Eating rooster feathers

[Smileybans]

No but I will get some. I do have a small coop that we will use for illness or babies or isolation. I suppose I could put her in time out

You can always make some out of a soda bottle too. There’s lots of diy ideas for chicken toys. Anything they can kick around will work. My chickens have two toys that if I kept them full they would be fat. My roo is a pig.

 

[MysteryChicken]

It was just something I had read. Something to think about. That birds have the urge to scratch at the ground and forage whether full or not. Since pellets fill them faster it can lead to non agressive feather pecking.
I’ve never had this problem with any of my hens, thus far. But I do have two roosters and started out with an EE roo who likes to push the hens around. I know one of my roosters would do the plucking at the ends of the feathers. Just to damage them not pull them out. So I looked up why he would be doing it. That showed up as a why. I had heard of the bordom and lack of protein before but not this.

Pellets have the same filling ability as crumbles. One reason I have to fill the feeder almost every day. The pellets just last longer in the feed bin, so I don't have to run to the feed store every week.

Plus, if the birds are fuller longer, why would they want to eat feathers? Doesn't make much sense there.

 

[aart]

They get egg layer pellets then scratch grains and other veggies and such. Sometimes they get scrambled eggs

Cut out all the extras, layer feed is meant to be the sole ration.
Are all your birds laying?
You might consider going to an all flock and a separate feeder with oyster shell to provide calcium for the active layers.
I feed a 20% protein all flock to all birds all the time.

 

[Smileybans]

Pellets have the same filling ability as crumbles. One reason I have to fill the feeder almost every day. The pellets just last longer in the feed bin, so I don't have to run to the feed store every week.

Plus, if the birds are fuller longer, why would they want to eat feathers? Doesn't make much sense there.

Yes but the feather eating is a protein problem. Feather pecking is different. Here’s the link to the abstract of the article.
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00071660086349

 

[Schieve]

I have the same problem. One of my five hens has picked my rooster almost bald. Eats the feathers. I removed her and isolated her last night, today all hens laid and my flock is so much more relaxed. No other feather pecking has happened from what I've seen. I'm going to try keep her isolated for a week and when I bring her back I'm hoping the habits are broken.

Inwas hoping for more answers here.