Pale combs

Royboy · **Joined:** Wed Jan 25, 2012 8:05 pm **Posts:** 9

Hope someone can advise what the problem is ,three of my bantam leghorns have developed a loss of colour in there combs they are very pale .The birds themselves seem well enough in themselves not off there feed or inactive the others in the pen still have the red comb as normal

parvo · **Joined:** Sat Jan 02, 2010 7:39 pm **Posts:** 735

Hi Royboy and welcome to the forum.

A pale comb usually indicates poor health but as your birds seem otherwise normal you may have to look further.

Are they of good body condition (feel the amount of muscle on the breast)?

A pale comb may also indicate anaemia. Does their skin appear pale? What about the inside of their mouth? Compare with a bird that has a red comb if you're not sure. If it looks anaemic look for any mites on the birds, particularly at night ( with a torch). Some mites eg red mite hide during the day & come out to feed on the birds at night. Also check the droppings for any sign of blood.

These are a couple of starting points anyway.

Hope they are of some help.
Cheers
Parvo.

Royboy · **Joined:** Wed Jan 25, 2012 8:05 pm **Posts:** 9

Thanks Parvo

Appreciate your help ,checked the birds mouths no sign of paleness there compared to the red combed birds ,there body weight also seems okay ,like I advised before they are sprightly not hunched over and fluffed up feathers usually found in sick birds but I'm concerned as they just don't look right with the pale combs Do you think I should dust them for mites to be on the safe side just a thought could worms cause this problem

Thanks again Royboy

parvo · **Joined:** Sat Jan 02, 2010 7:39 pm **Posts:** 735

Usually if the infections with either are severe enough to cause pale combs then they would also show other signs of being unwell.
You certainly could still treat for worms & external parasites & see if it helps.
Do you live in an extremely cold area? Sometimes this can also reduce bloodflow to the comb.
Are they the least dominant birds in the flock- being at the bottom of the pecking order may also contribute.

Royboy · **Joined:** Wed Jan 25, 2012 8:05 pm **Posts:** 9

Yes I will give the worming and dusting a go and see what happens We live in the western suburbs of melb and although it is very cold at the moment the other twenty odd birds are unaffected .They are in a pen of five females and one rooster so I don't think bullying is an issue Thanks for your interest and advice I will certainly let you know if there is any change

Cheers Royboy

JordanP · **Joined:** Fri Jun 08, 2012 11:55 am **Posts:** 4

When a fowl is molting is it normal for the comb to go a pale pink but the wattles stay red. He seem perfect condition but he is molting heavy so I guessed that is normal but now reading this not to sure

Bourke · **Posted:** Thu Jun 21, 2012 7:37 am

Yeh they can go a little pale in molt you would be best to add some multi vitamins to the water to help all your chooks through the molt

ILoveMyChickies · **Posted:** Thu Jun 21, 2012 6:00 pm

Do you feed them lots of green stuff? If not maybe they just need some more greens and vitamins. Also probably good to give them multi vitamins in their water like Bourke said as they could just be lacking a bit.
Hope this helped. :-D

cassnboys · **Posted:** Thu Jun 21, 2012 6:58 pm

I've noticed my broody's comb seems paler since she's been on the nest. So I guess she's not eating as well, certainly not free ranging everyday to get to the greens plus less grain so lower protein etc etc. Could be an optical illusion as I'm not seeing her in daylight??

wickedwings · **Posted:** Thu Jun 21, 2012 10:35 pm

I used to hand feed my broodies when they were sitting; a handful of grain or a nice silverbeet leaf. I figured if they weren't going to get off the nest all that often then I would reward them a little. If you approach quietly and gently talking to them you might be surprised how close you can get, even to the one who is usually most timid.

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