Respiratory disease is one of the most common health challenges in backyard flocks. Let’s learn to recognize the signs and protect your birds! Common Signs of Respiratory Disease: 🤧 Sneezing, coughing, wheezing 🤧 Nasal discharge (clear or cloudy) 🤧 Swollen sinuses (puffy face) 🤧 Rattling or gurgling sounds when breathing 🤧 Open-mouth breathing 🤧.Reduced activity, huddling 🤧 Decreased egg production 🤧 Eye discharge or foamy eyes Major Respiratory Diseases: INFECTIOUS BRONCHITIS (Viral) 🥚Highly contagious 🥚Gasping, coughing, nasal discharge 🥚Decreased/stopped egg production 🥚Misshapen eggs after recovery 🥚Vaccine available MYCOPLASMA (MG/MS) (Bacterial) 🐔Chronic disease - carriers for life! 🐔Foamy eyes, nasal discharge 🐔Swollen sinuses 🐔Spreads through eggs (vertical transmission) 🐔Antibiotics manage but don’t cure INFECTIOUS LARYNGOTRACHEITIS (Viral) 🐤Severe gasping, coughing up blood 🐤High mortality possible 🐤Vaccine available in endemic areas CORYZA (Bacterial) 🐓Foul-smelling nasal discharge 🐓Facial swelling 🐓Rapid spread through flock 🐓Antibiotic treatment available ASPERGILLOSIS (Fungal) 🐥From moldy bedding/feed 🐥Gasping, rapid breathing 🐥Poor prognosis 🐥Prevention is key! Prevention Strategies: ✓ Proper ventilation (removes moisture/ammonia) ✓ Reduce stress and overcrowding ✓ Quarantine new birds (30 days minimum!) ✓ Keep bedding dry ✓ Never use moldy feed ✓ Vaccinate when appropriate and available ✓ Practice good biosecurity Critical: Many respiratory diseases have NO cure - prevention is everything! Your turn: ❓Ever dealt with respiratory disease in your flock? How did you manage it? 😷 ❓What’s your #1 biosecurity practice to prevent respiratory issues? 🛡️

“My chickens have never had grit and they’re fine!” Let’s talk about what grit ACTUALLY is and why it matters for proper digestion. What IS Grit? Small, hard, insoluble stones that chickens store in their gizzard to grind food mechanically. Think of it as their “teeth” - because they don’t have any! Two Types - Don’t Confuse Them! INSOLUBLE GRIT (True Grit) 🪨Granite, flint, or commercial poultry grit 🪨Stays in gizzard permanently 🪨Grinds whole grains, seeds, fibrous material 🪨Slowly wears down and must be replaced SOLUBLE GRIT (NOT True Grit!) 🐓Oyster shell, limestone 🐓Dissolves quickly in digestive tract 🐓Provides CALCIUM, doesn’t grind food 🐓Does NOT substitute for insoluble grit! Do Chickens NEED Grit? YES if they eat: 🐤Whole grains (scratch, corn, wheat) 🐤Vegetation, grass, weeds 🐤Seeds, bugs with hard shells 🐤Anything fibrous or tough MAYBE NOT if: 🐥Fed ONLY commercial pellets/crumbles (already processed) 🐥No access to pasture or whole foods 🐥But access doesn’t hurt! How It Works: Food enters gizzard → muscular contractions → grit grinds food into paste → nutrients can be absorbed in intestine Without grit, whole grains pass through partially digested = wasted nutrition! Free-Range Myth: “My chickens free-range, so they find their own grit!” Maybe - depends on your soil! 🪨Rocky areas?Probably fine. 🏝️Sandy/clay soil? They may need supplemental grit. Best Practice: Offer free-choice insoluble grit year-round. Chickens self-regulate - they’ll eat what they need! Your turn: ❓Do you provide grit, or rely on free-ranging? 🪨 ❓What’s the most random thing you’ve seen your chickens pick up thinking it was grit? (Legos? Rocks the size of golf balls?) 😂

