The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: suziequeue on July 07, 2012, 08:02:12 pm

Title: Manx hen
Post by: suziequeue on July 07, 2012, 08:02:12 pm

We have six lovely cuckoo maran chicks - all doing well. One of the hen chicks seems to be  a manx. She has no tail feathers (pic). I have observed closely and I can't see that she is being bullied by any of the other hens. There are no bald patches where her tail feathers should be. She seems a bright and interactive member of the gang.


Any suggestions? Is it just normal variation?


Also - when I was watching her, I noticed that she passed a pale, runny rather frothy poo (pic). There didn't appear to be any blood in it or any obvious worms. They were all wormed with Flubenvet the week before last. She is having a mixture of layers and growers pellets. The growers have got coccidiostat in them.


Any diagnosis/suggestions?


Thanks

Title: Re: Manx hen
Post by: jaykay on July 07, 2012, 08:18:34 pm

About every 10th poo is a caecal one rather than the normal ones and they can be pale or frothy and often very stinky!

Stumped about the lack of tail feathers - very strange  :chook:

Title: Re: Manx hen
Post by: suziequeue on July 07, 2012, 08:27:34 pm

Thanks Jaykey. I'll keep an eye on her poos tomorrow and see if they return to normal.


She looks like a little kiwi  :D :D

Title: Re: Manx hen
Post by: chrismahon on July 07, 2012, 08:34:02 pm

Poos are normal Suziequeue as Jaykay has said. They tend to do them when excited but the frequency increases with the worm burden, so too many of them needs attention.
 
Puzzled by the lack of tail feathers. Perhaps next moult they will appear? Presumably there are feathers growing but the wrong sort.

Title: Re: Manx hen
Post by: little blue on July 07, 2012, 08:47:30 pm

I think she looks lovely, a very special hen!
Maybe you should corner the market in Manx Hens, less feather loss at moulting time so more eggs?!  ;)  :D

Title: Re: Manx hen
Post by: darkbrowneggs on July 08, 2012, 02:00:51 pm

If there are very few feathers on its back when you open its wings it may well be a cockerel which is lacking the double barring gene which makes them look lighter.  Check to see if it is starting to grow its wattles more than the other pullets
 
Or alternativley if it is just a slow feathering bird it may have the K gene which apparently is thought to be linked with Mareks.  If there is any abnomality in the eye pupil and iris that can be a sign, but the main problems with Mareks seem to turn up at around point of lay.
 
Most of the English Cuckoo Marans seem to be fairly resistant, though I am not sure about the French Marans

Title: Re: Manx hen
Post by: suziequeue on July 08, 2012, 05:00:37 pm

That's very interesting DBE. Thanks for that insight. I was always interested in genetics at school.


She doesn't seem to be growing wattles and comb like the boys are - theirs are now very big and growing by the day  :D


I will try and have a look at the eye pupil and iris when it get hold of her again but I'm going to leave it for now as I've just had a run-in with them to separate the boys so I can fatten them up  :innocent: :innocent: