Fluffy Tailfeathers

[Temere]

Hello,
I have one hen that has had fluffy back feathers for maybe a month now. I routinely check her for lice and the q-tip looking egg bundles, but I haven't seen anything of the sort. The feather shafts look normal and my other birds are fine. She does seem a bit smaller/lighter weight than the other birds, but acting and laying normal otherwise. Is it molt (they haven’t molted in the six months since inheriting them)? Do I need to be concerned? Should I take any precautions? Similar forums seem to be inconclusive as well.

 

[Chicken_Obsesser]

@azygous

 

[azygous]

What you're seeing with those back feathers is a form of feather picking. Pull up a comfortable chair this afternoon and observe your chickens as they loaf and relax. You will see them perhaps engage in a group dirt bath. This is a very social activity, and chickens make a lot of mutual body contact during it.

This is very complex so there's a lot to wrap your brain around. Chickens use their beaks a lot as a communication instrument. They will peck another chicken on the head as a sign of recognition of a brooder mate or as a sign of punishment and disapproval depending on the level of impact and pain it produces. During dirt bathing, they use their beaks to communicate socially and to bond, sort of like when we greet another person with a light hug or handshake.

Just as a human can overstep boundaries during a greeting, so can a chicken. This is when you will see one of your chickens go up to this hen with the ruined feathers and rake their beak across her back. The effect of this is to destroy the cohesiveness of those feathers, turning them into a frizzled mat.

What to do about it? That's a problem because we don't really know why some chickens do this. I have a theory that some chickens are neuro-divergent and experience a higher level of sensory perception and subsequent overload, causing them to act out like this. I've found that pinless peepers can reduce sensory overload, decreasing such aggression. I've also seen fair results in giving the flock decarboxilated cannabis leaves to eat. The CBD compounds can relax anxieties, decreasing aggression. But there really is no 100% fix. And of course you need to live somewhere cannabis is legal.

 

[Temere]

What you're seeing with those back feathers is a form of feather picking. Pull up a comfortable chair this afternoon and observe your chickens as they loaf and relax. You will see them perhaps engage in a group dirt bath. This is a very social activity, and chickens make a lot of mutual body contact during it.

This is very complex so there's a lot to wrap your brain around. Chickens use their beaks a lot as a communication instrument. They will peck another chicken on the head as a sign of recognition of a brooder mate or as a sign of punishment and disapproval depending on the level of impact and pain it produces. During dirt bathing, they use their beaks to communicate socially and to bond, sort of like when we greet another person with a light hug or handshake.

Just as a human can overstep boundaries during a greeting, so can a chicken. This is when you will see one of your chickens go up to this hen with the ruined feathers and rake their beak across her back. The effect of this is to destroy the cohesiveness of those feathers, turning them into a frizzled mat.

What to do about it? That's a problem because we don't really know why some chickens do this. I have a theory that some chickens are neuro-divergent and experience a higher level of sensory perception and subsequent overload, causing them to act out like this. I've found that pinless peepers can reduce sensory overload, decreasing such aggression. I've also seen fair results in giving the flock decarboxilated cannabis leaves to eat. The CBD compounds can relax anxieties, decreasing aggression. But there really is no 100% fix. And of course you need to live somewhere cannabis is legal.

This was really helpful. Now that you mention it, they have been taking a lot more dust baths as of late so that makes sense to me. I have peepers and CBD oil so I will give that a try. Thank you!