Fresh Eggs Daily® with Lisa Steele

Here's a simple, effective, natural treatment for scaly leg mites on backyard chickens. Mites come in all shapes and sizes. Some feed on the host's blood, others, like scaly leg mites, burrow up under the scales on a chicken's legs.   Like other types of mites, scaly leg mites can be successfully treating in a natural way that won't be harmful to your chickens.

Poultry mites can be devastating to chicken health, but they can be successfully treated naturally in your backyard flock with a little persistence. Year after year, this article I wrote about poultry mites back in 2013 is one of my top ten most popular among readers. Over the years I've updated it as I've read or learned new information to keep it relevant and as helpful as possible. I have been raising chickens for more than a decade and (knock on wood) never had a problem with mites on my chickens or in my chicken coop. So they absolutely can be prevented.

Assembling a natural first aid kit for your chickens is easy if you raid your kitchen pantry and bathroom medicine cabinet. Too often in backyard chicken keeping, injury or illness occurs that needs to be treated quickly. Too many chicken keepers fail to assemble a first aid kit for their chickens in advance. It's important to have a basic first aid kit ready... just in case. Hopefully you will never need them, but at least you'll be ready if you do.

Mites can be a big problem in chicken houses, both commercial and in the backyard. Now, recent studies point to using herbs to help control them. As a longtime proponent of adding herbs to my chickens' diet and environment, I always get excited to read about new studies and research coming out about natural remedies and supplements. 

What do you do when you have a sick chicken and no vet to treat her? Being very low on the food chain, and adhering to a very strict pecking order within a flock, chickens have been programmed to hide their symptoms extremely well, and by the time you even notice something is wrong, it's often too late. But by spending time with your flock, and being able to recognize what 'normal' behavior is, you can spot even subtle changes that might indicate someone isn't feeling their best.

Keeping a close eye on your chickens and doing periodic "comb to toe" check ups can help nip potential health problems in the bud. It is generally good practice to spend time with your flock on a regular basis (as if you don't already!), apart from the regular feeding and cleaning, but really observing them, so that you know what is "normal" behavior and appearance and immediately notice any changes in appearance or behavior. The faster you can identify a health issue and treat it, the better. Chickens, being the ultimate prey animal, are masters at hiding symptoms and often by the time you notice something is wrong its too late.

Assembling a first aid kit for your chickens is always a good idea so you're prepared when disaster strikes. If you raise chickens long enough, the day will come when you need to administer first aid.  Whether it be a sprain, hurt foot, broken toenail, puncture wound, insect sting, respiratory infection, cuts, frostbite, bumblefoot, open sores, mites, worms, or an injury from another chicken or a predator, you want to be prepared in advance with your chicken first aid kit so you aren't running around trying to find what you need, or making a trip to the store, an emotional mess, with a hurt chicken on your hands.

Chickens are extremely susceptible to respiratory problems. Here are some natural remedies to cure respiratory issues without resorting to antibiotics or other chemical medications. Chickens have extremely complex breathing and respiratory systems that differ greatly from humans and other mammals.