Feathers look tattered, feel rough, breaking easily

[FunnyBunny89]

I have tried looking this up but I can't narrow it down. My hens and my roosters (especially the roos) are progressively getting rougher and rougher. Their feathers are almost crunchy feeling in some spots. I dealt with lice through winter and again in Spring, but they're all gone now and I built a large wood ash and dirt dust bath for the chickens, which they use religiously. They otherwise seem healthy, energetic and eating. Their combs are all normal looking.

I have looked for evidence of mites and can't find any. I check at night, I've tried different intervals through the night to see if it made any difference, but I cannot find any evidence of mites at all. I read that feather mites are microscopic so maybe that's my problem, but the coop has been cleaned and treated more than once, and I use sand floors that have DE mixed in to prevent bugs and it seems to work.

I noticed this trend started when I started to let them all free range. Is it possible they are nutrient deficient? Laying has only very recently slowed down, and it looks like some hens are molting. But there are feathers everywhere and I can't tell if it's just molting or feather loss from something bad.

Some hens look better than others, but nobody feels soft anymore. I have juveniles who are all still soft and pretty and seem unaffected.

Also, I've been feeding my chickens Bar Ale All Flock crumbles for over a year now, so I don't think it's the food, but they don't eat as much of it since I started letting them free range so that's why I'm wondering if it's a nutrient deficiency.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Looks like normal wear and tear of feathers.

If you are not finding lice/mites, everyone is happy, active, eating/drinking then I wouldn't worry about it.

 

[Perris]

I have looked for evidence of mites and can't find any.

There is a whole ecosystem living in and on the feathers, most of it microscopic and most of it inconsequential, just as there are countless normally unproblematic microbes on human skin and hair.

Is it possible they are nutrient deficient?

Grown feathers are dead; nutrition really matters when they are growing them, so during moult. They are then stuck with whatever grew until they grow replacements in the next moult. In between, the feathers suffer wear and tear which is not caused and cannot be fixed by any change in diet.

If you want the details, see Jenni and Winkler The biology of moult in birds 2020.

 

[Mrs. K]

I too, just think they are old feathers. They start looking tattered and ill kept as time passes on. Then they go into molt, and some look like they are dying - or partied hard all night and walking home with tufts sticking out.

Then they get their new feathers and looks like brand new dresses for Easter!

 

[FunnyBunny89]

Okay, thank you all for the replies! I guess I just have to learn the aging process for chickens then. I've only been at it for a year and a few months now and I got all of my starters as chicks, so this is their first year too. I tend to overthink, and I'm always trying to keep my pets in tip top shape.

I will check out Jenni and Winkler! Thank you again