The team at McGehee Clinic for Animals recommends scheduling an exam for your chicken
once a year
to enable us to administer necessary vaccinations and perform a fecal test to provide your chicken with a clean bill of health. Contact McGehee Clinic for Animals today to schedule an appointment!
Ensure Your Chicken’s Overall Health
We recommend scheduling yearly exams so our team can perform a fecal test and administer the Marek’s disease vaccine if necessary. Additionally, there are a few things all chickens require:
Pelleted diet
Fresh greens, fruits and vegetables
Preserve a clean coop
Pine wood shavings litter
Vaccinations for Marek’s disease
If you are purchasing chicks to raise, make sure they have been vaccinated for Marek’s disease in the egg when they are a day old.
Chicken Care Instructions
Appropriate Diet for Chickens
Pellets from Harrison’s Organic Chicken Food along with a variety of fresh greens, fruits and vegetables are the best choice for a healthy chicken’s diet, as they supply the necessary nutrients to grow. Make sure fresh water is always available for your chickens and the waterers and feeders are persistently clean. Stay away from vegetables containing carbohydrates and cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower, cabbage, garden cress, bok choy, broccoli, and Brussels sprouts. These may lead to goiter or weight gain. Fruits containing vitamin C such as oranges or tangerines should only be given in moderation, otherwise the excessive amount of iron may lead to liver disease. Earthworms or mealworms may be given as a treat. Seed, chicken scratch or cracked corn diets lack the vital nutrition for your chickens and may cause obesity, liver, heart and kidney disease, in addition to a deficiency in calcium and vitamin A. As always, never share human food including pizza, cheese, chicken wings, hamburgers, cookies, crackers, etc., with your chicken.
Proper Chicken Coop
The environment in which your chicken is housed can directly affect their quality of life. That is why it’s important that a coop should be easy to clean, shield the chickens from predators, and offer sufficient room for the chickens. Proper housing would allow chickens access to a protected outdoor run, have a dirt or solid floor with pine wood shavings litter, and be insulated with walls that are easy to clean. The chicken coop should be well-ventilated by screened windows to regulate the temperature of the structure.
How to Handle Laying Hens
- We recommend always washing your hands after handling eggs, chickens, or anything in their coop.
- Ensure the coop and eggs stay clean by cleaning the coop, floor, nests, and perches frequently.
- Gather the eggs often to prevent them from becoming broken or dirty. If an egg breaks, it should be discarded.
- Clean dirty eggs with fine sandpaper, brush, or cloth. Eggs should not be washed due to the risk of a bacterial infection.
- Once the eggs are gathered, refrigerate them immediately.
- Be aware of the sale regulations of eggs in your area. Follow the local licensing requirements.
- Check with your veterinarian before providing medication for your chickens or eating eggs from a medicated chicken. Medications may be transmitted to the egg and negatively affect humans if consumed.
- Make sure your chickens have open access to an oyster shell/limestone calcium source prior to and during laying. This is a required nutrient to ensure the health and safety of laying chickens.