Chicken First Aid

SUBHEAD: Some vital items you better have on hand to support the health of your chickens.


Image above: The hen Dazeywith droopy comb whose owner Natureloover could not save her. From (https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/i-think-i-have-a-sick-hen-pale-and-droopy-comb.934754/).

By Juan Wilson on 7 June 2017 for Island Breath -
(http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2017/06/chicken-first-aid.html)

We recently had an older hen pass away. Before she obviously appeared sick we noticed her comb was a little droopy. We've seen this before a few times. Most chickens that have displayed a droopy comb died within a week or so.

The hen Dazey, above, that looked like our chicken before she passed away. Dazey died after muchme effort by her owner, 'Natureloover' to test and treat her. As it turned out Dazey had peritonitis and lymphoma, she ended up losing almost all of her body weight because her food wasn't processing.

But droopy comb can be caused from many things including mites. It is a general sign that something is truly amiss with a chicken.

It is advised to make sure that the hen has not mites on her, and it is recommended worming her with a good broad spectrum wormer that gets more than just roundworm. Look at her stools to make sure there is no blood in them. Avitrol and Wormout gel are both very good. Here is a link: (http://planetpoultry.com.au/15-medications). From (backyardchickens.com/threads/i-think-i-have-a-sick-hen-pale-and-droopy-comb.934754/)

Below are communications between the owner Natureloover, owner of the hen Dazey and another online adviser from BackYardChicken.com

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Hello, thank you in advance for any feedback! One of our hens, Dazey, was diagnosed with gastrointestinal infection and was on antibiotics for coccidious. Even though her stool was negative, she had the symptoms.. After nursing her back to health and finishing her antibiotics, we re-introduced her back to the flock. She was doing well, acting normal, very happy to be back home! Her comb was still very dry, but red. At the beginning of her illness, we noticed a single black dot on her comb, and now I am noticing some more, even smaller, dots. But she was still acting normal. Last night my mother gave them some mealworms (one of her favorite treats) and she didn't seem as interested as she normally would be. Not sure what her comb looked like yesterday as I wasn't around, but today it is very dark and droopy. She's eating and drinking normal. Please help!!! I am very worried about my sweet girl!!!

This is a photo of her before moving her back home with her flock.

Naturelooover

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Welcome to BackYardChickens.com. How old is she, and where do you live--is it warm with mosquitoes out now, or wintertime? Can you post a picture of her now with the marks and dark comb? Since she had symptoms of an intestinal disease and was treated for cocci, what were her symptoms then? How does her comb feel now and does it empty by morning? What do her droppings look like? Can you try to add vitamins and electrolytes to her water, and add a little plain yogurt to her feed for probiotics (since she was on antibiotics?) Chickens can suffer from so many different illnesses, and they can also have internal laying problems which cause vague symptoms. Her darker comb may be significant that she is not getting enough oxygen to her heart, but pictures would be good.

Eggcessive

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We live in NE Florida, warmest days are in the low 80s right now, coldest nights, low 50s. There haven't been a lot of mosquitoes. She will be three in March, we've had her since she was two weeks old. She was weak, had abdominal pain, diarrhea, and no appetite, her crop was soft, tail feathers were down, and she was very tired. Her stool was negative for worms or any parasites. She is very thin and slightly anemic. We gave her electrolytes in her water, I think it helped tremendously. I will add some to her water in the morning. I just went to check on her, and her comb is not as dark as I thought, but is still very unhealthy. It looks as if it has shrunk, it is very droopy, dry, and discolored. Here is a photo, I hope you can get a better visual.

Naturelooover

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I am not a vet, but it's possible that she might be suffering from internal laying or egg yolk peritonitis. Whatever the problem, she looks cery ill. Her comb looks dry, and she could have a little peck mark or insect bite. I would try to make her as comfortable as possible, and try to get her to eat and drink. Bits of egg or runa, feed made liquid with water and plain yogurt are food for feeding sick hens. Keep her warm. Poultry NutriDrench or Poultry Cell are good vitamins with iron and minerals plus amino acids. Antibiotics are sometimes given for internal laying problems, but there is not a lot of success in treatment.

