Broken Feathers and Spots on Skin

[sdhowsare]

Hello! I have 10 chickens and they all live in one large coop. I have noticed all of my chickens are losing feathers most are nearly bare on their underside. Upon closer inspection I noticed the feathers are snapping in half. Some of the hens have blue/green spots all over their bodies. I originally thought they were molting because egg production has been way down too. We have a heat lamp in the coop over winter to keep them warm which I understand may cause weird molting cycles. Many of them went through a hard molt a few months ago and I am not sure if it would be normal to go through another hard molt three months later. I have checked them regularly and have not seen any lice on them. My only other thought might be mites in the coop, but would that cause blue/green spots on their skin?

I have attached three images showing the spots and a few broken feathers on one of my hens:
The first image is on under her wing on the side near her tail.
The second and third images are of the larger spot underneath her wing.

 

[Eggcessive]

The green skin is from bruising. It seems like they are pecking feathers and hurting the skin. Can you spend some time watching their behavior? Pay attention when they are on the roost, so that they cannot reach one another on another roost. Do you have a bully? Gamecams can be handy to watch them inside the coop. Or just spend the time with them.

Some reasons for pecking or feather picking are not enough room, not getting outside to free range, not enough protein in the diet, too much light in the coop in the daytime, not enough nest boxes, and others. If you can find the bully, sometimes using pinless peepers on the aggressor can help.

 

[sdhowsare]

The green skin is from bruising. It seems like they are pecking feathers and hurting the skin. Can you spend some time watching their behavior? Pay attention when they are on the roost, so that they cannot reach one another on another roost. Do you have a bully? Gamecams can be handy to watch them inside the coop. Or just spend the time with them.

Some reasons for pecking or feather picking are not enough room, not getting outside to free range, not enough protein in the diet, too much light in the coop in the daytime, not enough nest boxes, and others. If you can find the bully, sometimes using pinless peepers on the aggressor can help.

Eggcessive, thank you for your response! I have spent quite a bit of time with them and definitely see them pecking at each other. I have not noticed any increase in this behavior. We have had them for two years and they have always been this way so I wonder why things are escalating now. The hen I posted the pictures of is definitely the bully of the flock. Which is strange that she would have the bruises. They have plenty of space to move in and outside of the coop. We have had a heat lamp in their coop day and night because of the cold winter temperatures but we will be removing it soon as the temperatures begin to warm up. I would love to find a way for them all to get along!

Do you have any treats other ideas for increasing their protein. The food we are feeding them says it contains protein, but it may be they need more than that at this time.

 

[GraceJGWheeling]

Are you feeding them non gmo or organic feed or regular feed? GMO feed in research has been shown to increase aggressive behavior in animals, it may also cause skin eruptions and feathers falling out. GMO feed causes an array of health problems and often serious diseases. Also consider the toxic pesticides sprayed on the crops before they are harvested.

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