Sweaters, while cute and funny, are actually dangerous. I've learned this the hard way through experience. First of all, a chicken needs to be able to reach their preening oil gland and the rest of their feathers to maintain feather quality. It is, after all, the only outfit they own.
But the danger is from the yarn and fuzz. The fuzz can get into the airway and choke the chicken. This happened to one of our BYC members in India when she used a sweater as bedding for a baby chick she had.
The chicken wearing the sweater will almost always hate it and try to get out of it. This happened to a hen of mine. She worked loose a strand of yard, pulled and pulled and managed to unravel the sweater, getting tangled up in it in the process. Yarn string wrapped around body parts of a chicken can result in horrible tragedy. Luckily, I have no life apart from doting on my chickens so I caught it before any harm came to my hen. She's featured, wearing the hated sweater, in my article on victims and bullies. https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/chicken-bully-chicken-victim-a-two-sided-issue.73923/
Your hen's body will replace her missing feathers. Feed her high quality protein a few times a week and that can encourage the feathers to grow in. Being a little chilly for the next few weeks won't harm her, and her body may just get the hint to hustle the growth of a new set of feathers.
But the danger is from the yarn and fuzz. The fuzz can get into the airway and choke the chicken. This happened to one of our BYC members in India when she used a sweater as bedding for a baby chick she had.
The chicken wearing the sweater will almost always hate it and try to get out of it. This happened to a hen of mine. She worked loose a strand of yard, pulled and pulled and managed to unravel the sweater, getting tangled up in it in the process. Yarn string wrapped around body parts of a chicken can result in horrible tragedy. Luckily, I have no life apart from doting on my chickens so I caught it before any harm came to my hen. She's featured, wearing the hated sweater, in my article on victims and bullies. https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/chicken-bully-chicken-victim-a-two-sided-issue.73923/
Your hen's body will replace her missing feathers. Feed her high quality protein a few times a week and that can encourage the feathers to grow in. Being a little chilly for the next few weeks won't harm her, and her body may just get the hint to hustle the growth of a new set of feathers.
