I just yesterday discovered a new feather picker in my flock. She's only eight months old. As far as I know, she's not been doing it for long, so I have hopes she can be deterred from this behavior. How do I do this? I have a supply of pinless peepers on hand, and a pair of snap-ring pliers that work the opposite of regular pliers, to install them on her beak holes. It's a painless procedure and the peepers block her forward vision but permit her to see up and down so she can eat and function normally.
I'll leave them on her for a month, then remove them and see if she resumes or not. You can buy them online. Just google them. So far, after wearing them for two days, I haven't seen many feathers lying about and haven't seen her pulling any out of her mates.
Most people assume feather picking is a result of a nutritional deficiency, and some case may very well be. Try introducing extra protein first to see if it curbs the behavior, but don't be surprised if it doesn't.
Years ago I started a thread on feather picking. It went into dozens of pages and all sorts of folks chimed in with experiences. These people tried everything, me included, to solve the problem. Nothing worked for long. Nothing worked as a permanent cure.
I concluded long ago, mostly from my own experience, that some of the most persistent cases of feather picking are hardwired into the brain of the chicken with this behavior. I had such a hen. It was exasperating. She got canned tuna for months. Didn't work. I tried the peepers. Worked for a short while, then she would figure out a work-around. I tried Bumpa-bits, a device that prevents the beak from closing all the way. She found a work-around for that, too, and resumed her serial feather picking.
I finally had to isolate her in her own pen to protect the flock from her frenzied, compulsive behavior.
I have four Speckled Sussex that are seasonal feather pickers. Come spring, they start up again after the behavior being dormant all winter. I install pinless peepers on them and it cuts down some on the picking, but they manage to fray and ruin almost everyone's feathers during the long summer days. When the short days of fall hit, they slow down the behavior and by winter, they've stopped all together.
Feather picking is one of the most frustrating problems confronting a flock manager. Start with the extra protein, then move to the pinless peepers. Hopefully, if you catch it early, you might be able to mitigate it.
I wish you luck.
