BIG MEANIE??...OR IS IT OCD???

[Lea71]

Hello everyone.....this is my first time raising layers and the girls are now 10 wks. old. I've got one EE who compulsively plucks the feathers out of the other girls backs, near their tail. She just runs up to everyone, pulls a feather out and eats it. Is this a sign of cannabalism? Will she get worse? Are my other chickens going to all have bald backs?
I thought maybe she is just bored. They live in a 8X8 coop and have a 20X6 enclosed run. I am thinking about going and getting some scratch or oats to throw in the run to give them something to look for....distractions...works for kids and dogs.

I will get rid of her if all my other girls are going to be ugly and bald all the time. It seems like two of the other girls, who are higher up on the pecking order, don't tolerate her antics too much and chase her off, but the other ones just run from her. I want to nip this in the bud before it escalates into something more serious....any ideas?
Thanks in advance for any answers to my questions...I appreciate it!

 

[JennsPeeps]

Try doing a search on "feather AND eating". Someone recently said it's a nutrition thing.

You can also try separating her from all the others for a few days to a) get her the nutrients she might be lacking and b) give the others time away from her.