Hen Losing Feathers in A Couple Spots - What to Do?

[Rutus]

Our family has taken the plunge into the world of chickens, with the purchase of 4 hens (each about 5 months old); 3 RIRs and a RIR/Buff Orpington cross. So far, they appear to be adapting well to their new home and chicken tractor, and they appear to be getting along well. We have had them for 1 week.

The one thing I am concerned about is that one of the RIRs has a few spots where there are feathers being pecked or chewed/snipped away. The spots are on pretty much the same location on the L and R sides, on the wings. I have not been able to observe either that bird, or any of the others, doing this – but something is definitely going on, and there are a lot of feathers on the ground.

I have tried to do some research online (here and at other chicken sites) but have not found anything that appears to discuss this exact problem, what is causing it, and what to do about it. It does not appear to be pecking by the other birds.... but who knows? I don't have a camera on them for surveillance.

We are a family of novice chicken owners and want to keep on top of the situation and correct whatever is going on – assuming it is something we can/should be correcting. That bird is starting to look pretty mangy!

Thanks for any advice – and I am sure the bird thanks you, too!

 

[Camelot Farms]

I'm thinking that it is the other girls picking on her. If she were ill and losing feathers, there would just be a bare spot not broken or chewed spots.

Any way that you can isolate her for a few days to see if she loses any more if she is alone?

Then, if not you will know that she is being picked on and you can reestablish her closer to the top of the pecking order.

 

[Rutus]

Yes, we have built an extension (a new wing, so to speak) for the tractor an could isolate her there. Also, I will try to get a photo of the damaged spots and post that, which might help.

Thanks for your feedback!

 

[Pathfinders]

Are any of your birds male? If so, it's possible the cock bird may be damaging feathers when he breeds the females.

If there are no males, then you probably are dealing with feather picking (where birds pick out the feathers of another bird and eat them.)

What sort of feed are you feeding them? Does it contain only vegetable protein, or is there animal protein?

I am a strong advocate that chickens need animal protein in their diets, and if they don't get it in their feed, they'll find it elsewhere (picking feathers or even killing and eating each other.) If your feed has only vegetable proteins (soy and so on), you can supplement it with small amounts of animal protein.

Depending on your sensibilities, you can use good old fashioned dry cat food to do this (which is what we do here.) I feed my large fowl flock of about 50+ birds two cups of dry cat food every other day or so, scattering it in their yard. They love it! Or, you can always cook up some ground beef and feed it to your birds, about a tablespoon per bird every other day or so.

Where do you keep your birds? Do they have access to the outdoors, with bugs to eat and dirt to scratch in? There are micronutrients in the dirt that are important to chickens too. But I think if there's no cock bird causing the damage during breeding, then you're dealing with a protein issue.

Best of luck with it.

 

[Rutus]

No cocks in the group and no mating action, at least none that I have seen!

The birds are on an organic laying mix, I will check but am pretty sure it is vegetable protein only. We've been feeding scraps and veggies, etc. as well but nothing really with animal protein. So perhaps that is it. Although, if they were eating the feathers for protein, would the feathers still be left lying all over the ground? It sure looks like a lot of them are still there (on the ground), more or less intact. And it is only happening to one bird, as far as I can tell.

Space may possibly be an issue. During the day the birds are generally in the portable run that is part of the tractor. That has about 20 SF for them, i.e., 4 SF/bird, which I had thought would be adequate but now I am not so sure. The addition we are putting on the tractor will give an extra 12 SF for them. They looked a little crowded in the current space, which does allow access to grass, dirt, etc.

 

[Imp]

Rutus,

Here's a link that might help. Good Luck

Imp

http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/lvstk2/mf2308.pdf

 

[Pathfinders]

Imp, that's a great link, thanks for posting it! And you're right, what may be going on is just an early molter.

That being said, birds will feather pick when they are too crowded and/or bored. And 4 SQFT per bird is really not at all enough. Good thing you're working on an extension.

I appreciate the desire to feed organic/vegetable proteins, just haven't found it practical in my experience. Chickens are omnivores, and I found once I switch to a food with animal protein that any feather picking stopped.

Best of luck with them.

 

[Rutus]

Thanks for all the input. Imp, I did read that article and it was helpful. The birds have their tractor extension in place and are, I think, enjoying the extra room. We are going to work on making sure they get some animal protein on a steady basis. The birds definitely enjoyed the bits of leftover London broil steak I fed them earlier today.

Iam wondering about the early molt possibility. The hen in question seems to look kind of "fluffy" all over, from the neck down, and overall seems to have feathering that is less tightly packed and layered than the others. So maybe this is an early molt? These birds came from a suburban area on the other side of Puget Sound and we are now over on a (salt)waterfront property, such that the days are probably a bit cooler, and the nights perhaps more so, than where they had been.

I have to say that despite the feather issue, the birds have been a lot of fun to watch and to try to get to know. My 14 year old daughters love them, and even my wife (who was skeptical initially) has shown a lot of enthusiasm for the project, and I think she likes the birds more than she would admit . . .