How much cold can a bald chicken take?

[MaeM]

So I have a chicken with a bald back and shoulders. The cold weather is coming and she isn't growing her feathers back. I don't know what's wrong with her. She lost some of her feathers because she was the rooster's favorite, I separated her, and she ended up losing all the rest.

This happened a few months ago. I think she should've grown them back by now. But she doesn't. Should I put a saddle on her? I've seen in another hen that her saddle kind of interfered with her feathers growth, so I don't know if this is the best idea, but she's going to be cold, isn't she?

 

[Crazy Maizie]

If the feather loss is on the back where the rooster would be, most likely she's a favorite and would need a saddle.
Can you post some pics of her feather loss? Do you see pin feathers (new growth)?
Have you checked for lice and mites?
How many hens does the rooster have?
How cold will it be? What are your avg temps?
It gets below zero here and I've had chickens molt in the dead of winter. I don't provide any heat. They have always made it through the winter fine.

 

[RoyalChick]

So I have a chicken with a bald back and shoulders. The cold weather is coming and she isn't growing her feathers back. I don't know what's wrong with her. She lost some of her feathers because she was the rooster's favorite, I separated her, and she ended up losing all the rest.

This happened a few months ago. I think she should've grown them back by now. But she doesn't. Should I put a saddle on her? I've seen in another hen that her saddle kind of interfered with her feathers growth, so I don't know if this is the best idea, but she's going to be cold, isn't she?

I don’t know what you consider cold as I don’t know where you are.
My Dotty went into a hard molt in January just as we got very cold temperatures at night. We have had multiple nights at around 8 degrees F (-13C) and a few at 4F (-15.5C).
I was nervous as hell about her and had her spend the night in the garage if it was going to be below the teens in F (below -11C).
I suspect I was being overly cautious but she is almost naked!
She stood out in the sleet the other day and went to bed sopping wet. It went down to 20F (-7C) and she was fine.
I am not an expert. Just sharing my experience this winter.

 

[MaeM]

If the feather loss is on the back where the rooster would be, most likely she's a favorite and would need a saddle.
Can you post some pics of her feather loss? Do you see pin feathers (new growth)?
Have you checked for lice and mites?
How many hens does the rooster have?
How cold will it be? What are your avg temps?
It gets below zero here and I've had chickens molt in the dead of winter. I don't provide any heat. They have always made it through the winter fine.

Yes, I think the rooster may have triggered the feather loss in the back, but what about the tail and the shoulders?

The thing is that she already had a saddle, I removed it when I saw that she was getting even balder with it. I have a ratio of 6:1, it's not that bad, and definitely, the rooster didn't leave her like this. He is not even aggressive and does not mount the hens when they don't want to.

I don't see lice and mites, and she dust bathes every day. And I don't see enough pin feathers - I have another hen who lost feathers due to a wound and she had tons of new feather growth in a week.

This hen's feathers simply don't grow more than what you see in the picture, even when I kept separated from the rooster, I didn't see any progress. And she is not being bullied either - she is almost at the top of the pecking order.

I've just found out that she is broody, but I don't think she was broody when this started... How much time can a hen stay broody if you remove her eggs?

Now that you share your experiences with the winter, I think she will be fine in the cold... Here, the temps very rarely go below zero. But I'd still like to know why she doesn't grow feathers.

 

[Crazy Maizie]

Thats not from molting. I'm wondering if it is from the saddle rubbing her? Maybe it was too small?

 

[ThinMintTheChicken]

Yes, I think the rooster may have triggered the feather loss in the back, but what about the tail and the shoulders?

The thing is that she already had a saddle, I removed it when I saw that she was getting even balder with it. I have a ratio of 6:1, it's not that bad, and definitely, the rooster didn't leave her like this. He is not even aggressive and does not mount the hens when they don't want to.

I don't see lice and mites, and she dust bathes every day. And I don't see enough pin feathers - I have another hen who lost feathers due to a wound and she had tons of new feather growth in a week.

This hen's feathers simply don't grow more than what you see in the picture, even when I kept separated from the rooster, I didn't see any progress. And she is not being bullied either - she is almost at the top of the pecking order.

I've just found out that she is broody, but I don't think she was broody when this started... How much time can a hen stay broody if you remove her eggs?


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Now that you share your experiences with the winter, I think she will be fine in the cold... Here, the temps very rarely go below zero. But I'd still like to know why she doesn't grow feathers.

That looks like a roosters doing. Our hens were roughed up a bit a couple years back and their backs looked EXACTLY like that because of the roosters. We ended up blu-koteing them because the other hens were picking at their backs and the roosters would dig in with their talons. I don't think that they grew their feathers back until they molted so they were bald alllll summer. Could you make the saddle bigger? If it seems like its making things worse you may have to adjust it.

Edit: Their shoulders were bald too, and same thing no lice or mites so it's probably a rowdy rooster

 

[MaeM]

Thats not from molting. I'm wondering if it is from the saddle rubbing her? Maybe it was too small?

Well, it wasn't that bad until I put a saddle on her. Maybe it is small, I don't really know how to calculate that. It fits well on her back and even moves a bit with the wind (near the tail). So how do I know if it's small? Could the fabric be involved in this, too? The saddle is handmade because I can't buy it online.

 

[Crazy Maizie]

Well, it wasn't that bad until I put a saddle on her. Maybe it is small, I don't really know how to calculate that. It fits well on her back and even moves a bit with the wind (near the tail). So how do I know if it's small? Could the fabric be involved in this, too? The saddle is handmade because I can't buy it online.

I've never used one.
What fabric did you use? I've seen them on etsy and I bet there are online patterns and directions for measuring.

@Weeg have you made a saddle for a hen? Or maybe you know someone here on BYC who has or knows how to measure for a hen?

 

[GregnLety]

I'd try feeding her some purina feather fixer. Every couple of months we'll buy a bag and mix it with their regular feed and rarely have feather issues. I'd definitely try isolating her from the rooster unless your hoping to hatch eggs from her.

 

[Weeg]

I've never used one.
What fabric did you use? I've seen them on etsy and I bet there are online patterns and directions for measuring.

@Weeg have you made a saddle for a hen? Or maybe you know someone here on BYC who has or knows how to measure for a hen?

I agree that does look like its from the saddle especially because of the rubbing on the shoulders. Sometimes even well fitting saddles can rub, especially if her back was already bare. Saddles work best when there are some feathers to sit on since that keeps them elevated.
I haven't made any saddles, but @OneMountainAcres sells them.
Are you using a flannel or outdoor type fabric? When I've tried to make my own saddles in the past, sometimes I put fleece or felt on the inside for hens who I was concerned about rubbing. Maybe you could try that?
Honestly, I'd probably just keep it off. Its easier for them to preen without them etc. If you're worried about chilling through you could probably try the fleece. My saddles never stayed on, so I'd love to hear how it worked.
Thanks for the tag @Crazy Maizie.