- May 27, 2020
- 21
- 19
- 74
Hi everyone,
One of our hens currently has almost no feathers on the top of her head, or on her shoulders. We have her in a chicken saddle, which seems to be helping a bit (no visible cuts or anything, just the missing feathers). She is the only hen who has needed this. She does not avoid the rooster. I'm tad confused as to what's happening here, because I've spent time outside watching the flock and have never seen the rooster picking on her, mounting her, etc. I haven't seen other hens pulling her feathers either. Is it common for chickens to only do this when humans are out of sight?
Also, this hen, who is a Jersey Giant approaching a year old, has never laid an egg, not once! Is this likely a result of stress from the rooster?
Any advice would be appreciated. We're debating just getting rid of the rooster to avoid potential problems, but are a little doubtful given that we've never seen or heard any aggression from him.
One of our hens currently has almost no feathers on the top of her head, or on her shoulders. We have her in a chicken saddle, which seems to be helping a bit (no visible cuts or anything, just the missing feathers). She is the only hen who has needed this. She does not avoid the rooster. I'm tad confused as to what's happening here, because I've spent time outside watching the flock and have never seen the rooster picking on her, mounting her, etc. I haven't seen other hens pulling her feathers either. Is it common for chickens to only do this when humans are out of sight?
Also, this hen, who is a Jersey Giant approaching a year old, has never laid an egg, not once! Is this likely a result of stress from the rooster?
Any advice would be appreciated. We're debating just getting rid of the rooster to avoid potential problems, but are a little doubtful given that we've never seen or heard any aggression from him.
