Chicken health, step by step
Interactive lesson: quarantine and biosecurity, a morning look at the flock, checking a hen in the hand, red mite without chemicals, worms and the clear signs for calling the vet at once.
Free sample Chapters 1 and 2 (8 steps) are free. The full lesson comes with the Natural health care for chickens module. Already bought? Unlock
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The whole lesson as text
1. Keep disease out
The cheapest cure is the disease that never got into the yard.
- 30 days' quarantine — Every new bird goes into a separate space for at least 30 days, with its own feeder and drinker. Work with the old flock first, then the new birds.
- Feed under cover — Feeder and drinker stand under cover. Sparrows, pigeons and wild ducks carry disease and parasites.
- Separate boots — Keep separate boots or overshoes for the hen house. Visitors who keep poultry don't go into your hen house.
- Rodents under control — Feed is kept in metal bins and none is spilt. Rats and mice carry salmonella and other diseases.
Why: Hens hide illness for a long time, so a hen looks healthy until she is already very ill. That is why a flock's health is kept with rules, not medicines: don't let disease in, and if it gets in, don't let it spread.
- Don't lend or borrow crates, carriers or drinkers without washing and disinfecting them.
- Surroundings keep hens healthy: dry bedding without ammonia, good ventilation without draughts and 0.3 m² per hen inside.
2. A healthy hen and a sick one
Learn what a healthy hen looks like, and you'll spot a sick one straight away.
- The morning look — While you pour the feed, watch the flock for 2–3 minutes. It is the most important health check, every morning.
- What healthy looks like — A healthy hen is lively, scratches, eats and keeps with the flock. In a laying hen the comb and wattles are red and full.
- Warning sign — She stands alone, fluffed up, eyes closed and tail down. A fluffed-up hen in a corner is ill.
- Separate her at once — Put the sick hen in a warm, quiet box with water and feed, away from the flock. Write the signs and the date in the health log.
Why: In nature a weak bird becomes prey, so a hen hides illness to the very end. The morning look while you pour the feed is the flock's most important health check, and it costs nothing.
- As well as the morning look, count the flock every evening.
- Look at the droppings too: brown-green with a white cap is normal; watery, green, yellow or bloody is a warning sign.
3. Checking a hen in the hand · Locked
Buy the Natural health care for chickens module and you get the PDF to download and print, plus lifetime access to this interactive lesson: all 6 chapters, 26 steps.
4. Red mite without chemicals · Locked
Buy the Natural health care for chickens module and you get the PDF to download and print, plus lifetime access to this interactive lesson: all 6 chapters, 26 steps.
5. Worms and the run · Locked
Buy the Natural health care for chickens module and you get the PDF to download and print, plus lifetime access to this interactive lesson: all 6 chapters, 26 steps.
6. When to call the vet at once · Locked
Buy the Natural health care for chickens module and you get the PDF to download and print, plus lifetime access to this interactive lesson: all 6 chapters, 26 steps.