It’s hard to detect a sick bird until it’s normally too late. Birds are notorious for masking the signs of sickness or injury. As a prey species, it’s survival of the fittest, the weak or sick looking birds make easy prey for a predator. The quicker you learn to identify a sick or injured bird the highest chance of survival the bird has.
First of all you need to learn the behaviours of the breed. The key is to look out for subtle changes or an absence in certain behaviours. Once you understand the behaviours of your flock it makes it so much quicker and easier to notice small changes.
Pay close attention to:
Appetite – Knowing how much food each bird is consuming is so much harder than you think! Instead, keep an eye on how involved the birds are when it comes to eating. Add in treats if you’re unsure. Mealworms are our go-to. We have live mealworms delivered once a week from ‘WigglyWigglers’. There must be something wrong with the bird if they aren’t interested in these treats.
Posture – Abnormalities in posture include: head tucked, neck twisted, hunched, upright, sitting on hocks, laying down, droopy wings, paralysis ect.
Socialising and interactions with other birds – How much time they are spending on their own and how they are treated by other flock members. Do they appear lethargic or depressed?
Size – Weight loss and stunted growth in chickens indicate that there may be a problem – something is impacting the birds’ ability to absorb nutrients to grow or maintain their weight.
Movement – How the bird looks when they are walking or running. Do they look off balance, stumble often are reluctant to walk for very long?
Respiratory effort – Does a bird look like it may be having trouble breathing? Sneezing, coughing, wheezing, voice changes, tail bobbing, gasping, or reduced exercise tolerance?
Changes in the chickens comb -
‘The Depressed Bird’ Look
The issue with chickens is that they are very good at masking and hiding their illness and pain. This means that once they appear with the typical ‘depressed bird’ look their condition is usually in the advanced stages.
Hopefully some of this information will help you identify when your birds are starting to look unwell and you can treat them accordingly!