Chicken Health For Dummies -- About the Authors -- Table of Contents -- Introduction -- About This Book -- Conventions Used in This Book -- What You're Not to Read -- Foolish Assumptions -- How This Book Is Organized -- Icons Used in This Book -- Where to Go from Here -- Part I: The Healthy Chicken -- Chapter 1: A Picture of Backyard Flock Health -- Introducing the Backyard Chicken -- Creating a Healthy and Contented Life for Your Flock -- What Can Go Wrong? -- Doing Your Part to Keep Your Flock Fit -- Chapter 2: The Anatomy and Body Functions of the Happy, Healthy Chicken -- Taking a Closer Look at Chicken Parts: The Body Systems -- Starting with the Chicken and then the Egg: Growth and Development -- Life Outside the Egg: A Chick's First Few Weeks -- Chapter 3: That's What Chickens Do: Healthy Chicken Behavior -- A Day in the Life of a Chicken: The Daily Routine -- Getting Along in the Flock -- Comprehending Chicken Communication -- Romancing the Hen: Courtship -- Chapter 4: More Than an Ounce of Prevention: Biosecurity for the Backyard Flock -- How's Your Biosecurity? Evaluating Your Current Efforts -- Recognizing How Disease Is Spread in Chicken Flocks -- Designing Your Biosecurity Plan -- Chapter 5: Keeping the Flock Clean and Comfortable -- Cleaning and Disinfecting (C&D) 101 -- Providing a Healthy and Comfortable Environment -- Chapter 6: Feeding the Flock Well -- Meeting Your Chickens' Nutritional Needs -- Comprehending Feeds and Feeding Programs -- Keeping Feed Fresh -- Part II: Recognizing Signs of Chicken Illness -- Chapter 7: Inspecting the Flock and Examining the Sick Chicken -- Tuning in to Your Flock -- Recognizing the General Signs of Illness -- Zeroing In on the Problem: The Physical Examination -- Recording Your Findings -- Chapter 8: Troubleshooting Common Illnesses in Adult Chickens -- Sneezing and Coughing: Chicken Head Colds.

Dealing with the Runs: Diarrhea in Adult Chickens -- Egg-Laying Troubles: Egg-Binding and Vent Prolapse -- Popping Out Strange Eggs: Egg Quality Issues -- Seeing Trouble: Poor Sight and Sore Eyes -- Digging into Skin Problems and Feather Loss -- Focusing on a Dizzy Chicken and Other Alarming Signs -- Limping or Swelling: Leg and Foot Issues -- Chapter 9: Sizing Up Sick Chicks -- Before Hatching: Ensuring a Healthy Chick -- Spotting Problems of the Newly Hatched -- Recognizing Problems of Growing Chickens -- Chapter 10: Sleuthing Subtle Signs of Illness and Mysterious Sudden Death -- Investigating Not-So-Obvious Signs of Illness -- What Happened?! Investigating Sudden Death -- Part III: A Close-Up Examination of Chicken Woes and Diseases -- Chapter 11: Accidents of Flock Management -- Identifying and Defending Against Predators -- Addressing Flock-Mate Persecution or Cannibalism -- Eyeing Nutritional Disorders -- Recognizing Sources of Poisonings in Your Backyard -- Identifying Housing and Environmental Dangers -- Chapter 12: My Chicken Has What? Diseases Caused by Bacteria and Viruses -- Flock Keeper Beware: Infectious Diseases Caused by Bacteria -- Treating Infectious Diseases Caused by Viruses -- Chapter 13: Exterminating Chicken Parasites and Other Creepy-Crawlies -- Taking a Look Inside: Internal Parasites -- Examining the Outside: External Parasites -- Chapter 14: Identifying Miscellaneous and Mystery Chicken Diseases -- Recognizing Fungal Infections: Molds and Yeasts -- Eyeing Diseases with Multiple or Mysterious Causes -- Part IV: Your Chicken Repair Manual (and Advice for When to Close the Book) -- Chapter 15: Making a Diagnosis: Getting Advice or Going It Alone -- Finding Professionals Who Can Help You and Your Flock -- Collecting Samples for Your Chicken-Health Advisor -- Performing a DIY Postmortem.

Chapter 16: Medicating and Vaccinating Chickens -- Grasping the Link between Drugs and Food-Producing Animals -- Deciding to Use Antibiotics -- Answering the Big Question: To Vaccinate or Not to Vaccinate? -- Giving Medications and Vaccinations -- Chapter 17: Performing Chicken Maintenance and First-Aid Procedures -- Giving Your Chicken a Spa Treatment -- Taking Care of Your Flock: Chicken First Aid -- Chapter 18: Euthanizing a Chicken and Disposing of the Remains -- Making the Decision -- Identifying Humane Methods of Euthanasia -- Considering Disposal Options -- Part V: The Chicken/Human Interface -- Chapter 19: Can You Get That from a Chicken? -- Eyeing Two Bacterial Infections You Can Get from Chickens -- Itching at Minor Irritations You Can Get from Chickens -- Naming What You Can Get from Cleaning Chicken Coops -- Considering Rare Diseases You Can Get from Chickens -- Using Common Sense to Protect Yourself -- Chapter 20: Food Safety and Quality of Homegrown Eggs and Meat -- Properly Handling Eggs -- Producing Safe, High Quality Meat from Your Own Flock -- Part VI: The Part of Tens -- Chapter 21: Answers to Ten Common Questions about Chicken Health -- What Is That Lump on the Side of My Chicken's Neck? -- Why Is My Chicken Losing Her Feathers? -- Why Do Some Eggs Have Soft Shells or No Shells? -- How Do I Treat My Chicken's Skin Wounds? -- What Causes My Chicken to Have Runny Poop? -- Should I Feed My Chicks Medicated Starter Feed? -- I Gave My Hen Medicine. Is It Safe for Me to Eat Her Eggs? -- What Are These Bugs Crawling on My Bird (and Me)? -- What Is Causing My Hen's Swollen Foot and Her Limping? -- Can I Feed Bugs and Worms to My Flock? -- Chapter 22: Ten Common Misconceptions about Chicken Health and Treatments -- Mixing a New, Healthy-Looking Chicken with the Flock Is Safe -- You Can Get Worms from Eating Eggs from Wormy Hens.

You Can Use Horse or Dog Medicine for Chickens -- Many Medicines Are Approved for Use in Laying Hens -- Natural Remedies Are Always Safer Than Synthetic Drugs -- Vaccinating Is the Best Way to Prevent Flock Infections -- Surgery Will Stop Your Rooster from Crowing -- You Must Regularly Deworm and Vaccinate Backyard Flocks -- Chickens Catch Colds, and They Recover in a Few Days -- A Hen That Eats Her Eggs Has a Nutritional Deficiency -- Appendix: Chicken Health Formulary -- Disinfectants for Poultry Premises -- Medication Solutions for Backyard Flocks -- Parasite Treatments for Backyard Chickens -- Index.