We need your help! One 6 month old brown leghorn is listless, prefers to lay around, and waddles when it does walk, and the comb is turning a dark gray, maybe a bluish color. What are the symptoms of blue comb and what can we do? Is it infectious? We have the hen seperated now.

Thanks,

Kelli Morris
jmorris@megavision.com

OOh this does not sound good. When a bright red comb turns color (to pale), I'm told it is sign of serious illness, possibly infectious. My experience backs this up: I am in the middle of trying to treat one of my birds (the other one--whose comb turned pale--is now dead). The one that's still hanging on has some of the same symptoms as your bird. Check the message I posted. Best of luck!

mt hannigan

I have 2 domestic White Leghorns aged a few months.
They have both developed black maybe fungal spots of various shapes, say 3mm across, in the combs/wattles.
The birds appear to be in good health with good combs and wattles, and they lay well each day. In former
days/months alteration in the comb by colouring/change has been a bad sign.
That is why I decided to search the Net to find an area
like this. Reg.(Aged over 70yrs, as if it mattered!)

I JUST LOST 10 TURKY POULTS TO BLUECOMB...THEIR BEAK TURNED DARK AS WELL AS THEIR FEET.... I AM USING TERRIMYICN NOW AND IT WORKS,,, SEPERATE BECAUSE IT IS CONTAGEOUS...TRY NEOMIX TERIMYICIN OR AEROMYICIN

By Ochreflag on Thurs.17th.June '99. The comments of Ms.Brenna Adams were nice, succinct and useful. Thanks.[March 2nd] My 2 birds self-recovered. They lay an egg every day for about 2 years. The poultry-farmer at the dreadful battery-farm said that this is normal and then they tend to stop. The new breeds are a bit smaller than the old Buff Rocks/ Buff Orpingtons. I remember one of my schoolmasters used to say "For heaven's sake wake up and stop wandering about like a semi-superannuated Buff-Orpington!!" [Their beams and their eggs used to become very large at 3 ounzes]I had to kill 2 chooks, one became lame and the other was vicious to the new arrivals, really cock-of-the-walk activity pecking. Ah Well, in the midst of life we have to prepare for death and weed out old & vicious birds!

I am new to chickens. Our 7 month female is setting without getting up and her comb is turning dark purple. Does anyone have any ideas?

I have a small flock of Black Rock's

Two of the birds have lost their top feather on top of back at the rear near tail. I also have some "bare bottoms"

Is this a moult? Please can anyone advise me. I am new to keeping Poultry
Betty

I HAVE A CREAM COLORED ROOSTER BANTAM LEGHORN CROSS AND I RECENTLY NOTICED SOME DARK SPOTS ON HIS COMB DOES ANY ONE HAVE AN IDEA WHAT THIS COULD BE? HE OTHERWISE SEEMS HEALTHY. HIS COME IS BRIGHT RED AND IS STILL MOVING AROUND WITH PLENTY OF ENERGY.

We have three chickens, two Rhode Island Reds, one Auracana. Both the Rhode Island Reds have whitish spots on their combs. One also has a black lines on her comb and at the very top one of the little bump things is missing (dropped off?) The combs are bright red, they are five months old and otherwise are in excellent health. They are still very energetic and don't seem to notice anything with the spots on their combs. I am looking for an answer, can anybody help me? I'm Sam, I'm 9 - I am raising chickens at my Grandmother's house. Hurry.

I have a Barred Holland pullet (about 8 months) that has begun to act oddly. Behavior symptoms include: thirsty, lack of appetite, lethargic, dull eyes, holds wings down, and has a marked darking of her comb, wattles, and skin around her eyes. I'm thinking it may be Blue Comb. Any other suggestions? How should I treat it? What about the other chickens? Should I treat them as well even if they're not showing symptoms? Please respond soon. They're my daughter's chickens and she's away visiting her Grandparents. One of the Holland cockerels is her State Fair chicken and she'll be very, very upset with me if something happens to it...

Gena
dwyerg@earthlink.net

Dwyerg, Best to get that pullet isolated at once, until you find out what the problem is. When so many symptoms are visible, it is not a good thing! Bluecomb is rare, according to Gail Damerow's ChickenHealth Book, but other problems do have that symptom--and it is usually too late to do anything for the bird when such symptoms are seen. Then watch the other birds carefully for beginning symptoms. Maybe someone will have a treatment, before I have time to look up further. Might clean your waterers with Clorox solutions, then see that they are never out of fresh clean water and their feed. Good luck and watch those cockerels! CJR

I have a pet Rhode Island Red I believe. We have had him for three years and until now he has been very fat and healthy. Now he is loosing feathers in bunches, his comb which was bright red is schriveling up and grey, and the stool is very loose. I AM giving him terramycin for ten days now and seems to be getting worse. Can anyone advise me. This is our very loving pet.Thanks RJS

One of my blackrocks - Gloria - had a dark grey comb when I got her at point of lay. Being new to this I thought that was just the way she was seeing as she was bright and perky in other ways and has been a regular layer. I knew red comb is the norm for Black Rocks but as she wasn't showing any other symptoms I let it be. However now after about 18 months her comb is bright red, in fact her whole head is bright red, she a bit bald, but is still bright eyed and perky and laying eggs at the same rate. Mystery! Has she been ill all this time? What did she have? Is she better now?

RJS, are there any other symptoms? Thirst? Appetite? Weight loss? Have you checked for lice or mites? For worms? It could be something serious, but it could also be a bad parasite infection or it may be coccidiosis. Could you take a fecal sample to a lab? Antibiotics only work against bacterial infections.
If you give more details the experts on this board might come up with good advice.