Illinois...

[Faraday40]

OK, This may sound like a very strange question, but is there any way I can encourage a hen to molt?

My faithful Tillie started laying Sept 2018 and has laid an egg daily - all but 2 days in 15 months! She looks like a big hot mess with ratty feathers. Her shells are getting thinner too. I feel that the hen just needs a good break to care for herself.

 

[Mosey2003]

Oddly enough, I was just reading old posts by Robert Blosl and read one about forcing a molt.

One person said 24 hours of light a day and feed them 30% protein food. Another said pull feed for five days and keep them in the dark?

Anyway, there are methods to force a molt. The egg companies do it, I know.

 

[Mosey2003]

Here's a thread with a good post by RidgeRunner:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/forced-molting.1205837

 

[homeschoolin momma]

I have heard putting them in the dark and that worked for Phoenix. I would also think pulling their food would also cause enough stress to induce a molt.

 

[Molpet]

OK, This may sound like a very strange question, but is there any way I can encourage a hen to molt?

My faithful Tillie started laying Sept 2018 and has laid an egg daily - all but 2 days in 15 months! She looks like a big hot mess with ratty feathers. Her shells are getting thinner too. I feel that the hen just needs a good break to care for herself.

I have heard the dark and no food method. But I would not want to do that the beginning of the winter. Unless she became a house chicken

 

[cavemanrich]

OK, This may sound like a very strange question, but is there any way I can encourage a hen to molt?

My faithful Tillie started laying Sept 2018 and has laid an egg daily - all but 2 days in 15 months! She looks like a big hot mess with ratty feathers. Her shells are getting thinner too. I feel that the hen just needs a good break to care for herself.

But I would not want to do that the beginning of the winter. Unless she became a house chicken

Have to go with Molpet's thinking on the molt.

 

[Faraday40]

I always seem have a few hens molting in Dec/Jan, but you're right that it's not ideal to make her molt now. I don't like the idea of causing stress by messing with food/water to encourage molt. The reason I asked is because poor Tillie looks like she's probably in some stress from all the egg laying. She really should take some time off for her body to recover. It's been about 460 days since her 1st egg & she only missed 2 days in all that time!!

 

[homeschoolin momma]

I would try putting her in your garage for a spell. Its pretty dark in there. Let her have food and water as to not cause too much stress. If theres another hen who could use a makeover that gets along with her, she could go for companionship.

 

[Faraday40]

Oh & speaking of house chicken, that little chick is still in the house. (almost 7 weeks old now) She's truly afraid of EVERYTHING - especially other chickens. She identifies herself as a human and wants nothing to do with other chickens. I'm debating putting her in a birdcage in my son's room for a while. Perhaps my next broody hen can adopt her when she hatches chicks (Of course that's not happening anytime soon.)

 

[homeschoolin momma]

I would try putting her in your garage for a spell. Its pretty dark in there. Let her have food and water as to not cause too much stress. If theres another hen who could use a makeover that gets along with her, she could go for companionship.