chicken feathers are like they are in plastic tubes

mishie

Hatching
Jun 4, 2017
2
1
9
this chicken went through the molt a few years ago and her feathers never came back the same
she looked like she had the mange
I treated her for mites and anything I could think of and no improvement
I have just isolated her from the other chickens recently to see if she was being picked on and her feathers pulled out, she has never had bald spots just not fluffy feathers and gave her electrolytes, vitamins and boiled duck eggs to see if it helps her feather grow back normal
this time her feathers have grown back with what looks like tubes of plastic covering parts of her feathers
What could be causing this
 

Attachments

  • 59805B56-5282-43FC-A9B4-AEAD382E45AE.JPG
    59805B56-5282-43FC-A9B4-AEAD382E45AE.JPG
    775.8 KB · Views: 188
  • 19638587-ED61-4987-A8C7-134A10FEE021.JPG
    19638587-ED61-4987-A8C7-134A10FEE021.JPG
    362.7 KB · Views: 86
  • B04CEB82-426B-4C02-8732-4E5F24C0A8F7.JPG
    B04CEB82-426B-4C02-8732-4E5F24C0A8F7.JPG
    584.3 KB · Views: 85
  • C353451A-ECA2-48F3-B437-CCF8A53444BE.JPG
    C353451A-ECA2-48F3-B437-CCF8A53444BE.JPG
    418.7 KB · Views: 84
  • 59805B56-5282-43FC-A9B4-AEAD382E45AE.JPG
    59805B56-5282-43FC-A9B4-AEAD382E45AE.JPG
    775.8 KB · Views: 77
  • 19638587-ED61-4987-A8C7-134A10FEE021.JPG
    19638587-ED61-4987-A8C7-134A10FEE021.JPG
    362.7 KB · Views: 74
  • B04CEB82-426B-4C02-8732-4E5F24C0A8F7.JPG
    B04CEB82-426B-4C02-8732-4E5F24C0A8F7.JPG
    584.3 KB · Views: 76
  • C353451A-ECA2-48F3-B437-CCF8A53444BE.JPG
    C353451A-ECA2-48F3-B437-CCF8A53444BE.JPG
    418.7 KB · Views: 75
  • E9705FCF-D4B9-4440-BA74-FE28836641F6.JPG
    E9705FCF-D4B9-4440-BA74-FE28836641F6.JPG
    383.6 KB · Views: 79
Does she preen herself? Those are the feather sheaths that flake off as they preen... where they are dark blue/purple is still blood filled, so be careful of breaking them there, they would bleed awful... but the clear parts she should be preening off...

Is she active and healthy otherwise? Have you dewormed her? If a bird isn't feeling well, then they tend to not preen or care for themselves properly...
 
They look like pin feathers. After molting they get them and They will eventually flake off when she is grooming.
 
Does she preen herself? Those are the feather sheaths that flake off as they preen... where they are dark blue/purple is still blood filled, so be careful of breaking them there, they would bleed awful... but the clear parts she should be preening off...

Is she active and healthy otherwise? Have you dewormed her? If a bird isn't feeling well, then they tend to not preen or care for themselves properly...

thanks, I never thought of that, she is an older chicken and a bossy one
she has had Rye neck a few months back but vitamins and electrolytes seem to have fixed that
she seems very healthy now eating well
but I will observe her more closely to see if she is preening herself
thanks so much
 
this chicken went through the molt a few years ago and her feathers never came back the same
she looked like she had the mange
I treated her for mites and anything I could think of and no improvement
I have just isolated her from the other chickens recently to see if she was being picked on and her feathers pulled out, she has never had bald spots just not fluffy feathers and gave her electrolytes, vitamins and boiled duck eggs to see if it helps her feather grow back normal
this time her feathers have grown back with what looks like tubes of plastic covering parts of her feathers
What could be causing this
:welcome:welcomeI've been wanting to do that for a while!! ;)
 
Those are new feathers called pin feathers that still have the keratin coating on them some people call "wax coating". She should be preening the coating off but for some reason it looks as though she has neglected to remove it. One thing you can do to help her is soak her in nice warm water with a little epsom salts for about 15 minutes while gently massaging the shafts and then blow dry her. I do not know why she hasn't kept up with her feathers, there may be another problem going on. Giving her the bath will also encourage preening.
 
I agree with Gorman Farm, baths usually encourage preening. My hens get really grumpy when they get their pin feathers! Is it just my hens or is it a normal chicken thing? :p
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom