bullied hen and winter survival

[Possum chicken farm]

I have a small mixed flock of 6 young hens/pullets. They were hatched last spring. The one at the bottom of the pecking order has had quite a few feathers pecked out on her head and upper back. She eats well, is laying 4-5 per week, and seems fine otherwise. I live in Ohio and while the winter, so far, has been fairly mild, I know we will have weeks of very cold temps in the next couple of months. Will the pecked out feathers keep her from staying warm enough during the harsh temps? Will they grow back or will she just be pecked up and less insulated until they have their first molt? This is my first flock so have never had winter chickens. Oh, and they have a covered run that stays dry and faces south and they also frequently have access to the entire fenced in half acre back yard, so unless we get a lot of snow this winter they'll have plenty of room and lots to do.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

I have a small mixed flock of 6 young hens/pullets. They were hatched last spring. The one at the bottom of the pecking order has had quite a few feathers pecked out on her head and upper back. She eats well, is laying 4-5 per week, and seems fine otherwise. I live in Ohio and while the winter, so far, has been fairly mild, I know we will have weeks of very cold temps in the next couple of months. Will the pecked out feathers keep her from staying warm enough during the harsh temps? Will they grow back or will she just be pecked up and less insulated until they have their first molt? This is my first flock so have never had winter chickens. Oh, and they have a covered run that stays dry and faces south and they also frequently have access to the entire fenced in half acre back yard, so unless we get a lot of snow this winter they'll have plenty of room and lots to do.

Can you post some photos of her, the feather loss and of your set-up? (coop/run)
How much space is in your coop/run? (sqft of each)
How many chickens do you have?

Generally a bird with feather loss will be o.k. in winter, a lot depends on your set-up. It would be a good idea to figure out why she is suffering the pecking/loss though. Often lack of space is an issue. Sometimes it may be "breed" - is she different from the others?

If the feathers are broken with the shaft intact in the skin, those will not be replaced until adult molt (usually around 16-18months of age).

 

[Possum chicken farm]

My flock of six is mixed. There are no two chickens alike. Three of them are from my niece's flock and are mutts with undetermined mothers but a Swedish flower father. Two of those three look like americauna/easter eggers and the bullied one is one of those and lays blue/green eggs. She is also the smallest bird in the flock. The other three were chicks from Rural King; RIR, light Brahma, and Silver laced Wyandotte. The Wyandotte is the primary bully, but others may pile on if she starts. Their coop is 4x6 with 2, 4 ft roosts and 2 nest boxes. The coop is tall enough to stand in. The attached run is 6 x 12 with a clear tarp cover for the winter. It is dry and fairly warm due to the tarp and its southerly exposure. They have perches, logs, covered dust bath, shelf, food and water in the run. They typically have run of the entire back yard (1/2 acre) for most of the day. It is fenced in and they've never tried to get out. We have so far had no issues with predators. We have two dogs who have adopted the chickens as their own and the cats hang out with them as well. The bullying was originally directed at the two easter egger mutts. They came in to the flock last summer after 4 of the 5 chicks I got from my niece turned out to be roos. The 4 I had were about 14-16 weeks and the two new ones were about 12 weeks. I gave her back the roos and she gave me those two. There were pecking order issues as would be expected at first. Then the Wyandotte, Annie, befriended the other one, Lily, and seemed jealous of Lily's friendship with Aster, the bullied one. Aster is by nature more timid and tends to behave in a submissive way. Aster has been getting a little less timid and the three at the top of the pecking order seem to leave her alone for the most part now. They don't keep her from food or water. As I said, Aster lays a pretty blue/green egg most days and even though we're in the darkest days of the year I'm still getting 3-5 eggs per day. I'm not using lights or heaters except for the water. It is pouring rain today so I can't get a pic of Aster's back today. I'll try to post one later.