she stopped panting. She's been climbing all over the cage now, trying to get on top of her feeders and waterers. I gave her a wooden roost bar, but she ignores it.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

Maryellen said:


> I bet she has wry neck from what you are describing she is doing with her neck


I just watched a video about wry neck and she doesn't have that. It's not severe and she doesn't look up at the sky or turn upside down. She just jolts her head/neck directly to the side and downward a few times in an odd motion. Then, she's done.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

Maryellen said:


> Just because a hatchery says they were free ranged doesn't mean squat


I see. There is many videos and pictures of a massive herd of started pullets roaming outside the hatchery building.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

Maryellen said:


> Like robin said. Let her destress for a while .
> This is why I always sell 2 chickens and buy 2 . A buddy helps them in a new flock with intergration. And never just put a single chicken into a new flock. The existing flock can kill a new chicken.


Well, I can't exactly buy another chicken...they are $100 from the hatchery, including shipping. She became dominant over Atari as soon as they met. A few quick pecks to Atari's face made her shy away every time the Buff looked at Atari. Raisin stood over her for a few seconds and just looked downright imposing, so the Buff (named Biscuits) backed down. Petal and Biscuits fought for a few seconds, and then I separated them. She seems to be doing ok with the flock except for Petal. I sure hope they don't kill her!


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

robin416 said:


> You really need to quit looking for zebras when you hear hoofs.
> 
> The bird was stressed by the move. Then you take her and toss her with the others so they can pound on her and stress her even more. Leave her in the cage, don't put her in harm's way until the others are more accepting of her.


Ah, yes, I do have a tendency to do that, I know. However, her odd neck movements are bound to make someone nervous, especially me. I gave her a roost bar (it's unstable, however. I can't secure it in the cage.) because she kept flapping and climbing around in the cage. She wanted out. I suppose they did let the chickens free range a lot at the hatchery because she seems to not like confinement. Maryellen said that putting a new, single chicken in the flock was a bad idea, but I can't get any more chickens. Biscuit is also smaller than the other chickens. Raisin and Atari were ok with her for the most part, but Petal was not too fond of her. Any suggestions?


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

robin416 said:


> You really need to quit looking for zebras when you hear hoofs.
> 
> The bird was stressed by the move. Then you take her and toss her with the others so they can pound on her and stress her even more. Leave her in the cage, don't put her in harm's way until the others are more accepting of her.












We had to do this because she kept flying into the ceiling of the cage trying to get out.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

If she and the other bird truly get along, then put that bird in the cage with her. Let them bond so she has a buddy when introducing her to the others.

BTW, the cage in the house is not going to work. That cage needs to be in where the others can see her and get used to her being around.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

robin416 said:


> If she and the other bird truly get along, then put that bird in the cage with her. Let them bond so she has a buddy when introducing her to the others.
> 
> BTW, the cage in the house is not going to work. That cage needs to be in where the others can see her and get used to her being around.


I will see if she and Raisin will get along. That may work. She may bully Atari, and Petal would attack her, so Raisin seems like a good middle ground. 
I put the cage in the house for two reasons:
1. It gets into the 40s at night and she is kinda small.
2. Predators may see her out in the run and try to get at her, freaking her out a lot.
I had a plan, but I was worried about a few things. The plan was to put the cage in the run with the other chickens during the day, and then put her back inside at night until they become familiar with eachother.
The only flaw with my plan is that the spaces between the cage bars are kind of big, and I saw the chickens exchange harsh pecks through them when I first showed Biscuit to them earlier today. Biscuit also likes to stick her head through the bars to investigate stuff, and I'm worried she may get stuck, even though her head is small and her neck is thin.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Just remember, whatever you do she will end up either suffering for or have a good outcome. You've been given the information necessary for an outcome that usually works, now to keep her from being more stressed you need to put it into practice. No excuses. She's been stressed enough at this point and her new home is not joyful for her. 

You are smart, now come up with the answer that makes it work for her.


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

Okay so your pulled came today and is probably scared out of her gourd, and should wait a few days so she can calm down. Offer her some feed mash or oatmeal. She sounds like she's never been handled.


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

Like it was said,she's got her feathers in bunch.She was snatched up out of all the hens,stuck in a box,went for a truck ride and maybe a plane ride,then placed in a strange place with strange chickens that beat her up.Biscuit has no clue what's happening to her and she's so stressed.I think you should keep her isolated and quiet until she starts to calm down,then interact with you and then see you interact with the others,from a distance.It might take a little time but it will be worth it in the end.I'm sure your parents won't be happy with a dead $100 bird so go slowly and it should work out.Good luck!!!


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

robin416 said:


> Just remember, whatever you do she will end up either suffering for or have a good outcome. You've been given the information necessary for an outcome that usually works, now to keep her from being more stressed you need to put it into practice. No excuses. She's been stressed enough at this point and her new home is not joyful for her.
> 
> You are smart, now come up with the answer that makes it work for her.