Ever felt that squishy pouch on your chicken’s chest and wondered what it is? That’s the crop - and understanding it can help you catch problems early! What IS the Crop? A thin-walled, expandable pouch at the base of the neck where food is temporarily stored and moistened before moving to the stomach. Think of it as a “lunch box” for later digestion! NORMAL Crop Function: ☀️Morning: Empty and flat (food processed overnight) ✨Evening: Full and rounded (storing day’s food) 🐥Feel: Soft, squishy, like a partially-filled water balloon 🐤Normal crops empty in 12-24 hours. You should be able to feel food/grain through the skin. ABNORMAL Conditions: IMPACTED CROP (Crop Bound) 🐓Full, hard, doesn’t empty overnight 🐓Feels like a dough ball 🐓Caused by: long fibrous material (grass, hay, strings), dehydration, lack of grit SOUR CROP (Candidiasis) 🐔Squishy but doesn’t empty 🐔Foul smell from mouth 🐔May vomit or have fluid slosh 🐔Caused by: yeast/fungal overgrowth PENDULOUS CROP 🐤 Chronically stretched, hangs low 🐤 From repeated impactions Treatment Approaches: For Impaction: 🐓Massage gently to break up contents 🐓Offer water, withhold food temporarily 🐓Separate from flock 🐓May require veterinary intervention if severe For Sour Crop: 🐔Antifungal medication (veterinary guidance needed! I’m happy to jump on a telehealth call) 🐔Probiotics after treatment 🐔Address underlying cause Prevention: ✓ Provide grit always ✓ Fresh water available ✓ Avoid long, stringy materials ✓ Limit scratch/treats When to See a Vet: Crop issues can be life-threatening! Seek help if no improvement in 24 hours. Again, I’m happy to jump on a telehealth call. Just DM me. Your turn: ❓Ever had a chicken with a crop issue that resolved itself, or did you have to intervene? 🩺 ❓Do you do regular crop checks or only when something seems off? 🔍

Your chickens are constantly communicating their nutritional status - if you know what to look for! Let’s decode the visual signs of common deficiencies. PROTEIN DEFICIENCY 🪶Poor feather quality, ragged appearance 🪶Slow feather regrowth during molt 🥚Reduced egg production 🪶Cannibalism/feather pecking increases CALCIUM DEFICIENCY 🥚Thin, soft, or shell-less eggs 🥚Misshapen eggs 🐥Rickets in young birds (bowed legs, soft bones) 🐓“Cage layer fatigue” (weakness, unable to stand) VITAMIN A DEFICIENCY 💦Watery eyes, crusty discharge 🐥Poor growth in chicks 💨Increased respiratory infections 🥚Reduced egg production VITAMIN D DEFICIENCY 🐥Rickets (soft, bent bones) 🥚Thin eggshells despite adequate calcium 🐥Leg weakness in growing birds VITAMIN E/SELENIUM DEFICIENCY 🐔“Crazy chick disease” (head tremors, walking backward) ☠️Sudden death in young birds 🪶Poor feathering B VITAMIN DEFICIENCIES ➰Curled toe paralysis (Riboflavin) 🐥Dermatitis, crusty skin (Pantothenic acid) 🐓Perosis/slipped tendon (Manganese/Choline) 🐣Poor growth, weakness THIAMINE (B1) DEFICIENCY ✨“Star gazing” (head pulled back) ✨Neurological signs, convulsions Prevention is Key: ✓ Feed complete, formulated poultry feed (90% of diet!) ✓ Store feed properly (vitamins degrade over time) ✓ Use feed within 6-8 weeks of milling ✓ Supplement only when needed, not routinely Your turn: ❓Ever spotted a deficiency sign in your flock? What tipped you off? 👀 ❓What’s your feed storage situation - airtight containers, original bag, or “I should probably upgrade”? 🗑️

So I have a small flock, 4 hens and 1 rooster. Three of the hens I have from the 9 chicks I raised last spring, the others were all taken by predators. One of the hens, Grace, and the rooster, Elvis, are ones I got from a neighbor a couple months ago, and they are both about a year older than my other hens. Grace disappeared a couple weeks ago, so we assumed she had also been taken during the day by a predator. She had started to isolate herself from the flock because of the other hens would bully her. But yesterday, in the middle of the day, she showed up in the coop. I was shocked to say the least. Then, later in the day she disappeared again….I looked everywhere around the coop and walked the woods behind where the coop is and I couldn’t find her anywhere on the ground or up in trees. So, where could she be going? Why is she not returning to the coop at night? Is she potentially broody and trying to hatch out eggs? Where would she go to do that? I want to try to find her and put her with the new chicks in a separate coop from the other hens to keep them from picking on her. For context, we live on 10 acres of mostly dense Florida forest, consisting of mostly pine trees, but also oaks and clusters of palm fronds. I took a video of her so my husband would believe me that she came back lol