Unsecure chicken perches

[A chickychickychick-ENN!!]

I don't handle my bantams very often as they are shy, but with all the wet weather lately, their run has been muddy, and their leg feathers (pekins) have now got matted mud balls on them.

 

They're solid, and quite close to the legs. I have tried soaking them in bearably warm soapy water and trying to rub them into crumble, but they're too tough.

 

I feel like a very bad chicken mother and must be more vigilant. But what do I do about the balls? Cut them off? Get them seen to by a vet?

[Redwing]

Leave them to soak in the water for a good ten mins and use a scourin pad to rb them between your fingers to break them up

 

Faling that cut them off, if you dont cut too short and dont plan to show them it wont matter they will just look a bit funny

[Chook n Boo Mum]

I soaked 3 of mine during the week....only another 2 to go ...Berry is going to his new home on Saturday so I think I'll give him another footbath tomorrow evening & keep him indoors ready for the journey on Saturday

 

Sha x

[A chickychickychick-ENN!!]

It's nigh on impossible to melt them even with a soak, and I don't want to hurt my tiny bontoms.

[Chook n Boo Mum]

Give them a good soak in quite warm water with a bit of dog shampoo/mild shampoo in the water rub & squeeze them as much as you can , you could try snipping the worst of them off or try a second soak etc the next day?

 

Good luck, I'm not looking forward to doing Blossom's I must say

 

Sha x

[Egluntyne]

I do a mixture of trimming and soaking in mild washing up liquid. It does come off eventually.

[Falkor]

It does take a while for them to soften up if soaking them.....

 

I tend to bring in a couple of bantams at a time and pop them in the indoor rabbit cage. Then with a washing up bowl of warm water and ecover i sit and hold their little feet in.....normally with a good film on the telly as with ten of 'em it can take a while!!

 

I would say a ten minute soaking is adequate if it is mud. I have just finished bale of hemcore and have found the mud balls to be much worse and solid due to its fibrous nature Suffice to say Aubiose is making a comeback at my house!!

 

Once soaked and de-mudded they get a towel dry and a blow dry finish....then they hang out in the lounge in their rabbit cage until night time when i pop them back into their cube.

 

All this bad weather has meant they have been pampered more often than normal and I now have some very friendly bantams

Edited February 12, 2010 by Guest

[A chickychickychick-ENN!!]

I've sorted Alan (the ginge). Some of the middle of the balls were dry and solid even after soaking, but she let me pick them apart. I now have poo down my nails. One to go with balls, and one for a wee wing wash.