What Causes Diarrhea in Chickens?
Got poop?
If you've got chickens, chances are, there's plenty of it on your farm. While, in my humble opinion, chicken poop is not the worst kind of poop to have around (pigs will always win the award in that category as far as I'm concerned!), it's not pleasant when your chickens…well, when they just can't stop pooping.
Diarrhea in chickens is sometimes harmless, but in some cases, it can be indicative of a large problem. In today's guest post, we'll take a deeper dive into what causes it - and how it can be fixed.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Whether you have chickens on a farm, on your homestead, or in your backyard, they can be enjoyable animals to raise, offering eggs daily when cared for properly (as well as meat and plenty of companionship).
However, it's not uncommon for them to have some pretty severe gastrointestinal problems that lead to diarrhea.
Chicken diarrhea has many different causes - finding the specific culprit for your birds’ situation is essential to treating it. Whether they’re overeating a specific food or they’ve got bacteria and viruses, you’ll need to investigate or seek the help of your veterinarian.
This article will cover all the common causes of chicken diarrhea. We’ll also discuss how to treat and prevent runny poop. If you have a chicken diarrhea concern, continue reading to learn all the information you need to know about handling this severe situation.
**J&R Pierce Family Farm is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to allow sites to earn advertising fees by linking to products on Amazon. I often link to Amazon when recommending certain products, and if you choose to purchase, I may earn a small percentage of the sale. It costs you nothing extra, and all recommended products are ones that I personally vouch for.**
What Does it Mean if Your Chickens Poop is Runny?
Several different reasons could be behind your chickens’ diarrhea. The potential causes include the following:
Overindulgence of specific foods
Antibiotics
General stress
Moldy feed
Poor flock management
Bacteria
Viruses
Toxic ingestion
Egg yolk peritonitis
Prolapsed vents
Necrotic enteritis
Fowl cholera
Gumboro disease
Kidney problems
Avian flu
Marek’s disease
Newcastle disease
Salmonella
Coryza
Infectious bronchitis
Lymphoid leukosis
Avian tuberculosis
To learn more about potential causes of chicken diarrhea, you can watch this video:
What Causes Diarrhea in Chickens?
It’s important to note what is normal poop and what is diarrhea. Your chickens will have several normal cecal droppings daily. These droppings are well-known to cause stress to those on their first adventure through chicken keeping.
They look nothing like regular poop, as they are an entirely different color, smell awful, and are runny. However, it’s entirely normal for your chickens to experience these droppings. Diarrhea is a severe cause for concern.
Chicken diarrhea is completely different from any kind of regular poop. It is very loose and generally not formed at all, often resembling colored water. The affected hen will often look ragged and stick to herself, indicating she feels under the weather.
We’ll look at the different causes in depth so you can isolate what’s behind your birds’ gastrointestinal distress. Understanding the source will allow you to find the best course of treatment. However, not all conditions have a treatment option, resulting in fatalities.
Overindulging in Specific Foods
Chickens are no different from humans when it comes to their capacity to overindulge. Despite fruits and vegetables generally being something part of their diet, your chickens may eat until sick. The results can be very alarming-looking diarrhea of various colors.
Heat Stress
When the weather starts to heat up, your chickens’ natural response will be to consume more water to remain hydrated. At the same time, their appetites will decrease, causing them to eat less. The results are watery, clear whitish poop.
Antibiotics
If you’re providing any of your flock with antibiotics, those being treated may eventually develop diarrhea. Antibiotics disrupt the natural balance of the gut flora, leading to digestive issues. During their treatment, you should not consume any of their eggs.
General Stress
Any new events or changes in the environment surrounding your chickens can induce a state of general stress. This includes the addition of new flock members or even changing their feed to another brand.
An Overabundance of Worms
Worms, especially a large number of them, can cause diarrhea in chickens. You’ll notice the difference in this type of diarrhea because of the presence of blood. In addition, you may see worms in their poop.
Moldy Feed
It is essential to only provide your chickens with clean, fresh feed. If their feed has been contaminated by mold, it can result in severe diarrhea that affects the entire flock. They’re susceptible to the mycotoxins produced in the affected feed.
Coccidiosis
Primarily affecting chicks under 10 weeks old, coccidiosis can also affect those hens that once lived in wire cages. These birds have had no exposure to poop, preventing the development of resistance to coccidia.
Coccidiosis results from a parasite affecting the intestinal lining and the gut’s integrity. The chicken’s ability to absorb nutrition is reduced, and it will begin losing weight. Anemia can result and be severe from bloody diarrhea.
The birds will die without proper and prompt treatment, especially in severe cases.
Toxic Ingestion
You’ll quickly learn your hens are highly curious creatures, which can lead them down a path of trouble, including poisoning. If you dispose of rodent bodies in an area such as your compost heap, ensure you bury them deep enough.
These corpses can produce botulism which is toxic and deadly for your birds. You may have difficulty identifying exactly what they consumed, so you’ll need to monitor for any changes in their condition to determine if you need veterinary assistance.
Egg Yolk Peritonitis
Commonly a fatal condition, egg yolk peritonitis results from a malfunction during the transfer of an egg between the ovary and the infundibulum. As a result, the yolk becomes internalized, and it can quickly become infected.
Diarrhea produced from this condition will have the appearance of an egg yolk. Generally, this leads to a combination of peritonitis and septicemia.
Prolapsed Vents
Generally very noticeable, a prolapsed vent occurs when the vent is pushed out of the body. A common cause of this condition is an overly large egg. Regardless of the cause, it is an emergency, and you must act quickly.
Separating the hen from the rest of the flock is essential to prevent them from cannibalizing her.
