Hen not recovering from spring molt

[jldschickens]

My black orpington went into a hard molt March/April timeframe and still has only a few new feathers. Her wings look bare in spots, her neck is completely bare, but she has new feathers on her backend and some below her head, on her back. She is doing great, however, she just looks awful. Eating, drinking, talking, very mobile, laying has slowed down, but still normal. Any suggestions what this could be and how to treat? She's the only one, all the other girls molted and look great now.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

My black orpington went into a hard molt March/April timeframe and still has only a few new feathers. Her wings look bare in spots, her neck is completely bare, but she has new feathers on her backend and some below her head, on her back. She is doing great, however, she just looks awful. Eating, drinking, talking, very mobile, laying has slowed down, but still normal. Any suggestions what this could be and how to treat? She's the only one, all the other girls molted and look great now.

Please post some photos.

Do you have a rooster?
Have you looked for lice/mites?
Where are you located in the world?

Observe and see if you have another hen (or two) that are plucking her as pin feathers emerge - she may be getting plucked...

 

[jldschickens]

Please post some photos.

Do you have a rooster?
Have you looked for lice/mites?
Where are you located in the world?

Observe and see if you have another hen (or two) that are plucking her as pin feathers emerge - she may be getting plucked...

Thanks for the response! No rooster. I have watched the others, they aren't plucking her. No mites or lice that I can tell. We are in Colorado, 6500 ft elevation. In the ten years I've had chickens, I've never seen this! I'll post some pictures tomorrow.

 

[jldschickens]

I'm sorry, but I can't get the pictures to post here, I'll keep trying. I cleaned and sprayed the coop and dusted her (Black Orp) and my Lavender Orp, but I found no evidence of lice or mites while I was doing that. The Black Orp's belly is bare, she has new feathers behind her neck, but her wings are bare in spots, and her tail feathers are almost brittle. Her neck is bare, not even pin feathers, and the area above her vent is bare, although it appears to have a few pin feathers there The only other hen that seems affected is the Lavender Orp, but it's just her neck and above her vent.