I think today when I get home from school, I will see what she does along with the other ladies when I put the cage in the run. I will remove the towels and let them see her again, this time only pecking as the only form of touch that they can administer to one another. If I am right, and the spaces between the cage are too big, I will put her back in there and maybe one day let them free range with each other.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

seminolewind said:


> Okay so your pulled came today and is probably scared out of her gourd, and should wait a few days so she can calm down. Offer her some feed mash or oatmeal. She sounds like she's never been handled.


I think she has been handled, she just isn't too fond of it. She's no worse than our Wynadotte, Petal. Instead of being held, she likes to stay on an arm, a leg, or a shoulder. After she's there, she won't leave. She's also very curious about her surroundings and humans. I gave her some scratch when she got here yesterday, and she liked that.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

chickenqueen said:


> Like it was said,she's got her feathers in bunch.She was snatched up out of all the hens,stuck in a box,went for a truck ride and maybe a plane ride,then placed in a strange place with strange chickens that beat her up.Biscuit has no clue what's happening to her and she's so stressed.I think you should keep her isolated and quiet until she starts to calm down,then interact with you and then see you interact with the others,from a distance.It might take a little time but it will be worth it in the end.I'm sure your parents won't be happy with a dead $100 bird so go slowly and it should work out.Good luck!!!


She stayed in the cage with straw bedding and towels covering it so she wouldn't keep trying to escape. McMurray hatchery gives you a new bird if the bird dies, so money wouldn't be the issue. I am going slowly with her and this morning before school I checked on her. She was quiet and calm and just standing in the cage, looking around.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Wigwam7 said:


> McMurray hatchery gives you a new bird if the bird dies, so money wouldn't be the issue.


Wrong equivalency! This is a living, feeling being. Are you really comfortable with making her life not count for anything?

Getting her comfortable with her surroundings in a safe manner is on you now. Don't over think things but definitely put her needs front and center.


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

Good, she's guaranteed(that's a hefty price for a common bird).Bear in mind she doesn't understand what's happening to her.Some chickens handle change better than others.Let her get used to you and then the other chickens.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

robin416 said:


> Wrong equivalency! This is a living, feeling being. Are you really comfortable with making her life not count for anything?
> 
> Getting her comfortable with her surroundings in a safe manner is on you now. Don't over think things but definitely put her needs front and center.


Oh no, I'm not comparing her life to money. Chickenqueen just said my parents wouldn't be happy about losing a $100 bird. I think she is already more comfortable today. I am going to let her stay in our screened in porch for about a week until she gets de-stressed and more comfortable. The laundry room is far too noisy for her. It gets down into the 40s at night, so would a heat lamp be a good idea?


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

chickenqueen said:


> Good, she's guaranteed(that's a hefty price for a common bird).Bear in mind she doesn't understand what's happening to her.Some chickens handle change better than others.Let her get used to you and then the other chickens.


I agree about the price, but keep in mind that Biscuits herself was only $20 and live bird shipping was $80...gulp. Thankfully my parents agreed to buy her for two reasons - one, my dad wanted to do ANYTHING to get rid of poor old Wiggo, and two, it was a birthday gift as well. A few kids in my school are confused about why I like chickens so much and why for my birthday present I got one, haha!


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## Maryellen (Jan 21, 2015)

No heat lamps.ever.... they are a serious fire hazard.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Wigwam7 said:


> Oh no, I'm not comparing her life to money. Chickenqueen just said my parents wouldn't be happy about losing a $100 bird. I think she is already more comfortable today. I am going to let her stay in our screened in porch for about a week until she gets de-stressed and more comfortable. The laundry room is far too noisy for her. It gets down into the 40s at night, so would a heat lamp be a good idea?


No heat lamp! Birds are will insulated and can withstand temps far below 40.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

Maryellen said:


> No heat lamps.ever.... they are a serious fire hazard.


Ok. I used them my first chicks and it was fine. What heat source do you recommend, or do you recommend anything at all?


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

robin416 said:


> No heat lamp! Birds are will insulated and can withstand temps far below 40.


Thanks. I won't use a heat lamp.


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## Maryellen (Jan 21, 2015)

I love the brinsea eco warmer and the premier plate for baby chicks.
For chickens 3 months old and older the other chickens help with cuddling together for body heat. The plates do not go high enough unless you modify them to be taller. 
Since she is by herself can you cover her cage on the porch or somewhere?


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## Maryellen (Jan 21, 2015)




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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

A warmer or heat of any kind is not needed for a fully feathered bird.


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## Maryellen (Jan 21, 2015)

True. The warmers are good for baby chicks if they were incubated and no broody available


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## Nm156 (May 16, 2015)

Miss Chicky and her 14 sisters survived -23(actually temp) in a 8x10 metal shed without added heat.


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## Nm156 (May 16, 2015)




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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

Nm156 said:


> View attachment 28731


Well, this is a single young pullet in a small cage with openings on all sides. There is three towels covering the cage and I just went to check on her. She is laying down in the hay. The heat lamp was never a fire hazard with our chicks because it had the bars to hold it in place. It can't fall through onto Biscuit.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

robin416 said:


> A warmer or heat of any kind is not needed for a fully feathered bird.


