FEATHER LOSS

[CindyD57]

I have a flock of five hens, 3 barred rock, one RIR and one Americana. They have all molted and were beautiful. Now, four of the hens are losing feathers on their bum. One of the barred rocks is losing feathers around her neck and pretty much all over. The Americana seems to be the leader of the bunch, even though she is smaller. I have cleaned the pen and put DE everywhere and added sand with DE. I'm not sure what's causing this,but it's very frustrating. They free range some, but are given fresh greens every day. Any advice?

 

[CindyD57]

I was also wondering if perhaps the americana could be doing this, because she is very dominant to the barred rock that is losing feathers.

 

[Eggcessive]

It's probably feather picking. I would look them over carefully especially under the vent area for signs of lice or mites. DE isn't enough if it is an infestation, but you should be able to find some signs such as egg clusters, if there are lice or mite dust. Some mites are only out at night, so you can examine after dark too. Permethrin or Sevin dust will try lice and mites, but the coop also needs to be thoroughly cleaned out and treated if you find any. For feather picking, make sure there is enough room, prevent boredom by letting them free range more or provide some things to climb on and explore, and make sure their protein is at least 16%, and 20% would be better, but no more than that. Some people recommend anti-pick lotions, or using bad tasting ointments or creams.