Missing feather's from back at base of tail! Bareback chickens?!?!?!

I've been noticing that 4 of my 12 chickens have missing feathers much like the rest of you have reported - where the back meets the tail. There have been some feathers scattered in the coop but no signs of any fights. I have no roosters, no signs of pests, and don't notice any sickness. The egg production has dropped only slightly but I attributed it to the colder weather we've been having in Ohio. I will maybe set up my GoPro to check for any bullies but the normally bossy hen is one of the ones that is missing feathers. They've been on the same feed since they've been of laying age but I'll also look at adding some additional protein.

The drop-off in egg laying is due to shortened daylight hours, not cold weather.

If your chickens are over a year old, they may be molting, and bare backs are common. If there are uniform pin feathers poking out of the bald area, it points to molt.

If the bald spot becomes raw and broken skin and bleeding start occurring, you may want to paint the red area with Blu-Kote to camouflage the raw skin so the chickens will leave it alone.

I have 18 hens and 1 rooster, mixed breeds. 9 of my hens are having the same issues, bald spots right above their tail on their back. Some are missing almost all of their back feathers, and some it's only a small patch. My roo is looking pretty rough in the feather department as well. His wing feathers look terrible. They are all from 9 months-a year old. I don't think they molted until 1 1/2 years. Some of my girls look like they are growing feathers back, and the bare spots are scanned over, just pink skin and no feathers. Haven't spotted a picker, or creepy crawlies. Any other ideas?

I'm still having the same problem & my Shy Little Violet has been bareback all winter. I don't know what's going on.

I'm going to start with this thread to see what I need to do about a similar situation. Let me start off by saying we do not have any roosters, and I haven't seen any kind of mounting going on.
We've had four pullets for about a week now and we noticed on day one, that one of our RIRs has a spot at the base of her tail that isn't totally bald, but does have some pin feathers, which I've read in this thread might point to a molt, but it's spring and I thought chickens molted in the fall. I'm obviously new to this chicken mom thing... Here's a picture, but I'm not sure how good it is. Anyway, I picked her up and looked at the area fairly closely and can see quite a few pin feathers but didn't notice what looked like lice or mites, but I'm not really sure what I'm looking for. (I know the run is a muddy mess...I'm working on a fix.)


I have another pullet who has just started today showing signs of feathers missing from the same place. However, I think it may be a case of being pecked at as she and the other three pullets were introduced into the coop at the same time with our two older hens. That being said, though, I haven't seen any out of the ordinary pecking one wouldn't normally see when integrating new birds into an existing flock, and I haven't noticed many feathers either in the coop or in the run...maybe one or two from each of the hens showing feather loss. I'm wondering if they are eating the feathers because they need more protein, as indicated in an earlier thread. Or, is this hen still young enough she may be molting baby feathers? Is that even a thing? Also, we have no idea exactly how old each of the pullets are. Our hens are just before or at about 2 years old.



Neither pullet has exposed, red skin or wounds and I'd love to keep it that way. Should I increase their protein intake? Use Blu-kote on their hinies? Take a Xanax and worry less? ARGH?! Thank you in advance for any input and if this thread is too old, I'll make this post a new thread to increase my chances of a solution. (This new chicken mom thing is HARD.)

Old post, But I also have two Rhode Island Reds in a mixed flock that are missing saddle feathers and tail feathers going on 4 months. None of the other chickens have exhibited any feather loss. Had close up inspection under light for mites/lice with none to be seen. Dusted both girls, adjusted diet, did all the usual still no change. I don't see them getting picked as they are certainly the aggressors in the coop. Yesterday when checking the nest box, one of the RIR was dead in the corner, not sure the cause, the other is still clucking along. Bizarre! Funny thing is its the same breed and from the same hatch that I am having the problem with.

The other 10 hens I have, including 4 OEG, 2 Sptitz, 2 White Maran, and 2 Bielfelder are showing no feather loss and appear to be quite healthy!