Eggcessive

Image above: Dazey displaying advanced droopy comb towards the end of her life. From (https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/i-think-i-have-a-sick-hen-pale-and-droopy-comb.934754/).

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By Jessica W. on 29 May 2017 for Off Grid News -
(http://www.offthegridnews.com/how-to-2/chicken-first-aid-8-vital-items-you-better-have-on-hand/)

Standing at the kitchen counter, early on a Saturday morning, I caught a glimpse of a white blur, closely followed by a large black blur. Turning to look closer, I saw a black dog, not belonging to us, attacking my flock. I lost three to that attack, including our rooster.

Thankfully, one wise hen that was attacked did escape by taking refuge with our farm dog. She had a deep wound under her left wing that healed quite nicely after being cleaned and treated with ointment from our first-aid kit.

From frostbite to predator attacks, our flock has experienced a lot in a few short years. Having a basic first-aid kit — and the knowledge to use it — is essential on the homestead. Chickens will be injured from time to time. Sometimes they hurt each other, sometimes it is a predator attack that can leave them wounded, or perhaps it is just a routine illness.

Below you’ll find a list of basic supplies that any first-aid kit for chickens should have. As always, use caution when using any type of antibiotic or other medication and carefully read the instructions.

1. Disposable gloves
Protect your hands while keeping the wound area free from contaminants by having a supply of disposable gloves readily available. They also prevent infection from spreading and make clean up much easier.

2. Rubbing alcohol
A small bottle of rubbing alcohol is perfect for cleaning wounds.

Be careful not to get the liquid near the bird’s eyes. Hydrogen peroxide also can be used; however, it also kills healthy cells surrounding the wound, so it is best to use it for the initial cleaning.

3. Cornstarch
Cornstarch, styptic powder and Wonder Dust are all useful for stopping bleeding due to broken nails or minor wounds. A small pair of nail clippers to trim broken nails on the spot also should be included to keep them from being further torn.

4. Triple antibiotic ointment
When choosing an antibiotic ointment for your first-aid kit, pick one free of pain-relieving ingredients. The ointment is most useful for preventing infection in wounds and abrasions.

5. Petroleum ointment
Useful as a protectant, petroleum ointment is helpful to fend off frostbite on combs and wattles during extreme cold snaps. It also can be used to treat scaly leg mites. To do this, simply coat the leg with ointment once or twice a week until the leg scales once again lay flat.

6. Blu-Kote
An antiseptic spray, Blu-Kote masks the wound to prevent other hens from pecking at it. It also stops infection and can be used in combination with a triple antibiotic ointment for serious wounds. Carefully spray on affected area as needed. It may take multiple applications each day before the wound has healed sufficiently enough to deter pecking.

7. Oral syringe
For dispensing any liquid medications, an oral syringe is a must. Electrolyte solutions can be easily administered to aid ailing chickens with an oral syringe. For crop issues, specifically a compacted crop, a few drops of a vegetable oil can be given with an oral syringe to loosen and soften the mass, allowing it to pass freely from the crop.

8. Gauze wrap
Occasionally, a wing will be broken and need to be secured. Position the broken wing in a natural position on the bird’s side and wrap the body and wing with gauze to secure it in place. Broken legs can be splinted and wrapped with gauze as well. It is best to isolate the chicken to prevent further injury due to pecking.

Along with these specific supplies, general supplies such as cotton balls, small gauze pads and small scissors are all helpful in emergencies. Keeping all first-aid supplies in a portable kit allows you to easily treat injured chickens on the spot.


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The missing ocean plastic

SUBHEAD: Newly-evolved microbes may be breaking down ocean plastics more than we know.

