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Western Small Flocks Collaborative

Signs of Disease

Learn what “normal” is for your birds and monitor them daily for the disease symptoms listed below.

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Know What Is Normal

The best way to spot disease is to know what “normal” looks like for your flock.

Spend time with your birds each day, watch their behavior, and handle them regularly. Knowing the normal look, sound, and smell of your flock makes you the first line of defense for their health.

Poultry Body Condition Scoring
Five-Point Health Check
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Monitor for Disease

This is a guide on signs to look for in your birds that may indicate disease in your flock.

Monitor for disease symptoms guide for signs in your birds that are abnormal and may indicate disease in your flock

Head

  • Look for swelling around the eyes, face, or neck.
  • Listen for coughing, sneezing, wheezing, or raspy breathing. Nasal discharge or crust around the nostrils.

Chest and Body

  • Monitor if birds are eating or drinking less (or more) than usual.
  • Check body weight by picking them up.
  • Feathers can hide weight loss.
    • A sharp or prominent keel bone may mean poor body condition.

Abdomen

  • Monitor for digestive issues such as watery diarrhea, bloody or foamy droppings, or droppings that look different from normal for your flock.

Wings

  • Drooping wings, tremors, or difficulty holding wings in place may indicate illness.
  • Birds that stagger or cannot coordinate wing movement may have nerve or muscle problems.

Legs and Feet

  • Check for lameness, limping, or reluctance to walk.
  • Look for swelling in joints, curled toes, or poor coordination that makes standing difficult.

Feathers

  • Ruffled feathers, patchy feather loss, or dull appearance can be signs of illness or parasites.
  • Birds that stop preening may also look unkempt.

Egg-Laying

  • Sudden drops in egg production.
  • Thin-shelled, misshapen, or soft eggs can point to health or nutrition problems.

Behavior

  • Notice if birds are less active, eat or drink alone, or appear depressed or lethargic.
  • Birds that stop vocalizing or separate themselves from the group may be sick.

Change in Social Structure

  • Healthy flocks have a stable pecking order.
  • If other birds suddenly start pecking at or avoiding one bird, it may be because that bird is weak or sick.