Well, this is a single young pullet in a small cage with openings on all sides. There is three towels covering the cage and I just went to check on her. She is laying down in the hay. The heat lamp was never a fire hazard with our chicks because it had the bars to hold it in place. It can't fall through onto Biscuit.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

Let me remind you of something, you're talking to a bunch of people who successfully raised chickens for longer than you've been born. I have a bird that will be 13 in the Spring, Karen has one that just turned 10. 

Do you kind of get the idea we know what we're talking about? Do you really think we're going to give you bad information?


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

robin416 said:


> Let me remind you of something, you're talking to a bunch of people who successfully raised chickens for longer than you've been born. I have a bird that will be 13 in the Spring, Karen has one that just turned 10.
> 
> Do you kind of get the idea we know what we're talking about? Do you really think we're going to give you bad information?


Yes. It's just cold outside. Biscuit is small and frail, I just don't want anything to happen to her.


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## robin416 (Sep 8, 2013)

You are trying to put human traits on her, she's a bird. She has feathers that keep her warmer than most coats that we wear in Winter. If she is that frail that cool weather causes her problems then she needs to go back. But I don't think that's it at all. It's you expecting zebras again when you hear those hooves. 

If you don't find a way to relax with these guys not only will they become neurotic over your constant fussing, there will also be no joy in it for you. Remember: 12 years old, also two 9 year olds. That means my guys have done just fine without me trying to micro manage their lives.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

robin416 said:


> You are trying to put human traits on her, she's a bird. She has feathers that keep her warmer than most coats that we wear in Winter. If she is that frail that cool weather causes her problems then she needs to go back. But I don't think that's it at all. It's you expecting zebras again when you hear those hooves.
> 
> If you don't find a way to relax with these guys not only will they become neurotic over your constant fussing, there will also be no joy in it for you. Remember: 12 years old, also two 9 year olds. That means my guys have done just fine without me trying to micro manage their lives.


I sure do enjoy my chickens, I'm just a little anxiety-ridden in general, I guess. That's just me. I've been like that forever, and I'm trying to get over it, especially with these chickens. Tonight, instead of leaving Biscuit on the porch outdoors, we took her in to the screened in one so she could be safer. The corner of our long back deck was pretty safe - it was elevated off the ground with columns and had tall railings on all sides, but just to be sure, she's in the screened one tonight.
However, I knew I wasn't overreacting tonight, when my mom and I were coming home around 9:30 from dog sitting and saw a raccoon scamper across the driveway. A few days earlier we had seen a family of foxes up the road. I ran to the chicken coop and locked the girls in and put up the foot latch on the main run door. Typically I leave the pop door open at night because our run is secure and the girls go in by themselves and stay there and come out in the morning as they wish, but on really cold nights and nights when I perceive danger, I lock them in.


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## seminole wind (Aug 22, 2015)

Screens won't protect her. Don't worry so much. If I had temps like NM, I'd worry.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

seminolewind said:


> Screens won't protect her. Don't worry so much. If I had temps like NM, I'd worry.


The screened in porch is very elevated and has wire over the bottom screens. Nothing is getting in that porch- it would have to be 7 feet tall OR be inside the house to get to her.


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

I've been raising chickens in a metal shed for 17 yrs now and if it gets down in the teens,I put a heat lamp out there.I think it's more for me than for them.It doesn't keep the water from freezing but takes the chill off.When we had 18" of snow then 1/2" of ice then 18" more snow then temps dropped and it was -38 with the wind chill.I put 2 lights out there.Despite what people think,chickens can freeze in extreme cold.One thing you can do is feed them extra at night.The process of digestion creates body heat.If it's going to be really cold,I'll fix them some rice with a little milk and sugar or a couple of boxes of cheap mac and cheese or even table scraps and feed it to them right before bed time.Don't feel too bad and alone,I've got 4 6 wk old chicks and I have to figure out what to do with them.


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## Wigwam7 (Mar 29, 2017)

chickenqueen said:


> I've been raising chickens in a metal shed for 17 yrs now and if it gets down in the teens,I put a heat lamp out there.I think it's more for me than for them.It doesn't keep the water from freezing but takes the chill off.When we had 18" of snow then 1/2" of ice then 18" more snow then temps dropped and it was -38 with the wind chill.I put 2 lights out there.Despite what people think,chickens can freeze in extreme cold.One thing you can do is feed them extra at night.The process of digestion creates body heat.If it's going to be really cold,I'll fix them some rice with a little milk and sugar or a couple of boxes of cheap mac and cheese or even table scraps and feed it to them right before bed time.Don't feel too bad and alone,I've got 4 6 wk old chicks and I have to figure out what to do with them.


Well, last night I ended up putting her in the screened in porch to protect from predators, and draping towels over her cage. This morning she was fine. She was walking around a little and clucking a bit. Tonight I am going to put her in a bigger cage with Raisin, because they get along well. Tomorrow, I will put both Raisin and Biscuit back in the flock and I think the other chickens will accept Raisin and the new pullet together.


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## chickenqueen (Jan 9, 2016)

Good luck!!!I hope it goes well.


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