hens not laying

[kbmtcastle]

Hi- I have four hens and am getting 1-2 eggs a day and about 9 a week. They just turned 1. I have one hen that looks great. big and full, nice feathers.etc. Im pretty sure she is my consistent layer. another one looks great but is a little smaller. My 3rd hen is big in fat but has this bald spot on her back by her tail where she just cant seem to fill her feathers back in.
Number 4 looks awful. samllest hen. has struggled with molting. looked like her feathers were coming back but in the last week she has lost a lot. big patches on her back and her legs are pretty bald. she kind of seems crazy. runs around a lot. Not very social with the other girls. I let them out in the yard and she is always by her self.
They are eating well and always have food and fresh water.

any thoughts????
thanks

 

[chicklover16]

If you have a moulting hen she won't lay, so from three laying birds one or two eggs a day is average. As for the moulting hen being flighty, my hens have always been flighty when they are mouling and they always mellow out when the moult is over. hope this was helpfull.

 

[GardenState38]

You say she isn't social with the others--are they picking on her? Is she at the bottom of the pecking order? If so, she may not be getting a sufficient amount of feed, if the others are bullying her away from the feeder. This could explain why she is having so much trouble with her moult-she isn't getting enough protein to grow feathers. If so, maybe put out more than one feeder, so she has a greater chance of access to feed?

 

[kbmtcastle]

good idea! thanks