2 newer flock additions with missing feathers on lower back?

[flipflops]

Hey guys, need a little help. I noticed today when letting my hens out from the hen house to their run, that 2 of my newer additions - a black australorp and a splash maran are missing about a 3x3 patch of feathers on their back right before their tail feathers?! They are actually plucked out down to the skin. Could this be normal, or could it be the others pecking or pulling out their feathers? I had 3 original hens, they are about 9 months old now, and then a month ago I gradually introduced 4 more hens I had raised. They are about 6-7 months old now. They have been seeming to get along fine with an occasional peck or run off from one of the more dominant hens.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

 

[The Moonshiner]

Have any pics?
Could be moulting. I don't have much experience with feather pulling but few times I have it was usually more tail feathers and a small area where the tail feathers connect. Usually to point of bleeding.
IDK though.
See you don't have a rooster. At first I thought that might be the issue. That I have more experience with.
Promiscuous hens like to show off those tail feathers.
They like to keep a bare spot right there to tease the boys. Some of mine have gone out and got tramp stamps.

 

[flipflops]

Haha!!! No rooster. I can gets pics later today. I didn' consider mounting though I kinda thought it was past the time for that....

 

[Nambroth]

I have a dominant hen that will sometimes mount the most submissive hens like a rooster! She doesn't do anything, she just stands there and sometimes pecks at their neck/head. Regardless, sometimes hens can do this and tread the saddle feathers off of other hens. Sometimes they will just pick in this area, too. Are the hens that are missing feathers more submissive / lower on the pecking order (so to speak)?

 

[flipflops]

Yes the Maran is but the australorp tries and hold her own. The maran is the bottom of them all for sure.

 

[Chicken gurl]

I know every once in a while, especially after introducing new chickens to the coop there is some little fights between the girls and there is some feather pulling in order to establish a pecking order. Feather loss is always weird because it can be bullying, self-cannibalism, mites, or an improper diet(I had a hen that was protesting her new coop and refused to eat for a week and forced a molt)

 

[Hen Pen Jem]

Greetings flipflops,

There different reasons why a hen loses feathers.

• Lower back, usually is due to a rooster over mating the hen.
• Of course, the annual molt is another, this most commonly happens in the fall, but some chickens can molt at other times.
• Broody hens will pluck the feathers on their chest, in order to better warm their eggs by skin contact.
• Over preening, is another reason that hens will pull their own feathers. In this case external parasites are causing irritation.
• Sometimes feathers get rubbed off when hens enter and exit tight spaces, like nest boxes.
• Feather picking is also common among chickens. You may even see broken skin and scabs from being pecked, on the neck and back. If not addressed, serious deep wounds and worse can occur. You can place a saddle/apron on the hen, to protect the skin till feathers regrow.

Make sure your chickens have ample room in their environment. Exercise, diet and distractions are very important when merging hens into a flock. Stress from confinement and newly added flock members can result in aggressive behaviors.

Increase the protein ration by treating them to some cooked eggs, meal worms, cooked chopped meat, or even some tofu. I make sure, my newbies have abundant food as well as, fresh greens, fruit, and even cooked grains. And, hanging plastic bottles with holes, filled with scratch grains and meal worms, will keep them too busy to peck at each other. The chickens will also enjoy some time out foraging (in a reasonably safe place), once the flock unity is established, and you feel they are old enough.

These are my thoughts on feather loss. I hope they have been helpful.

God Bless and peace to you.

 

[flipflops]

It's definitely the saddle feathers and they are picked off down to the skin. I watched for an hour tonight and saw one of them get pecked by one of the ones in their group not the older group so I don' know what' going on. There are 7 hens in a 6x12 run. We are planning on adding onto it though as I feel they need more space. They are in here all day we dontbhave our yard fenced yet so I don' let them roam.

 

[Nambroth]

If they are doing so out of boredom, you can offer some simple and inexpensive foraging enrichment for them. A pile of leaves or hay with a bit of scratch/sunflower seeds tossed in will occupy them for quite a while. A hanging treat, such as a cabbage or a container with holes drilled in it and scratch/seed added will also keep them working for hours. I also like to make a foraging "toy" by taking a plastic jar, drilling several holes in it just larger than a seed, and filling it with black oil sunflower seeds. They have to scratch and peck it to roll it around, which causes a few seeds to fall out.
If they are seeking protein (which feathers are made from!) then you can try supplementing with some protien. What feed are they on?
If they are just being jerks (this happens), then more space can definitely help. You can also try saddles on the ones being picked on, and pinless peepers on the ones that are doing the picking.

 

[flipflops]

This morning I observed that it looks like most of the feather picking or loss is outside in the run area. That is where I saw most of the feathers. I have them on Purina flock raiser with free choice oyster shell and grit. This morning I gave them chopped up cabbage and some scambled eggs and scatterd all over but they will have all of that devoured within 30 minutes and I am at work during the day. Would the sunflower blocks they have in tractor supply be ok? They are the size of a salt block. The run area they have is 6x12 but we want to add more space but is that not enough for them or is more needed asap?