January 2005

Question:  How can I tell if my chickens are sick?

Answer:  Knowing your birds is one of the most important things you can do to ensure that your birds remain healthy.  It is important that you observe them on a regular basis so that you can become familiar with their normal social behavior as well as their food and water consumption.  A healthy bird will be bright, alert, and responsive.  As in this photo, you will notice that all the chickens are alert and looking at the camera/photographer.  These are healthy chickens.  If you enter their pen and they look like they are sleeping, you can awaken them, and they should be startled and run off.  A sick chicken will remain in place.  Moreover, sick birds will tend to go “off feed,” which means that they may not be eating the amount of food they normally eat.  You can also measure how much they may be eating.  Of course, make sure no other pests (wild birds or rodents) are eating their food.  Sick birds may also drink less than usual.  So, observe your flock closely and when you observe that they might not be acting “normal” it might be worth investigating to determine if something is really wrong with your flock.

This month's column

Teresa Y. Morishita, DVM, PhD, Dipl. ACPV is a Professor and Extension Poultry Veterinarian in the Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine.  She is a board-certified poultry veterinarian and is also the Director of the Avian Disease Investigation Laboratory at The Ohio State University.  She welcomes your questions and invites you to contact her at the Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine, The Ohio State University, 1920 Coffey Road, Columbus, OH  43210 or you can contact Teresa Morishita by sending an email to John Anderson at anderson.37@osu.edu Your question may be posted at this site, we will withhold your name at your request.