Hello all,
We've got an 3-4 year old Indian game bantam and four 18-month-old black and blue Orpingtons.
Sweetpea, our black Orpington, went into a molt about a week/two weeks ago. She has lost most of her face, around her tail, and most of her butt feathers.
The feathers were coming back in nicely, but Nora, the game bantam who is also the head honcho, decided yesterday after dinner and when their evening grooming session typically begins - that pecking at Sweetpea's butt feathers is the best thing ever. We have not seen any blood and Sweetpea's butt is not red, but Nora will pursue Sweetpea from across the yard just to have a peck. Nora has also tried the same with the other girls but not nearly as much. Now if she wants food or attention, she will nip their butt feathers to get them out of the way.
To complicate things all of our girls are missing many of their butt feathers since the beginning of summer (we're in New Zealand), and we thought that maybe it was related to the amount of lice egg sacks they had coming out of winter, and they all lost their keel/chest feathers while going broody about the same time.
Nora has never attacked anyone else's bare bottoms that we're aware of (tonight and yesterday there have been very loud clucks and running when she to nip, which we have not heard before). This seems to be very sudden.
All of them are fed a layer feed and are free ranged, along with greens, bugs, and treats. We have seen Nora eat one or two of the feathers that were spread around the yard from Sweetpea's molt. And she's always been top of the flock, grooming the girls about 5-8pm each night (especially their bums).
Anyone else have this happen? Any reasoning? I'm thinking of getting some game bird food, which is what we were recommended to have all of them raised on, just in case it's a protein issue with Nora.
And I've found someone's post for antipecking treatment of teatree oil, food coloring, and a balm - but is there anything instead of the balm/vaseline we can spray it on with? I don't want to rub anything into Sweetpea's tender skin if I don't have to.
Thank you!
We've got an 3-4 year old Indian game bantam and four 18-month-old black and blue Orpingtons.
Sweetpea, our black Orpington, went into a molt about a week/two weeks ago. She has lost most of her face, around her tail, and most of her butt feathers.
The feathers were coming back in nicely, but Nora, the game bantam who is also the head honcho, decided yesterday after dinner and when their evening grooming session typically begins - that pecking at Sweetpea's butt feathers is the best thing ever. We have not seen any blood and Sweetpea's butt is not red, but Nora will pursue Sweetpea from across the yard just to have a peck. Nora has also tried the same with the other girls but not nearly as much. Now if she wants food or attention, she will nip their butt feathers to get them out of the way.
To complicate things all of our girls are missing many of their butt feathers since the beginning of summer (we're in New Zealand), and we thought that maybe it was related to the amount of lice egg sacks they had coming out of winter, and they all lost their keel/chest feathers while going broody about the same time.
Nora has never attacked anyone else's bare bottoms that we're aware of (tonight and yesterday there have been very loud clucks and running when she to nip, which we have not heard before). This seems to be very sudden.
All of them are fed a layer feed and are free ranged, along with greens, bugs, and treats. We have seen Nora eat one or two of the feathers that were spread around the yard from Sweetpea's molt. And she's always been top of the flock, grooming the girls about 5-8pm each night (especially their bums).
Anyone else have this happen? Any reasoning? I'm thinking of getting some game bird food, which is what we were recommended to have all of them raised on, just in case it's a protein issue with Nora.
And I've found someone's post for antipecking treatment of teatree oil, food coloring, and a balm - but is there anything instead of the balm/vaseline we can spray it on with? I don't want to rub anything into Sweetpea's tender skin if I don't have to.
Thank you!
