4,777 answers about horses & farm animals
Horses and farm animals run on routine — feeding schedules, hoof and health care, safe fencing and calm handling, in all weather. This page gathers the horse and farm animal library of KinsLe Answers in one place, organized by topic from daily care to travel and senior animals. Every answer is original, written by KinsLe, and tied to a real KinsLe feature.
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449 answers in Health & Vet Care — page 5 of 19
A dehydrated Silkie chicken can be easy to miss because its crest hides the eyes and its small walnut comb barely shows, so watch instead for unusual quietness, a dry beak, scant dry droppings, and a bird that stops following the flock to forage. Silkies are gentle, often broody, and low in flock order, so check that…
A dehydrated Rhode Island Red chicken often loses the rich colour in her comb and wattles, develops sunken eyes and dry droppings, pants in heat, and stops laying, while her normally bold, busy behaviour goes flat. Because Reds are confident foragers, a hen hanging back from feed and water deserves a close look at…
A dehydrated Plymouth Rock chicken often has a pale, shrivelled comb, sunken eyes, dry droppings, and a drop in laying, and she may pant, hold her wings out, or stand quietly instead of scratching and dust-bathing. For this barred, dual-purpose hen, check whether drinkers are frozen, empty, or guarded by flock mates,…
A dehydrated Pekin duck often looks sunken-eyed and unusually still, stops dipping its head and preening, and may have a dry-looking bill, thick stringy saliva, and very dry droppings. Because Pekins are heavy birds that rely on water for eating and cleaning their nostrils, even a frozen, tipped, or fouled drinker can…
A dehydrated Muscovy duck becomes unusually still and withdrawn, with sunken eyes and the red facial skin around them looking paler, drier, and less plump than usual. This large, quiet breed may sit hunched for long periods, show little interest in foraging or bathing, and produce dry, scant droppings. Because…
A dehydrated Merino sheep shows sunken, dull eyes, dry tacky gums, and skin on the eyelid that stays tented after a gentle pinch instead of flattening immediately. The breed's dense, fine wool conceals the skin, the flanks, and any weight loss, so a Merino must be checked by hand at the eyelid, mouth, and bare skin…
A dehydrated Leghorn chicken shows it in the comb first: the large red comb and wattles that mark the breed shrink, pale, and feel dry instead of full and waxy. The eyes look sunken, droppings become dry and scant, and laying in this prolific white layer drops sharply or stops. An affected Leghorn grows quiet and…
A dehydrated Khaki Campbell duck becomes noticeably quiet and still, with sunken eyes, a dry-looking bill and mouth, and little interest in the swimming and head-dipping this active breed normally seeks out constantly. Egg laying often drops or stops, droppings become dry and scant, and the duck may sit hunched with…
A dehydrated Jacob sheep typically shows sunken, dull eyes, dry gums and a mouth that feels tacky, and skin on the eyelid or neck that stays tented after a gentle pinch instead of flattening straight back. The breed's piebald spotted wool hides both the skin and any hollowing of the flanks, so work by touch and look…
A Thoroughbred's thin skin and fine coat show skin problems early: a dull or rough coat, flaking, small raised bumps or hives across the neck and barrel, and hair rubbed away at the girth, withers, or blanket contact points. Sweat areas along the neck and between the hind legs can develop crusty patches, and a…
A Tennessee Walking Horse with a skin or coat problem may lose the sleek sheen the breed is shown with, developing a dull topline, crusting along the crest under its long mane, flaky patches, or hair loss where it rubs its neck and hindquarters. Breakage through the mane and tail, bald spots at the tail head, and…
In a Quarter Horse, a skin or coat problem often shows as a dull or patchy coat, bare areas over the powerful hindquarters or along the back, raised bumps or hives, and scabs where a saddle or rug sits. Tail rubbing that thins the top of the tail and repeated scratching against posts are behaviour clues that the skin…
A Morgan with a skin or coat problem often loses the breed's usual rich shine first, showing a dull, rough coat, flaky skin, patchy hair loss, or broken hairs where the horse rubs its neck, shoulders, or hindquarters. Crusts and small scabs can hide under a Morgan's thick mane and forelock, so part the hair and feel…
Horses hide pain by instinct, so the early signs are small and facial first: ears held back or sideways, tightening around the eyes, tension above the eye and along the chewing muscles, flared or pinched nostrils, and a strained, tight muzzle and chin. Behaviour follows the face: a horse who goes off his feed, stops…
In a Merino, early dental trouble shows as quidding, balls of chewed forage dropped in the pen, slow one-sided chewing at the trough, and a jaw that feels lumpy or draws a flinch when you run a hand along it. Drooling, sour breath and feed sorted aside are further flags, but the Merino's dense fleece hides the weight…
Early dental trouble in a Jacob sheep shows first as cud that never gets finished. Look for dropped cud balls where the sheep rests, shorter and more restless chewing sessions, and a Jacob that works one side of its jaw while the other barely moves. At the trough the signs continue: slower eating than flockmates,…
Early dental trouble in a Dorper sheep shows in the cud before it shows in the feed bill. A Dorper whose mouth is comfortable chews cud in long, relaxed sessions; early wear or a sore molar brings dropped cud balls under the resting area, shorter chewing sessions, and a sheep that takes noticeably longer to finish the…
Early dental trouble in a Berkshire pig usually announces itself at the trough: grinding teeth more than the usual contented chatter, eating slowly, and dropping feed from one side of the mouth. You may also see your Berkshire tilt its head to chew, leave hard feed it once crunched happily while still taking soft…
A Tennessee Walking Horse eating and drinking normally grazes with its head low and relaxed, works through hay at an even pace, and drinks willingly after meals and after work under saddle. Normal chewing in this gaited breed is slow and rhythmic, with no dropped hay, and normal output is steady piles of formed manure…
A Quarter Horse eating and drinking normally works through hay steadily across the day, comes to grain with interest, drinks deeply after meals and work, and chews evenly on both sides without dropping wads of half-chewed hay. You confirm normal by output as much as intake: regular piles of formed, moist manure, a…
A Wyandotte in pain loses her plump, purposeful outline at the edges: head pulled in, tail carried low, and a rose comb that dulls from its usual healthy red. Wyandottes are round, heavily feathered birds, so the classic fluffed-up warning is muted — instead watch for a hen that quits ranging with the flock, sits on…
A Silkie's pain hides under the fluff, so your hands find what your eyes cannot. This breed's silk-like plumage conceals weight loss, wounds, and swelling, and its calm, broody temperament means sitting still is normal — the distinction is a Silkie that stops eating, stops dust-bathing and preening, or feels bony…
A Rhode Island Red in pain breaks character, because this is an active, self-assured breed that ranges widely and misses few meals. The Red that stops foraging, stands hunched with her deep red feathers fluffed, or lets her comb dull from bright red to pale is showing you discomfort the way this hardy breed shows…
A Plymouth Rock in pain swaps her busy, ground-scratching routine for stillness, and her comb and tail tell the story early. A healthy Rock carries her tail angled up and her single comb red and full; a hurting hen holds her tail low, fluffs her barred feathers into a hunched ball, lets her wings droop, and parks…
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