Mareks Disease in Chickens
MAREKS DISEASE (MD), is a common virus that causes internal lesions (tumors), and kills more birds than any other disease. It is so common that you should assume you have…
‘Poultry Health Articles’ cover a variety of topics for more advanced fanciers. Beginners and Juniors who are just starting out should check out the FAQs page for basic information on caring for their backyard chickens. New articles will be added to both the FAQ and Poultry Health Articles pages as I see a trend of their frequency. Additional contributors are identified when used. Please visit their websites when links are provided.
Vaccinating for Mareks Disease in Chickens
OK, I give… I finally put together an article exclusively for those of you who would like to learn how to vaccinate your chicks for Mareks Disease. Step 1 -…
The Many Uses of Oxine AH (Animal Health)
Since I introduced a product named Oxine AH (Animal Health) to the fancy about four years ago, I have had so many questions about its effectiveness and many uses, that…
The Many Uses of Diatomaceous Earth
DIATOMACEOUS EARTH (DE) is not ‘dirt’. In plain English it is naturally occurring crystalline silica, found in the earth. Another understandable description would be razor sharp microscopic diatoms (the crystalline…
Treating Heat Stress and Exhaustion in Poultry
Heat stress, or heat exhaustion, can be a serious problem a serious problem for poultry during the summer months. It can be a problem any time in certain areas of…
Biosecurity – Keeping your chicken coop free from contamination
BIOSECURITY is practiced in the commercial poultry industry, and it simply means to keep your facilities as free from contaminants as possible. Viruses, bacteria, parasites, and fungi, can be kept…
Stress Management for Chickens
STRESS is a big factor in determining the overall health of our birds. Stress comes in many forms and seems to affect the best of our show birds the most.…
The Emotional Side of Raising Poultry
I’m going to break from the traditional health article this month and talk about something that touches my soul. If I wanted to write a column on the ‘most frequently…
Supportive Therapy for Chickens
I'm not talking about the need for psychotherapy (although if you're talking about my birds, it's debatable); I'm talking about SUPPORTIVE THERAPY. Supportive therapy is what you administer to a…
General Care for Backyard Chickens and Ducks
In order to avoid the need for an avian pathologist, a fancier must practice good, common sense GENERAL CARE including good nutrition. In this article I will explain the basics…
Toxoplasmosis in Poultry
Toxoplasmosis is a coccidian protozoan parasitic disease that affects mammals, birds, and reptiles. It primarily affects the central nervous system but can also affect the reproductive system, skeletal muscles, and…
Basic Nutrition for Backyard Chickens
The feed which chickens eat is made up of water, carbohydrates, fats, proteins, minerals and vitamins. Each nutrient serves a special need. What we feed supplies the building material for…
Treating Wounds and Injury in Backyard Chickens
Quite often, I will receive a call or an email from someone who is frantic over the devastating injury caused to their poultry pet, usually by a predator. When the…
Probiotics – The Good Bacteria
PROBIOTICS are a dietary supplement that increase the population of the 'good' bacteria (micro flora), which are needed in the intestinal tract in order to process food properly. The use…
Common Poultry Myths
Let’s talk about COMMON POULTRY MYTHS. Medicated Starter will kill your waterfowl. You cannot eat eggs from chickens that eat medicated Layer feed with Amprolium in it. Ducks and chickens…
How to Treat Chickens with Mites
Your chickens’ bottoms that is - you know, the area where the egg comes out in a hen and the area on the roo where he can make that same…
Infectious Laryngotracheitis in Poultry
Chickens do not suffer from the Common Cold. Your bird may have one of many upper respiratory ailments, such as Infectious Coryza, Infectious Bronchitis, a CRD, or perhaps some other…
Using Injectable Medications on Poultry
Are you in the dark about giving shots? Many fanciers are. This article will try to help people feel more comfortable with the idea of USING INJECTABLE MEDICATIONS on their…
Does my Chicken Have Worms? Common Worms that Effect Poultry
Worms don’t always result in death, and infections tend to be chronic in nature. If you have a large free ranging flock, chances are that you may not notice the…
‘Crusty’ Duck Heads
It’s unsightly, it’s crusty, it destroys feathers, and it’s sticky when wet – what IS that stuff? Oh-No! It’s 'DIRTY DUCK' SALIVA! You’ve seen it, I’m sure. Your best show…
Infectious Bronchitis in Poultry
Chickens do not suffer from the Common Cold. Your bird may have one of many upper respiratory ailments, such as Infectious Coryza, Infectious Bronchitis, a CRD, or perhaps some other…
How to Keep Chickens Warm and Healthy Through the Winter
In this article I’m going to talk about the joys of POULTRY KEEPING THROUGH THE WINTER. Those of you in the fare weather States can completely ignore me now. Only…
Toxins that Effect Backyard Chickens
A POISON by any other name is still a poison. To paraphrase Paracelsus from 400 years ago, it's 'the dose that makes the poison'. Simply stated, almost anything in an…
Coccidiosis in Poultry
COCCIDIOSIS is one of the most flock-devastating protozoan parasitic diseases that can effect backyard chickens. 'Cocci' management should forever be at the forefront of any good health and nutrition program…
First Aid Kit for Backyard Chickens and Ducks
I bet that’s what you’d love to call 911 every time one of your feathered friends has an illness or injury – come on, admit it! I can just see…
Egg Drop Syndrome
If you have a serious problem with thin-shelled or shell-less eggs, or a marked reduction in egg production, then you could be dealing with EGG DROP SYNDROME. I would not…
Upper Respiratory Fungal Infections that Effect Chickens
There's a reason for most of those deaths, and it's usually an undetected UPPER RESPIRATORY FUNGAL INFECTION. There are numerous upper respiratory ailments and I'm not going to cover each…
How to Increase Hatching Success in your Chickens
I've had both the good fortune of good fertility and a great hatch during a year that seemed disappointing for others, and the opportunity to study some of the latest…
Egg Binding
EGG BINDING is a serious disorder that most commonly affects a young hen when laying her first egg, but can affect any hen at any time. Some cases are so…
Infectious Coryza in Poultry
They probably have one of any number of upper respiratory ailments, such as Infectious Coryza, Infectious Bronchitis, a CRD, or perhaps some other form of respiratory distress including bacterial, fungal,…