Help! 2 of my chickens are bald!

[erinq118]

I would greatly appreciate any insight: 2 or my flock of 6 Reds are bald and have been all Summer. I initially thought it was just molting (which I looked up on here) but it's been a long time (like 4 months). They are just now starting to get tiny, tiny new feathers in a miniature Mohawk, but for the most part they're bare head and neck with red skin. Could this be something other than normal molting? Oh, it's not aggression from the other chickens. They continue to lay and behave normally, they're just unpleasant looking. Thank you for any suggestions!

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Hi @erinq118 Welcome To BYC

Can you post some photos of them?
How much space do you have - coop/run square footage?
What type of food/treats do you feed?
How old are they?

Over-preening due to mites/lice, nutritional/vitamin deficiency and feather picking/plucking are some of the more common reasons for feather loss.

We look forward to seeing your photos

 

[abraga]

Do you have a roo with them?

 

[erinq118]

My coop is 4'x 5' (not including nesting boxes) and my run is 9'x 9'. I have 6 girls, no roos. They get Dumore complete crumble and cracked corn and I put Rooster Booster in their water (vitamins and electrolytes). I also give them kitchen scraps. As I initially thought this was just molting, I try to give them lots of extra protein from the kitchen. Their favorite is oatmeal and any kind of meat. Oh, they're about a year old (give or take). Thanks!

 

[abraga]

That looks like feather plucking. Evidently u have a hen or two that is plucking the others. thier diet seems pretty good. It's probly a boredom/hieracael thing. Do u let them out to graze on the grass?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

It looks like feather picking to me.

Do all of them have trimmed beaks or just the 2 that have the feather loss?

If your layer feed is 16%, then increase your protein with eggs, meat or tuna or switch to a higher protein feed. Make your treats (especially corn, scratch, oatmeal, etc.) no more than around 5% of their daily intake. For higher protein feeds you can give more treats (up to 10% of their daily intake).

Picking can be due to boredom or lack of protein/vitamins, etc. Hang a cabbage, apples or bundle of greens for them to pick at.
Watch how your girls interact during roosting - this is when a lot of picking can occur - adding another roosting bar can sometimes help.

Also look at the 2-3hens that most likely have the best looking feathers - the most pristine hens would be the dominants - one or all of them is likely the feather picking culprit.

If possible, at some point down the road - you may want to increase your run and space. At 9X9 you have 13sq.ft. per bird, but more is better - even with a LOT of space they can get quite cranky.

 

[csaylorchickens]

And don't forget greens. My chickens were plucking feathers and they have tons of protein they had tons of room and I added a cabbage to their diet once a week and they stopped picking. Greens are an important part of their diet also the Cabbage probably helps with boredom it's fun to slowly pick at it