Various Viruses
In addition, several viruses can affect your flock. Those that are known for causing diarrhea include the following:
Necrotic enteritis
Fowl cholera
Gumboro disease
Kidney problems
Marek’s disease
Newcastle disease
Salmonella
Coryza
Infectious bronchitis
Lymphoid leukosis
Avian tuberculosis
How Do You Treat Diarrhea in Chickens?
When you can isolate the cause of diarrhea, you’ll be better able to treat it. While this can be hard, you’ll need to do some investigating and monitoring of your hens. The first thing to do when you notice one or more of your hens has diarrhea is to gauge how they look.
If they seem fine and appear to be eating and drinking like normal, you can monitor the situation from a distance. You’ll want to turn your attention to the environment–is it hot, is your vegetable garden destroyed, does their feed look okay, and other questions need addressing.
However, if your chicken looks sickly, you’ll need to isolate her from the flock. You’ll need to monitor her progress while evaluating the situation and looking for the cause. If there is no improvement, you’ll need to call your veterinarian.
In situations where you find worms in the poop, you’ll need to worm your entire flock. You’ll also need to eliminate all droppings from their location. This will remove the problem from all your chickens and prevent reinfestation.
Chickens with coccidiosis will require Amprolium, which is a blocker for the parasite’s ability to uptake and multiply. The treatment generally occurs over seven day, with symptoms improving in as little as 24 hours.
For chickens taking antibiotics, you will need to consult with your veterinarian if the diarrhea continues or worsens. They may have an alternative treatment available or may consider stopping the medication completely to prevent dehydration.
When your chickens are in a general state of stress, the only thing you can do is give them time to adjust to the new situation. Once they calm down and settle into the new routine, their diarrhea will clear up. If it doesn’t go away, you’ll need to do some more investigating.
How to Treat Diarrhea in Chickens Naturally
You can also choose from natural treatment options to help your hens through their gastrointestinal problems. Again, it helps to know the cause of the problem before you begin any treatment option.
Healthy birds require water and electrolytes in their bodies. Diarrhea depletes both of these. You’ll need to help the affected birds replenish their stores by creating a vitamin and electrolyte supplement that you add to the water.
In addition, if you’ve found the source to be antibiotics, you can help counteract the problem by supplying the chicken with probiotics to help reestablish the balance of the gut flora. If your birds are overindulging, you’ll need to remove the food source.
Cinnamon and Epsom salts are a homeopathic treatment option for stopping diarrhea. You won’t need a veterinarian for this treatment option, but it’s essential that you monitor your birds to ensure their health is improving.
Sour milk or buttermilk is an excellent option for promoting healthy gut flora. You can help your chickens reestablish their gut balance with this option, especially when they’re taking antibiotics.
Alternatively, there are natural antibiotics that have shown promising results in chickens. They’re less aggressive on the system, making them less likely to impact the gut as harshly as traditional antibiotics.
What Does Coccidiosis Poop Look Like in Chickens?
Coccidiosis is a condition marked by blood or mucus in the poop. Often, that poop is diarrhea. However, it must be noted that reddish chicken poop does not always indicate the birds have coccidiosis–normal shedding of cecal cells can turn poop reddish-brown.
In comparison, diarrhea caused by overindulgence of a specific food will often have colors of that food. For example, if your flock gets into a blackberry bush, their poop will likely have black and red coloring, which can be highly alarming.
During heat stress, because of the excess water consumption, chicken poop turns a clearish and watery white. It will be more liquid than anything because the bird is consuming less food than usual.
When chickens have a lot of worms, they may be visible in the poop. In this situation, you’ll often find bloody diarrhea with what looks like many little white hairs sticking out of it.
With egg yolk peritonitis, the condition will be easier to identify due to the poop. It will resemble an egg yolk, which makes it stand out from other conditions.
Preventing Diarrhea in Chickens
Preventing diarrhea is the best option for handling the situation. The ideal way to do this is by having excellent biosecurity, which means ensuring there are no germs in the coop and enacting protective measures when visitors enter the coop.
You must supply dry litter regularly and avoid keeping too many birds together. You should also keep different species of birds separate to ensure there is no cross-contamination. Chicks should not be housed with any adults other than the mother hen.
Birds should also be kept on a strict vaccination schedule to prevent common diseases. Beginning in the early weeks of their lives, these vaccinations prevent more severe problems like Marek’s disease and gumboro.
Additionally, all food should be stored in an airtight container. You will need to ensure it doesn’t have any exposure to moisture. It should never be stored for longer than a month, as this can lead to problems like the development of mold.
Ensuring your birds cannot access dead animals is another great way to prevent diarrhea. Depending on the cause of death, the carcasses could prove toxic. In addition, as mentioned, they are a source of botulism.
Final Thoughts
Chicken diarrhea can be a serious problem that leads to dehydration and death, depending on the cause and severity. For those chickens with extreme conditions, it’s essential to turn to your veterinarian as soon as possible for the best outcome and chance at treatment.
With all the potential causes of chicken diarrhea, it can be challenging to identify the specific cause of yours. You’ll need to monitor your chickens closely for signs of any environmental causes of the problem or indications that they are severely ill and need a veterinarian.
Once you’ve identified the problem, you can get started on a treatment option. Even if you don’t know the cause, you can also use a water and electrolyte mixture to help your chicken reestablish its hydration levels.
Diarrhea in chickens often is nothing to worry about - but it's still smart to be vigilant and keep an eye out for potential problems. Good luck!
Want to learn more about raising chickens? Be sure to check out these articles!
Subscribe to our email newsletter for regular tips and tricks on homesteading and farming – wherever you are. You can also follow us on Instagram (@jrpiercefamilyfarm) and Pinterest (J&R Pierce Family Farm) for frequent updates. Happy homesteading!