By Michael LePage on 25 May 2017 for new Scientist -
(https://www.newscientist.com/article/2132650-newly-evolved-microbes-may-be-breaking-down-ocean-plastics/)


Image above: Plastic simply continues to evolve into new ecosystems. From (http://www.techtimes.com/articles/9538/20140702/plastic-debris-covers-88-percent-of-worlds-oceans-much-lower-than-expected-say-scientists.htm).

Plastic. There should be hundreds of thousands of tonnes of the stuff floating around in our oceans. But we are finding less than expected – perhaps because living organisms are evolving the ability to break it down.

Plastic production is rising exponentially, so ever more of it should be ending up in the oceans, says Ricard Sole, who studies complex systems at the Universitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona.

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But surveys of areas where floating plastic accumulates, such as the North Atlantic gyre, are not finding nearly as much plastic as expected.

Mystery of the missing plastics

In fact, there’s only a tenth to a hundredth as much plastic as expected – and the amount of floating plastic does not appear to be increasing. “The trend should be there,” Sole says.

This lack of trend cannot be explained by physical processes, according to his team’s mathematical models. Instead, they propose that there has been a population boom in microbes that have evolved the ability to biodegrade plastic.

Other researchers agree that surveys are finding far less plastic in the oceans than expected. However, they say there are several other possible explanations for this “missing plastic”.

Surprisingly, even if ocean plastic is being degraded much faster than thought, it is not clear that this is a good thing. “It is difficult to say,” says Matthew Cole of Exeter University in the UK.

For instance, biodegradation could be speeding up the breakdown of large pieces of plastic into lots of very tiny pieces, which might have a greater overall impact.

Plastic also contains various additives that could get released and enter the food chain if the plastic part biodegrades, says environmental chemist Alexandra Ter Halle of the Laboratoire des IMRCP in France.

“To really tackle the plastic problem, we need to stop it getting into the oceans in the first place,” Cole says.

The ‘platisphere’

In theory it is possible that some microbes have evolved the ability to break down plastics. Studies by Linda Amaral-Zettler of the Netherlands Institute for Sea Research show that the microbes colonizing floating plastic are quite distinct from those in the surrounding water, and suggest some are feeding on pollutants.

In effect, the plastic is creating a whole new ecosystem that Amaral-Zettler and colleagues call “the plastisphere”.

But when Ter Halle looked at the DNA of the organisms on floating plastic in the North Atlantic, she didn’t find any microbes known to be capable of breaking down plastic. That could be because they have not yet been discovered of course – there could be millions of unknown microbes still.

Amaral-Zettler and Ter Halle think it is more likely that floating plastic is simply sinking to the seafloor as colonising organisms weigh it down, or breaking into such microscopic pieces that it is not being caught in the nets of research vessels. It could also be being swallowed by living organisms, or carried by currents to unexpected parts of the ocean.

The sinking explanation might also be compatible with his findings, says Sole. His study does not prove that microbes are metabolising plastic, but the lack of an upward trend can only be explained by a biological response that can increase in proportion to the amount of plastic.

If a physical process was responsible, there would still be an upward trend, he says.

It is possible that some plastic is being biodegraded, Amaral-Zettler says, but it could be over too long time-scale – a hundred years, say – to explain the missing plastic. And even if it is happening much faster, there would still be a problem.

Plastics are polluting every part of the ocean, from the beaches of remote islands to the deepest parts of the sea. Large pieces of plastic can accumulate in the stomach of animals such as turtles, which then starve to death.

While there may be less than expected, large amounts of floating plastic are found in the subtropical gyres where surface waters circle.

While terms such as the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch” conjure up visions of litter-covered seas, much of the floating plastic in the ocean consists of tiny pieces just a few millimetres wide or smaller, which are not obvious to the naked eye at all. Its impact on marine life is not clear, either.

Various schemes have been proposed to remove this plastic from the oceans, but trying to clean up the oceans is impractical, says Amaral-Zettler. “We need to look at prevention and reduction at the start.”

Journal reference: Biorxiv, DOI: 10.1101/135582

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