My chickens are losing feathers

[umleitungme]

At first I thought my RIR's were starting to molt. Now I think there may be some other issue going on. They are 1-1/2 yr old, and started losing their feathers on their breast. Now one in particular is losing feathers on her head and body as well. I dust them all with diatomacious earth once a week. Any suggestions?

 

[Kiki]

Welcome to BYC.
I would suggest throwing the DE away. It simply does not do what the myths say it does.
You may be dealing with lice and or mites.
Could you check your chickens at night with a flash light to see if you see mites crawling on them. The mites will live in the coop and only come out at night to eat your chickens and suck the life out of them.

Could you also post a few pictures of the birds showing the missing feathers?
Do you have an roosters?

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[drumstick diva]

Agree with Kiki totally. DE is a waste of money & effort. If your bird have mites or lice, they need dust or sprays to handle that problems.

 

[Chickiemom25]

18 months and end of summer sounds right for a molt!