Keeping Chicken Chicken Parasites, Causes And Treatments Chickens in general are a hardy lot, but they are also very susceptible to various chicken parasites, infestations, and diseases. All of this though could be avoided very easily provided the symptoms are recognized early and treatments are done swiftly. Contact with poultry must be minimized. Do not feed broken eggs to the chicken. Doing so will develop the habit and will start them pecking at eggs. Instead, clean the chicken house of all residues of the eggs and dispose of it immediately. Keep a clean chicken house. Cobwebs, dust, dirt, and broken eggs harbor bacteria. A coop that is dry and free of draft (but still ventilated) is very essential to maintaining reasonable heat within the shelter. One thing to avoid is barring the door since chickens love to go outside and exercise every once in a while, even during winter. Make it a point to clear the coop's surroundings of snow in order for your chickens to have the luxury to venture outside whenever they feel the urge to do so. Chicken could be irritable creatures when the mood strikes them and that could be just about anything. When they are, quarrels will start. When blood is drawn, the blood will strike the fancy of other chickens in the henhouse will start pecking at the bloodied chicken sometimes to death. A chicken house is already cramped when there is less than three square feet of space per chicken. It s hardly surprising considering the amount of benefits one can have with the endeavor. You get a regular supply of eggs for food, not to mention that their manure has proven to be one of the cheapest and most effective organic fertilizers around. Chickens are also very potent when it comes to getting rid of pests in the garden. When the chick is handled gently and treated well, good bonding results, so does trust. Chicks are one of those gentle precocious creatures and they are fun to watch and nice to have around. They could very well eat whatever little morsels given to them and walk around after hatching. Very young chicks though will need a heat source.