Alarming Number of Chickens Losing Feathers

[Wyorp Rock]

I still find it a little worrying that she would only be molting around her neck, which could her more likely to get an injury or death because it's not well protected. Also my chickens tend to molt in the fall so that's another reason I don't think that's it. And in response to the question there are feathers coming in on one but the other two haven't started growing their feathers back even though they've been featherless for a month or two.

Molt is in a sequence and starts at the head and neck, down the back, across the breast and thighs, then tail.

Not sure why molting would cause injury or death than any other time?
The featherless back is either from roost, picking or a combination.

It's not uncommon for hens to molt late in the year.

 

[Bonwell]

With everyone who follows my thread and is based in the US and Canada there is an abnormally high number of hens that seem to be molting in the dead of winter for the first time. We have all been commenting how we have never seen this before. It feels like the same may be occurring with others as well based upon these posts. Those of us with chickens in the northern parts of the country have been taking extraordinary precautions to protect them from extreme cold. Our current theory is that a warmer than usual fall has led to this late molting. What do you all think?

Yeah I live in Northern US and about 1/3rd of my flock molted in winter for the first time. I can't think of any other reason except for as you said, the warmer fall.