Here are the photos - I also checked for mites and lice but didn't see any, but I'll get my mum to double check as well because I wasn't sure how to see on the dark feathers. She has some bald bits on her head that I didn't notice before, so I think that means she's not plucking. We'll be moving...
When I got them one had lost the glossy feathers but still had a full covering of downy feathers. This one was completely bare backed. The feather loss is not getting worse.
I don't think the feather shaft was still in the skin - that's the white pokey stuff, right? It was entirely smooth, like...
So I've made a few changes to their living arrangements so I'll just say all of the ways they were kept.
First 3 weeks we had them they were kept on their own in an adjacent pen to my silkies. I don't know how big it is but I would guesstimate around 5x3 metres? They had no free ranging time...
I got two Australorps late November/early December last year because they were being bullied in their original flock. One hen had an entirely bare tail/back (and the skin is red, although this might be because of the sun - Aussie heat). I thought this was because she was being bullied but now...