Hen

[mooky]

I have been given a chicken today. It was living in horrid conditions. I am sure I can look after it and also get it a companion.

I don't know though if I should be cleaning it, might it be more comfortable if I found some mite powder or whatever. Or will it just start to look better if in a better environment. Thank you.

It pecked my cats nose and few minuites ago. Catty looked so startled;

[mint]

Your hen sounds like a real challenge!  Don't worry about catty;  cats are, in my opinion, superior to any other domestic animal and it will know exactly what to do and what the limits are.  Couldn't help responding as I love the story of  your hen.  Perhaps you should google "hen" and see what comes up.

[steve]

Mite powder and then just let it roll around in the dust.... (not as mad as it sounds, as they do dust bathe). Companion may be tricky as they are very fussy birds, if they have been kept in a group before not to bad, but if it has been on its own, it will probably fight with any new bird.

Cats are great with chickens, they tend to get used to them and generally ignore them. Mine sleep in the chicken shed with the hens!

Good luck

[cooperlola]

This is nice

http://users.telenet.be/digipics/chickenstart.htm

Click on "precautions" for info' about possible health problems and remedies.

You remind me of some friends of ours who took on 2 ex-battery chickens.  The poor things could not walk about on level ground at first and kept toppling over when they were put outside for the first time.  Very comical to watch but quite sad if you thought about it.  However, they soon caught on and led a good life afterwards.

[ethelred]

I used to keep chickens and they are wonderful creatures.  They seem to be very hardy and will get over most things.  I found the following forum to be useful:

http://www.the-coop.org/cgi-bin/UBB/ultimatebb.cgi

I agree with the dust baths.  Ours used to love them.  Slugs and snails were never a problem in our garden.  Just pop them in the chicken shed and job done.  Also all scraps went to the chickens.  The ultimate in recycling I think.  

[Washy]

Mooky, I think you should be able to find a friend for your hen.  Try to find one the same colour and size, then section off a small corner of your hen house with some chicken wire and put the new girl behind there for a day or so with food and water and let them look at each other. Then after a couple of nights take the new girl and in the dark when the old girl has already roosted place the new hen on a different part of the roost pole, that way they will not fight for position and the existing girl will already be in her favourtie place.  The next morning they should come out together and after a couple of little spats they will know their pecking order.  I recently introduced 5 large hens to my two bantams and small cockerel this way....no problems and after some failed atempts as mating the cockerels now realise the hens are too big for them and just stick to their original bantam girls.  Good luck.