weird crumbly poop - is this normal?

[NewFlockOnTheBlock]

For the past few days, I've been seeing a bunch of poop under the roost in the mornings that looks like the pictures below. It's sort of dry and crumbly and if you look closely it appears that there is undigested plant material in there, like husks or dried petals from some grasses. Do you all think it's normal?

I can't figure out which chicken is producing this; will try to start making a note of where everyone is roosting at night and then matching the poop pile to the chicken, but with 15 chickens who often snuggle tightly against each other while roosting it may be hard to identify the "culprit."

The feathers in the pic are not part of the poop, they just landed on top.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

@casportpony

 

[casportpony]

I would have to say that is not normal for anything that eats pellets or crumbles. Try to find the hen doing it.

 

[NewFlockOnTheBlock]

I'm not sure if our feed qualifies as either crumbles or pellets. We feed Scratch & Peck organic layer feed (local brand here in Washington State). The winter version, which our feed store recently switched to for the season, contains peas, barley, wheat, corn, ground limestone, flaxseed meal, sesame meal, fish meal, flaxseed oil, and a vitamin and mineral mix. Barley and wheat are included as whole grains and the peas and corn are broken up. I feed soaked or fermented.

Our chickens also eat whatever they pick up on a nearly half acre of overgrown lawn... In addition to regular grass, there are dandelions, clover, alfalfa, vetch, chickweed, and many other plants in the mix. And then there are the bugs, of course, and an occasional mouse.

 

[Saaniya]

Not seems normal
It seems in my observation whoever did it did liquid and when it dries it become crumble just a thought

 

[coach723]

Do your birds have access to grit? Looks like lots of whole grains and seeds in the droppings, if they don't have enough grit it may not be digestible for them. Has it been hot where you are? Drinking a lot of water can cause watery droppings that can look somewhat like that when they dry. I don't think that's the entire issue, but may be contributing. Some birds have a hard time with certain feeds, just like some people can have a hard time with certain foods, so if this started with the new feed I would consider switching to see if it stops.

 

[NewFlockOnTheBlock]

Our chickens do have access to grit, both in a container in their coop and when they free range outside, where they spend most of their time. Our back yard is mostly grass but there are patches of bare dirt, like the garden beds that are done for the season; there is also a gravel covered area where they can pick up tiny pebbles to serve as grit. So, I don't think lack of grit is the problem.

I don't think it's the feed either. Pretty sure the problem started before our feed store switched to the winter version of the feed, and the summer version was different only in that it did not contain corn.

Based on where I'm finding this poop, I suspect that it is actually our rooster. When mowing the grass yesterday, I came across patches of some sort of plant with dry, slightly prickly flowers that look a lot like the stuff in the poop. This plant is a bit tall for our hens but the perfect height for our rooster to reach. I wonder if he's been eating it, and hasn't been able to digest it very well.

 

[Kiki]

Maybe this rooster is not actually eating the grit, if he did then the grains would have been digested, right?

 

[NewFlockOnTheBlock]

Maybe... I'd be surprised though. It seems like eating grit is something they instinctively know how to do. There are no undigested grains in the poop, just the dried petals or husks probably from that plant in our pasture, plus the whole texture is weird.

 

[coach723]

Well, maybe he just found something that he thinks is really yummy and he's gorging on it. As long as he seems OK, and there is grit I'd just kind of keep an eye out to see if you can confirm that's what it is. I'm curious what the plant is....if you ever identify it, please share.