Hens losing their feathers on fluff

[jbecker]

Hello,
My husband and I have two hens, a Buff Cochin and a Black Lace Rock that have lost big patches of feathers on the fluff or rearend. They also have a problem with their droppings clinging to the remaining feathers. We clean it off but it just accumulates again. Anyone know what would cause this and what we should do to remedy the problem? Thanks

 

[Imp]

Quote:
First off

Could the feather loss be due to moulting?
As for the poopy butt, I have one hen that always has that problem. Don't know why. You could try trimming the feathers around the vent. I have added a link to pix of louse eggs in feathers in case that is an issue.
If you really think it is a health issue, you need to add more info. Like How old? What they eat? How's the poop?. I think there is a sticky at the top of the page with a list of ?s

Good luck,

Imp

http://ohioline.osu.edu/vme-fact/0018.html