I’ve had chickens most of my life and this book is great to have on hand for the occasional questions. Very informative, easily understandable text that can help even experienced chicken “tenders” really glad I bought this because it really will and has come in handy.

This book and this automatic chicken door are my favorite purchases for chickens.

The book is superb and very helpful. So nice to have a resource to turn to, when the girls are in need. We recently had a chicken that may have been egg bound or nearly so.
Look that up on the internet and you are bombarded with ads on so called chicken sites. What is up with that? With the book you just get pure information. So nice.
The Chicken Health HandBook: https://amzn.to/3V1AZWR

The chicken door has been flawless and helps out so much and is a time and step saver. We have had the door a bit over one year. Still have not changed the batteries. It has been flawless. Not every purchase goes that way.
Chicken door: https://amzn.to/3WRTKi6

I built a coop by hand, using hand tools only, except for a power tool to cut plywood. I used a Japanese saw to make all my cuts. I got so proficient I could cut left handed (I am right handed) standing on one foot and cut the 2×4 perfectly!
Saw: https://amzn.to/3x0Xtz7
The right saw really makes a difference. I made hundreds of cuts.

We bought a lot of items for chickens, coop and all to make it go. The chicken door was in some ways the crowning glory of convenience. The book is a lifesaver and valuable resource.

I hope this review helps…

I call it my chicken bible. it is great and lots and lots of great and spot on information

Having been invited by the author to provide an advance endorsement for the back cover of The Chicken Health Handbook, 2nd Edition, it was my honor to do so. For weeks I pored over my galley copy cover to cover, enjoying the completely new format, extraordinary illustrations and fresh content. This book is so much more than merely the 1994 Chicken Health Handbook with a fresh coat of paint; this version is a wholly transformed version worthy of its own distinguishing title.

Widely regarded as the Patron Saint of Poultry since her 1994 book of the same name became the chicken keeper’s bible, Gail Damerow has kept her finger on the pulse of chicken management innovations, advances and trends, bringing us this completely re-calibrated, modernized Chicken Health Handbook. More than a guide to chicken health, this book is a call to deliberate thought and informed chicken care decision-making, concisely providing the tools necessary in chapters that read like a novel.

Packed with pragmatic health-keeping information that embraces a holistic model of wellness, this book offers trouble-shooting tools and a panoply of real-world solutions based in solid science. It should be standard issue with every chick purchased.

Ms. Damerow provides a refreshing reality check on many of the feel-good sound bites regarding holistic/natural/herbal approaches to chicken keeping that abound on chicken related blogs and books in recent years. Damerow writes, “Instructions found online and in print publications describing herbal medicine for backyard chickens suggest that such-and-such herb “is said to” work for a certain disease, or that you “try” such-and-such herb as a treatment- which sounds suspiciously like experimenting at the expense of an ailing chicken.”

She does not push or extol the virtues of any given herbal or natural product- she simply presents facts, allowing the reader to make science-based decisions for their flocks themselves. She methodically teases out grains of truth where they exist, stressing that alternative remedies are not a panacea. For example, with regard to “natural worm control,” the author states they are “…more suited for preventing worms than to removing an existing worm load.” “It’s best not to rely entirely on natural methods unless you are certain your chickens are not suffering from an overload of worms, especially if you expect your birds to live into old age.”
Similarly, with respect to diatomaceous earth, she writes: “Respirable particles of crystalline silica in diatomaceous earth…sticks, (to chickens’ lung tissue) causing scar tissue to form that impairs respiration.”

She sums up her perspective on treating sick chickens as follows:
“Going by the philosophy of ‘whatever works,’ our family uses both conventional and traditional, or so-called alternative, remedies on our human selves. Sometimes the alternative methods are more effective and have fewer side effects than prescription drugs. So we are open to using alternatives on our livestock as well. When dealing with a sick chicken, however, we tend to be more cautious about trying alternatives that may or may not work. One reason is that chickens hide their pain as long as they can. By the time a chicken exhibits signs of not being well, it needs help fast. Since a chicken can’t tell us if it’s feeling better, unless a treatment works fast, we can’t tell if it’s working at all. We therefore limit alternative livestock therapies to their use as immunity enhancers.”

The Chicken Health Handbook, 2nd Edition is an indispensable resource for every chicken keeper. Run, do not walk, to get your copy! For someone who constantly seeks authoritative sources of accurate chicken keeping information, this book is a gift. I rely on it often in my work and in caring for my chickens and I know you will too.
Kathy Shea Mormino
The Chicken Chick®
Author, backyard chicken-keeping advisor & advocate and personal assistant to 50+ feathered pets and a Yorkie with cattitude.
http://www.The-Chicken-Chick.com

This really is the best book on chicken health I have ever come across. I have a few books on chickens and I have found this far and beyond the most helpful book in solving the mystery of what is wrong with one of the flock and how to help her or him. Some books are far too basic, this goes into depth in an understandable way and covers a vast amount and it is easy to find what you’re looking for and has diagrams. I highly recommend this book for chicken keepers old and new.

excellent book

This book is great! It is extremely thorough. I bought it after hearing it recommended by a poultry veterinarian on a chicken podcast. She said it was a great text for veterinary technicians. I know this will be a great resource in the future health of our small flock.