Help!!! Need Chicken Advice

[Eggcessive]

I see white specks on neck feathers as new feathers are growing in after a molt. Pictures can help us to determine if it is that or lice eggs. If there are lice eggs, you will see moving lice when you part the feathers. Most lice are located under the vent area while another type is found around the neck and under wings. Here is some info with pictures of lice and eggs:
https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/

 

[Champagnechickens]

So are oldest hens are over a year old now. I had noticed that on our Rhode Island Red (Lucky) had been getting skinny and having white specs all over her neck. Began doing research couldn’t find much about treating. I found out nothing. I know that the chicken hair has these things covered like eating the hair. I began to remove. She began to bleed. So my question is what do I do now. Am I supposed to remove this so called lice and have a hairless chicken. Please help.

So before I came on to ask people. I had pulled what I thought was lice. What am I suppposed to do will it grow back?

 

[Champagnechickens]

I see white specks on neck feathers as new feathers are growing in after a molt. Pictures can help us to determine if it is that or lice eggs. If there are lice eggs, you will see moving lice when you part the feathers. Most lice are located under the vent area while another type is found around the neck and under wings. Here is some info with pictures of lice and eggs:
https://the-chicken-chick.com/poultry-lice-and-mites-identification/

View attachment 1608667

I put a photo down below does that help?

 

[royal willow farm]

I have never seen that before

 

[rebrascora]

Oh dear, I had a feeling this was going to be a moulting chicken. Poor girl! Those are pin feathers which are new replacement feathers that grow in after the old ones drop out. The hen will preen off the hard outer casing when the feather is ready to be released. Moulting occurs annually in adult birds usually in the autumn/fall. It is uncomfortable and some birds take it quite hard. She will certainly not have appreciated you pulling out her new feathers, poor lass.

 

[royal willow farm]

is she laying any egg's? if she is she probably is molting and is it a boy or girl

 

[Champagnechickens]

Oh dear, I had a feeling this was going to be a moulting chicken. Poor girl! Those are pin feathers which are new replacement feathers that grow in after the old ones drop out. The hen will preen off the hard outer casing when the feather is ready to be released. Moulting occurs annually in adult birds usually in the autumn/fall. It is uncomfortable and some birds take it quite hard. She will certainly not have appreciated you pulling out her new feathers, poor lass.

So what do I do now that I pulled the feathers? Do I separate her? Can I cover the area somehow?

 

[azygous]

Yes, I agree with @rebrascora your chicken is molting. Probably the white specks you are concerned about is loose dander, which accompanies molting. It's like dandruff. It falls off the molting chickens and accumulates in drifts around the coop and run. It's harmless like dust.

Be very careful not to disturb those erupting pin feathers. They are also called blood feathers for a good reason. If one breaks off, the blood lacks the ability to coagulate and bleeding can be very hard to stop.

Any feathers you've pulled out will grow back. Don't worry about it.

 

[rebrascora]

If they have been plucked out, they should regrow I believe but if you have just broken them off then they will probably not regrow until next year.

 

[getaclue]

Like the others have said, just leave them alone. After they're a year old, usually towards the end of fall, they will lose their feathers, starting at the neck, and working down, throughout the body. Then they grow new feathers to replace the ones they lost. This is called molting. The new feather growth gives them the appearance of a porcupine. The feathers are covered in a protein coating. As the feathers grow, the coating dries up, and flakes off. Don't disturb the process. Usually they don't lay well, or at all during this time.