New Mama hen losing a tremendous amount of feathers

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CedarCrestFarm

CedarCrestFarm

In the Brooder
5 Years
Jun 30, 2014
64
9
48
Kirtland Hills, Ohio
My Cochin hatched a few late season chicks 2 weeks ago. Today I noticed that she is losing feathers on her neck, back and stomach. I have checked for parasites and don't see any signs of such. She is very stressed and I am not sure why, as she is removed from the rest of the flock. Have not seen this before, has anyone experienced such a thing?
 
I would put her back with the flock, and she will take care of her chicks and protect them if she is a good broody. Broodies tend to pick out their belly and chest feathers to sit on eggs, but it does sound like she may be molting. That typically happens around 18 months of age and yearly thereafter.
 
Thank you so much for the response! I put her back and she was very protective and after about an hour, she and the chicks settled down. I picked her up and the feathers were just falling off of her. Although it does seem like a molt, the fact that it started to happen after chicks hatched had me worried.

I will post some pictures tomorrow!
 
CedarCrestFarm said:
Thank you so much for the response! I put her back and she was very protective and after about an hour, she and the chicks settled down. I picked her up and the feathers were just falling off of her. Although it does seem like a molt, the fact that it started to happen after chicks hatched had me worried.

I will post some pictures tomorrow!
Click to expand...
The hens do not eat well when they are hatching chicks. They need a higher protein food to help them through. I feed a small amt like 1/2 cp per hen of calf-manna plus their usual feed to help them. Is there a way to get her some higher protein to be able to produce her feathers back after she sheds them? The chicks need a higher protein food too like chick starter so maybe both would benefit from some extra feed.
 

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