Bare chicken butts

[OrpingtonAustin]

I've noticed that some of my chickens, mostly the Plymouth rocks are missing the feathers around their bottoms. They still lay eggs and don't act out of the ordinary they just have really red bare butts. I don' think the other chickens are doing this. I'm sure somebody has seen this before. Any ideas? Thanks.

 

[daisy7]

We have the same problem here, but several have bare legs and necks, also. They have been cooped in all winter until the last week or so when the snow started to go away and there's some dry ground. This was our first winter with chickens, so I'm hoping to find an answer, also. Thanks!

 

[OrpingtonAustin]

We haven't had much snow here in Kansas and my chickens have been outside a lot. With yours missing neck and back feathers it sounds more like molting. I haven't experienced it but it is when chickens lose and replace their feathers. I'm sure there are plenty of posts about that with pictures. Thanks for the post. Let me know if you have other ideas.

 

[loveourbirds]

are they being bred by an active rooster? this is the most common cause. also you might check for fowl mites or lice- look for small bugs around vent and under wings. bad cases of fowl mites may show up as blood spots on combs.

 

[OrpingtonAustin]

I don't even have a rooster. I'll have to check closer for mites. Not sure what I'm looking for but if they can be seen with the naked eye I'll have another look. Thanks.

 

[loveourbirds]

they can be seen by the naked eye, but easily missed, they will appear as a brown or red speck that moves (my eyes aren't great but I cant see the legs). it could also just be a molt, picking is also a possibility if they have been cooped up all winter, if you don't see any bugs on them, and their weight/health are good otherwise, I wouldn't worry much. I'm sure the feathers will come back.

 

[daisy7]

I'll check for the mites. I have one rooster and 14 hens and it's obvious that the rooster is having his way by the looks of their backs. I wondered about molt, but I thought they didn't lay eggs when in molt. All my hens are bare, some worse than others, but we're still getting 8-10 eggs a day. Since they've been able to be out during the day, the girls are starting to get feathers back, so I'm hoping it was just a bad case of boredom. Thanks for the other replies. It's very helpful!

 

[Ruth10]

My hen has a bare spot around her butt too. I just noticed this today. I did not see it in the past few days. I did have a rooster but had to find another home for him. (city got complaints) I will check for mites. Any other possibilities?

 

[Ruth10]

ok, so now it is not visible. Maybe it was just the way she was standing or the wind was blowing. If she just stands up regular you can't see it. I will keep a watch on her though