Help red butts

[Friendlychicken777]

Im new to byc 3 of 4 chickens have red butts. I believe it's chickens doing this.
How do I stop this? The one that doesn't have red butt,i have separated.

 

[Debbie292d]

Hi, and welcome to BYC!

Feather picking can be caused by many things but the two most common reasons for it are overcrowding and lack of protein.

Chickens should have 4 square feet per bird in their coop, and 15 square feet in their run if they're not free-rangers.

As for protein, most layer feed is 16%, which is on the low end. If you don't have them on an all-flock, I'd change to that anyway as the extra protein (usually 20%) will help them grow their feathers back better. It's lower calcium though so a side dish of oyster shell should be put out for them.

 

[Mrs. K]

Once it gets started, it can be a bad habit. Pin less peepers might be a solution for a couple of weeks while your protein build up.

Mrs K