For the new folks that haven't experienced a molt yet.

[elmcc]

Sorry for blurriness of pix but it is cold and Clarisse is not wanting to expose her bare neck to the wind. I was afraid she had mites or lice, but after exploring the pix on this thread, it looks as if she is just molting. How will she stay warm now that it is snowing and windy?

 

[elmcc]

Her (Clarisse) comb and wattle are very pale also. Is this typical?

 

[aart]

How old is Clarisse? I think it's common for hens to stop laying while molting and the pale comb and wattles go along with that...not quite sure how it's connected tho.

 

[elmcc]

Clarisse was hatched in April. I have 7 other hens the same age. No sign of any feather loss or pale combs on any of the other girls.

 

[Happy Chooks]

It's really hard to tell from that picture, but she could be going through a minor molt. They find ways to keep warm by snuggling up with the other birds on the roost.

 

[IrishGypsie]

Oh thank goodness. My poor Sassy looks almost exactly like this and I've been freaking out that she was sick! Poor thing is just going through a hard molt. I hope it ends soon and she gets her feathers back. She looks so scruffy and sad right now.

Sassy is my icon photo, in prettier days. Right now she's super scraggly.

 

[Happy Chooks]

Oh thank goodness. My poor Sassy looks almost exactly like this and I've been freaking out that she was sick! Poor thing is just going through a hard molt. I hope it ends soon and she gets her feathers back. She looks so scruffy and sad right now.

Sassy is my icon photo, in prettier days. Right now she's super scraggly.

Welcome to BYC and glad this thread put your mind at ease.

 

[aggiemae]

Yes, the combs get smaller, look dried out and sometimes pale during a molt. I oil them when its cold, hoping it hens protect them from frostbite, but even if it doesn't it makes them look a little less pathetic.

If your hens hatched in April they might not molt this season. Our 2012 hatch was 4/1 and only one of the six molted. This springs (2013) hatch was on 2/27 and three of the four young hens are molting, though two are having light molts...so six of out eight current hems are molting, three hard and three light, but (amazingly) we are still getting 2-3 eggs a day.

I love the molt photos. It might just be me but I find that the prettiest thetend to look the worse during their molts.

 

[aggiemae]

My flock is not bare... And three are already past the heaviest part of their molt... Two of them have even resumed laying. So, my flock's molt backs it up.

You stated: "Hens not stressed seldom have skin exposed even during heaviest part of molt". While this might be true of you flock it does not make it a FACT.

 

[centrarchid]

You stated: "Hens not stressed seldom have skin exposed even during heaviest part of molt". While this might be true of you flock it does not make it a FACT.

Somehow I think quote above is of a statement I already made. I have flocks in parallel (multiple) over many years. Birds in flocks with the best setups such as free-range with shade and quality forage, the molt seldom results in skin being exposed. Flocks confined or more reliant on even best feeds I can muster, especially when they cannot avoid high heat, are more likely to have feather loss on body and neck that exceeds replacement rate resulting in skin exposure. Raising birds under a range of conditions makes assessing stress easier.