chicken problems

[nesskar2008]

Hi, is there anybody out there that can help, I have a chicken in her first year of laying, she is one of seven and has always gotten on well with the other girls.
For the past couple of weeks she has gone through moulting and I have given all my chickens extra supplement to help with the stress, but she has lost loads of weight and seems lethargic, I have checked to make sure her crop is empty in the morning and her backside to check for mites and egg bind.
She eats when I let her out of the run and gobbles down dried mealworms, but she is not inquisitive and does not scratch about like the others, although she used to.
I went in the coop later this evening to see where she was perching and found her sitting on the floor where the others were on the roost bar so Ipicked her up and placed her on the bar where my other chicken tried to push her off to get by her.
Does it sound like she is at the bottom of the pecking order or does anyone think she is poorly?
I know the cold weather may not have helped much.
Any ideas will be gratefully received

 

[Judy]

Really, you're the best judge. Moulting seems to make some feel lousier than others. Often a "lap chicken" doesn't want to be touched when moulting. The others may very well be harassing her, maybe preventing her from getting near the feeder during the day, at least as much as she'd like. Perhaps another feeder, or feeding her separately til she quits in the morning (if you can) would help. Separating her for a week or two for rest and nutrition of course has the disadvantage of putting her at the bottom of the pecking order when she returns -- where it sounds like she already may be.

It's possible that something else is wrong, of course, but let's hope she is just one who has a rough time with the molt, and you can find a few things to make things a bit easier. Good luck!