Feathers not coming back after molt

[FarmTownGirls]

This girl started molting 3 months ago. In the last 2 weeks she seems to have stopped growing any new feathers. Any suggestions on how to help her get her feathers back?

 

[ChickenCanoe]

What have they been fed the last few months?

http://extension.msstate.edu/conten...te level of methionine,them from its own body.

 

[FarmTownGirls]

What have they been fed the last few months?

http://extension.msstate.edu/content/causes-poor-feathering#:~:text=An adequate level of methionine,them from its own body.

Layer crumbles primarily. Some fruits/vegetable & occasionally hen scratch.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Thanks for the link, Canoe. I had not seen that one.

@FarmTownGirls if you are feeding the fruits/veggies, and scratch moderately that should not be the problem, provided the layer crumbles have methionine added. Most commercial feeds do, you can find it on the label as an ingredient, probably around 0.5%. I don't always trust "organic" or some specialty feeds to have essential ingredients like that added. Since it is crumbles and not a mix of whole grains you should be OK. Check the label. The label should look something like this.

Have you wormed her while she was molting? If you used a wormer with fenbendazole as an active ingredient in it, commonly sold as Safeguard, that can cause the feathers to grow back weird, usually curly.

Have you checked for parasites, specifically mites or lice? Those can sometimes cause feathering problems. Another possible cause is feather picking. Sometimes a hen will pluck feathers to eat them, especially the pin feathers as the feathers are starting to grow back. I don't think that's it but I try to mention everything I can think of.