Feather picking

[True Grit]

Has anyone had any luck stopping the feather picking? I put in a Flock Block which I think they peck at a little but I think I'm going to have to go to pinless peepers on the one hen, let the others heal, and hopefully once they start free ranging again, the habit will be broken. I didn't get the pine tar cuz it had a big "Toxic, Fatal if swallowed" lable on it so I wasn't sure if it was the right stuff. I can see that the Rooster Booster hurts when I apply it on the worst victim's back so I will try an apron on her as well.

 

[NicoleMarieDolphin]

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I did not know this existed! Thanks this is helpful.

 

[7L Farm]

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I've had absolutely no luck stopping this behaviour. I wish I could help!!If you find the answer please let me know.Its a terrible habit they aquire & as far as I know impossible to break. I've tried everything in the book. Its not space because mine free range everyday. Its not protein because I give my girls plenty.

 

[patman75]

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I got mine to stop. I posted what I did on #13 or #14.

 

[True Grit]

Thanks Patman75. I've tried all but the pinless peepers. I ordered some aprons and will have the picked upon wear them until their feather regrow but I do think I will have to put the peepers on Hawkeye to get her to stop.

 

[True Grit]

Well I got 4 saddles or aprons from lovemychix and am very pleased with how they are made and how they fit. I put the camo one on my white girl so she can blend in a little with the grass and ground just starting to show through the snow. Now they look like busy little house-hens.

I can't wait for them to regrow their feathers.

 

[buckabucka]

I only have one feather picker, and she definitely increased the amount of picking over the winter. The other hens and the rooster were looking a little scruffy, and when the first bald spot appeared on one of the victims, we tried the pinless peepers. Unfortunately, all the other chickens went wild when they saw those peepers, pecking at them like crazy. We were watching to make sure the feather-picker did not get hurt, but one of the hens got a good grip on the peepers and just pulled them off of her. This resulted in an exciting game of keep-away with the now detached peepers.

I decided to go the protein route before trying the peepers again. Not sure if it is working yet, but the warmer weather should help. I've seen the feather-picker approach another bird, attempt to grab a feather, and then, instead of following through, she gets distracted by something in the dirt.

 

[taradrew]

I have newbies in the coop. They were in the coop for a while, got beat up so I nursed them back to health in my basement. Now I have put them back out in the coop and the frizzle is mainly getting pecked at. I recently got rid of my rooster since he was breaking feathers on my ladies backs from breeding them. How long should I leave the newbies in the coop before "saving" them to my basement again? Will they eventually find their place in the pecking order?

 

[ravenseye57]

I'm having the same trouble. It started with one very mean little pullet, but now it has spread to some of the other youngsters. My older chickens never did this. I let them out all day, but I'm going to start setting my alarm early so they can go out at first light. I think boredom and nighttime crowding is part of the trouble. A pecking order shakeup may be aggravating the problem. One of my more dominant hens just died from a prolapse, and I took two of the lowest status girls out to our property to stay with the moulting chickens (low light) to relieve the crowding a bit. I have 23 hens in a 10 x8 shed with an outdoor yard that has a pallet and plastic shelter for bad weather. They still pick a bit during the day, but the main trouble is when they're cooped up at night. I think we built the perches too low and I want to put them up on blocks (they're freestanding perches so that they can be removed from the shed when the chickens go back out to the property in the spring). I'm considering the blinders, but I'm afraid the other chickens will just attack them and pull them off. Someone else posted that they did that, and my chickens pulled the saddles off of each other when I tried using them (my roo was making them barebacked). I'm keeping my roosters separte from the flock right now. Has anyone had luck with a rooster disciplining bad hens? Maybe I should let one of the roos rejoin the flock once they're at pasture again.

 

[azygous]

Feather picking is the most frustrating, disappointing problem there is with chickens. I've tried everything in the past - pine tar, Pick-no-more, Blu-kote, even made my own home-made concoction of grape-Kool-aid and vaseline and Pepto Bismol. I fed extra high-grade protein. I gave them flock blocks. They free-ranged.

The thing that has solved and controlled the problem is installing pinless peepers on the ones with the urge to pick. These hens with the problem seem to have a brain disorder because they seem to have a manic urge to pick -pick-pick. As the day progresses, they get more and more wound up. Since they have been wearing the peepers, no problem.

And yes, it's been my experience that roosters can't bear disorder and bickering. They'll often try to put a stop to it. But a lot of feather picking is furtive, not creating much of a commotion.