Feather picking and a possible way to control it

[azygous]

The roosters have regrown their gorgeous plumage and are looking very awesome. This proves my latest strategy to avoid feather picking has worked perfectly. It involves separating the roosters from the hens except for brief isolated encounters.

The minute I let a hen who is a known feather picker near these two, she starts focusing immediately on the neck feathers and starts plucking them. Therefore, my conclusion is not to let these hens near the roosters.

Thanks @Perris for that link. I read it and was pleased they pointed to environmental factors rather than diet. I've been dealing with feather picking long enough to have noticed it's mostly behavioral and environmental. Making environmental adjustments can affect behavior, so that's the first thing I recommend trying if you have this issue going on in your flock.

The other cause is individual behavior stemming from an individual's brain wiring which can affect their perceptions. The seven-year old hen in my flock that has been the most persistent feather picker appears to have stopped the behavior. I've noticed her standing still among the others just observing them rather than her usual close inspections of their feathers which then would lead to nibbling.

It has occurred to me that she may be perceiving these chickens differently from before. In other words, now she sees the chickens and not the individual feathers. What has brought about this change in perception, is anyone's guess. We'll see how long it lasts. If it's a temporary fluke, then she will resume picking soon as we are going into the hormonal season which has been associated with an uptick in picking in the past.

 

[Sammster]

They really are very handsome boys