bald heads on hens

[SassyKat6181]

quite a few of my hens have bald heads. it is the rooster.....i have seen him mount them and grab their head feathers and yank really hard. is there anything i can do? they look so silly and it must be painful. i have 1 rooster in with 29 hens. thanks

 

[teach1rusl]

Not much you can do really. That's just how a roo hangs on. My roo's pretty small (a d'uccle) and my big BA gal still ended up with a small bald patch near her comb. Unless your roo looses interest or you make them little chicken bonnets, bald is just gonna' be a fact of life.

 

[Ridgerunner]

That head grab is part of the mating process. When the rooster grabs the back of the hen's head, that is her signal to raise her tail out of his way so he can touch his vent to hers. It is more than just hanging on, though hanging on to keep his balance is probably part of it too.

It is the rooster and no, I don't know any way to stop it. It seems some of mine have that and some don't, not matter which rooster or hens I have in my flock. I don't know why.