Anybody seeing there chickens molting early this year?

[Nashv755]

My older hens started stress-molting when the heat wave reached its peak. Now that the weather has broken a bit, the younger ladies are all following suit. It's too early for this mess! Zheesh!

If they molt now will they still molt in the winter? My favorite decided to drop hers last year the week before it dropped to negative digits for a week before shooting back up in the 40's

 

[TXChixRock]

If they molt now will they still molt in the winter? My favorite decided to drop hers last year the week before it dropped to negative digits for a week before shooting back up in the 40's

I’ve not had that happen when they molt at this time of year. I have had it where the odd hen will have a soft molt in early spring then again late fall/early winter. There’s always that odd bird that will prove you wrong as soon as you say it won’t happen!

 

[Nashv755]

I’ve not had that happen when they molt at this time of year. I have had it where the odd hen will have a soft molt in early spring then again late fall/early winter. There’s always that odd bird that will prove you wrong as soon as you say it won’t happen!

Ok well maybe that's a plus. I felt bad for her last year. She had been dropping a few head and neck feathers for a couple of days. Then I got home from work one day and her head and neck were balled lol she was like a naked neck Phoenix. She was starting to get some stubble going about the time the temp dropped to -4° for a week.

 

[TXChixRock]

Ok well maybe that's a plus. I felt bad for her last year. She had been dropping a few head and neck feathers for a couple of days. Then I got home from work one day and her head and neck were balled lol she was like a naked neck Phoenix. She was starting to get some stubble going about the time the temp dropped to -4° for a week.

I’m sometimes amazed at how hardy chickens are. Must be cuz they’re mini dinosaurs!

 

[Sammster]

Mine are beginning to lose a few feathers

 

[rosemarythyme]

I've had molters as early as July but I think that's mostly due to the flock getting older each passing year (they now range from 3 to 7 years). The older they get the sooner they quit laying for the year and molt, at least in my flock. I had a pretty good indication that it was going to start soon, because they've been eating less overall the past week or so.

 

[MROO]

If they molt now will they still molt in the winter? My favorite decided to drop hers last year the week before it dropped to negative digits for a week before shooting back up in the 40's

I've been lucky, so far. We've had some serious mid-winter molts, but no baldies - and not more often than once every ten-twelve months. They do seem to have the worst timing, though. If it's not the dead of winter, it's the week before Fair. We once had three roosters registered to show, but they only had a single one tail feather between them! It was a gorgeous sickle feather, so I give the little guy credit for trying, but what a mess! Talk about weird. I wish I'd taken pictures, but DD was so upset I didn't have the heart!

 

[SwampPrincessChick]

None of my chickens are molting early, but I assume they will because of the current heatwave messing up the regular temperatures.

 

[Nomibird]

My rooster Prince is molting early this year. I think the weather is confusing his molting season.

My chickens molt when they feel like it. I have buff orps and Australorps and from the beginning they molted at the craziest times. At 10 months of age in some of the coldest weather (minus degrees) we have had in northern Arkansas, mine decided that would be a good time to do a molt, and regardless of the message that prolific layers molt quickly, mine don’t. They have decided now is a good time again and egg production is so low. When not molting I will get 8 or 9 eggs every day. Now I get 2 to 4 sometimes 6. I have come to believe that there are no rules to raising chickens. Just like kids every one is unique.