feather pecking or rooster?

[Hennyhandler]

Most of my chickens have a bare spot right above their tails. Some are large, some a small dot, and others you can tell the top feathers are gone. Well, I have a rooster and so I assumed it was him being a little harsh since I had seen some incidents where it seemed so. I put on some Blue Lotion and ordered some chicken saddles. Well, when I went out there yesterday a small soft feather was laying on the ground and a chicken grabbed it up and ran with it with the others chasing her. She ate it.

A little later I saw one grab one up and then realizing it wasn't food droppped it. I thought feather pecking would happen in more than one place but just wanted to check.

Also, when I went in there at night and they were all on the roost I saw a couple scratching through her feathers and one had a couple of those small soft ones fall out to the ground and when I looked there was some space out under the roost. Moulting?? I don't know but I figure whatever it is the saddles can't hurt anything but I really want to know.

Sorry for going on and on

but I did give them some extra protein in their treat today just to be on the safe side. ANYONE please. Help!

 

[newchickenmommy]

I am having a problem similar to your, but I have one chicken who is getting picked on (in the same location yours is), and I don't have any roosters! I think the other hens are are picking at this one. She even has a scab on her back. I think is a form of cannibalism. I am considering trimming the beak of the obvious hen that is doing the picking.

 

[Hennyhandler]

Mine don't seem to have any marks just bald spots. Have NO clue. Also, I saw that you have a gold sex link where did you get it and if you have a picture could you please post it.

 

[newchickenmommy]

I got her Anoka Ramsey Farm and Garden in Ramsey, MN. She is a great layer, but her shells are a little thin. My others don't have that problem so I know it is her.

Hope this works. It's just a picture I have of her on Facebook.

Sally

 

[BuckMann Farm]

Quote:
newchickenmommy - how was your visit to Anoka Ramsey F & G? A while back - there was a post about neglect to their birds.

 

[RM44]

If all your chickens have feathers missing, you might have one or two feather pickers. I have one plucker; a Black Australorp. She's been a plucker since she was about 3 weeks old. I had 23 hens then, and she would randomly pluck feathers, mostly from the Dominiques for some reason. I've whittled my flock down to 11 hens (rehoming the rest), and although I allowed everyone to pick out their own chickens, I still ended up with the plucker! Ugh! Over the months she's become much better, but she still can't resist the occasional plucking. You can tell she did it b/c you'll hear the "victim" scream. And the plucker generally eats the feathers that she plucks, especially the soft downy ones.

I don't understand why she does it. They all get the same food and no one goes hungry. There's not much fighting between my girls, but I do believe my 2 black australorps are at the top of the order (although "mother plucker" is #2 and the other, bigger BA is #1). So far the plucking isn't too bad and is evenly distributed so that no one hen has a bald spot. I keep hoping the other 10 will gang up on mother plucker and kick her little chicken butt, but I guess they don't think that way.