Arizona Chickens

[DesertChic]

Is this just an extreme molt?
This is the worst I've ever seen any chicken, and the "coldest" time of year seems a strange time to go into molt...






Has anyone seen a molt that looked like this before???
Another hen also looked bad, but this is much worse with the bare backside

Definitely molt. Here's what one of mine looks like:



I took this photo, I think, back in August. She's FINALLY getting some pin feathers.

 

[nicollee]

Definitely molt. Here's what one of mine looks like:



I took this photo, I think, back in August. She's FINALLY getting some pin feathers.

Wow... I had chickens as a kid, and then when my kids were small, These hens are about 3years old, and this is the first time I've ever seen anything this bad....
Thank-you for the reassurance..... Why do they do this when they most need their feathers to keep them warm??? makes no sense...

 

[City farm]

The duck's love the rain, but the chicken's were hiding for cover.. what a beautiful beginning to 2017. Here are the duck's when they were tiny.

And in 2016 sharing a salad. Or wait maybe 2015,, idk but hope to take some more photo when it get's dry..

Have a blessed New Year's Day 2017

 

[City farm]

Some of my most photogenic chicks from this latest hatch. They're now a week old. They grow up so dang fast! The warrior. Gotta love that face paint. The quiet, dignified one: The preen queen. She LOVES her new wing feathers. The perfect poser: The "does this pose make my butt look big?" chick: And the Khaki lover:

Oh girl you are too funny! Fabulous photo's

 

[FeatherPugs]

@nicoleee I have some too that look like that. I try not to pick them up or anything as it kinda hurts the hen with all those little pins coming in. I think their molt seems harder when they are older too. I have some older girls who are 4, 5, 6 and they are molting really hard this year.
@DesertChic That poor poor baby, just make you want to give her a blanket!

 

[DesertChic]

@nicoleee I have some too that look like that. I try not to pick them up or anything as it kinda hurts the hen with all those little pins coming in. I think their molt seems harder when they are older too. I have some older girls who are 4, 5, 6 and they are molting really hard this year.
@DesertChic That poor poor baby, just make you want to give her a blanket!

And would you believe she still gives me 4-6 jumbo sized eggs per week? I keep waiting for her to take a break, but she just keeps cranking out the eggs. I've even supplemented her diet with meat protein (she especially loves roast beef), but those feathers stubbornly refuse to grow in. Amazingly, unlike many of my other molting girls, Rizzo (her name) remains friendly, curious and assertive. There's nothing shy about this girl!

 

[DesertChic]

Wow... I had chickens as a kid, and then when my kids were small, These hens are about 3years old, and this is the first time I've ever seen anything this bad....
Thank-you for the reassurance..... Why do they do this when they most need their feathers to keep them warm??? makes no sense...

In most other parts of the country, at least as I understand it, the chickens are more likely to molt in the fall so they have nice, new feathers for winter. Here in AZ our winters are so mild that we get molters even during the winter time. Even the nighttime temps here are quite comfortable for the chickens, and mine absolutely LOVE temperature ranges between 40 and 60 degrees. Usually the harder molt triggers their bodies to relax and take it easier too. A lot of heavy molters will hide away more, lay few if any eggs, and just rest while their new feathers are being produced. Doesn't that sound like a nice way to spend the winter months?

Rizzo, the hen in my photo, seems completely unfazed by her lack of feathering. She rushes out of her pen every morning to face the chill and eagerly begins scratching around in the dirt in search of treats while waiting for me to set out the feed dishes. Her sister, Princess, looks almost as bad as Rizzo does, but has started feathering in more quickly. By contrast, a few of my girls that barely lost any feathers during molt stopped laying completely and after more than 2 months they still haven't resumed.

 

[Banaynaychicken]

Some of my most photogenic chicks from this latest hatch. They're now a week old. They grow up so dang fast! Oh my gosh he/she is a DOLL!

NN I presume? What a cutie, definitely need to get some NN's once I have my own farm ^^

Don't you just love when they look straight at the camera?

Benny does that alot, it makes the BEST photos <3

 

[bunsnpupsnchick]

Oh my gosh he/she is a DOLL! NN I presume? What a cutie, definitely need to get some NN's once I have my own farm ^^ Don't you just love when they look straight at the camera? Benny does that alot, it makes the BEST photos [/URL]

Omg. His crest is finally looking "proper" lol. That coloring is looking very rich & deep too. I'm so happy they're turning out so nicely! Their expressions are just about the same! Lol

 

[Banaynaychicken]

Quote: he LOVES to be photographed, I tell you he thinks he's a model.

His colors are indeed coming along nicely. Bowie and Merc are a lot lighter in color from the tail up, it gets darker as you move towards their head, but neither is as russet/gold and this guy.

Im for real excited about showing him, he is going to do AMAZING <3