Pasty Butt? What is it and how do you treat it?

What is Pasty Butt and how to treat it?


woodvilleacechickenblog.blogspot.com Anice 2018


Yes, this happens and yes it can be a fatale situation, but it is so easily taken care of in just a moment with a little soap and water, blow dry and Vaseline.

Pasty Butt in new baby chicks is caused from stress situations such as shipping, new environment, over-crowding, being handled, heat lamps, introduction of first food and water. You can have a whole brooder of chicks and you may have one with pasty butt, or none, then there is that day where you have ten. It is not predictable, nor preventable, it just happens!  And left untreated could lead to death of your baby chick. And yes they outgrow it as soon and they get some age and real feathers.

Pasty Butt or fondly called Poopy Butt is where a tiny bit of chick poop gets stuck in the very fine down feathers at the vent and then it starts to build up and begins to back up as an external obstruction, it can stop everything up.

Little fact of chicken anatomy, they only have one exit called a vent, this is where both poop and pee exits as one substance, as well as where the eggs exits, but from another internal channel.


Some say you can feed cornmeal, grit or raw oatmeal to prevent or cure Pasty Butt. I have not tried this myself but will in the future.

Below is a photo that also shows the belly button or umbilical cord that is attached to the inside of the eggs as the chick is formed. Be extremely careful not to disturb this area it takes a week or so to heal up and fall off like any other umbilical cord.

Spotting Pasty Butt

Here is what you will see. It starts with a tiny bit of poop, dried hard and will get bigger as the chick tried to eliminate waste. You may notice other chicks pecking at them.

Check your chicks daily by picking them up and looking at their bottoms.

If you see this beginning, do not think it will take care of itself, time to take action.

Take them to the sink and run warm water.

Use a very small amount of soap if needed to loosen poop. Working it in with your fingers.

DO NOT PULL on poop or down feathers, you will tear the chicks skin.

Gently work at the poop until it breaks up and dissolves.

Dry chicks bottom with a paper towel.

Blow dry the chick to prevent it from becoming chilled.

Dab a small amount of Vaseline on the vent to prevent more back up and protect the skin. If there is any bloody area or red irritation the Vaseline will mask the wound from other chicks that want to peck at their friends poopy butt.

If you have a chick that is in bad shape because of poopy butt you may need to isolate this chick for a few days while it heals to prevent others from picking at it.

I recommend this site, I met the Chicken Chick in November and she has an excellent article on Pasty Butt but I can only share the link.

http://www.the-chicken-chick.com/2014/03/pasty-butt-in-chicks-causestreatment.html

Baby Chicks arrived a day early!

We are officially in 2018 Chick Season! Our first Chicks arrived, one day early! We have a brooder full of beautiful one day old chicks. Come enjoy the chirping!

 





We have lots of Chicken supplies, brooder set ups and feeds. Check out out new coops out front. In the left hand column of this blog you will find what is coming in and how you can pre-pay, request or be put on the Will Call list.

We invite you to join our NEW facebook Woodville Ace Chicken Group, there is a link to the left of this post. We have lots of chicks coming in. Our Chick Day will be April 10th featuring Dr. Patrick Biggs from Purina, his presentation will be on the Backyard Family Flock.

Ameraucana vs. Araucana vs. Easter Egger - The Blue Egg Layers

 

 

http://www.fresheggsdaily.com/2013/12/ameraucana-vs-araucana-vs-easter-egger.html

Ameraucana vs. Araucana vs. Easter Egger - The Blue Egg Layers

 

December 10, 2013

 

Ever since Martha Stewart appeared on television several years ago holding a basket of blue eggs laid by her chickens, the demand for the blue egg laying breeds has skyrocketed. There are predominantly three that come up when you're talking blue eggs - the Ameraucana, Araucana and Easter Egger (although Cream Legbars do lay blue eggs as well and are just becoming available in the US) - but only two of the three ALWAYS lay blue eggs, so you'll want to keep reading and be sure of what you're ordering this spring if you are determined to have blue eggs in your basket come fall!

 

 

 

I have raised all three types of the blue egg layers. Unfortunately, the two Araucanas I hatched both turned out to be roosters, so I was out of luck there with blue eggs from them, and every Easter Egger I have ever raised has laid green eggs - some a pale mint color, others a sage green - always very pretty, but never blue eggs, so I am anxiously awaiting my first Ameraucana to start laying. I hatched her this past spring and she's due to start any day now!

 

So anyway, back to the three, here are the basic differences between them: 

 

AMERAUCANAS

 

-Virginia is a Blue Ameraucana, as evidenced by her peacomb, blue legs, cheek muffs and beard. She will lay blue eggs-

Ameraucanas are a pure breed recognized by the APA since 1984. They were most likely originally bred from South American blue egg laying breeds but were developed and standardized in the United States. They come in eight distinct colors including, Blue, Black, White and Wheaten, which all share these distinct Ameraucana traits:

• Peacomb
• Muffs and beard
• Red earlobes
• Tail
• Blue legs
• White foot bottoms
• Always lay blue eggs

ARAUCANAS

 

-Two of our Araucana pullets. Note the yellow foot bottoms and lack of tail-

Araucanas are also a pure breed recognized by the APA since 1976. They originated in Chile most likely and come in five colors including black, white, duckwing silver and golden. Araucanas all share these distinct Araucana traits:

• Peacomb
• Ear tufts (this gene is lethal to developing chicks if inherited by both parents)
• Red earlobes
• Rumpless (no tail)
• Green or willow-colored legs
• Yellow foot bottoms
• Always lay blue eggs

 

EASTER EGGERS

 

-One of our Easter Eggers exhibiting very common EE traits including cheek muffs and a peacomb. She lays mint green eggs-

Easter Eggers are not a recognized breed. They are mongrels - mixed breed chickens that do possess the blue egg gene but don't fully meet the breed specifications of either Araucanas or Ameraucanas. They can come in any color or combination of colors and share these traits:

• Any kind of comb
• Muffs/beard/ear tufts or none
• Any color earlobes
• Tail or tail-less
• Any color legs
• Any color foot bottoms
• Can lay blue but also sometimes lay green, tan, pink or even yellow

So if you want to be guaranteed blue egg layers, you will want to raise some Araucanas or Ameraucanas; otherwise Easter Eggers are always fun because you never know what color egg each will lay until she starts laying, and even identical-looking hens often lay varying shades of bluish or greenish eggs.  

 

Final note: There is no such thing as an Americana.

Buying Source for Blue-Egg Laying Breeds:

My Pet Chicken