- Jun 17, 2012
- 19
- 0
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Hello,
I've had my flock for about a year, and got my BO hen from the builder who sold me my coop. He didn't confirm her age, but I'm thinking she was at least a year old when I got her last June. She molted last fall, from October - December, and started laying again sometime during the winter. Although she is at the bottom of the pecking order of my 4 birds, she's been doing fine and I haven't had any cause for concern.
Recently I noticed a bare patch in her outer primary wing feathers, and have been finding loose feathers in the coop. She seems to still be laying, but today I noticed even more loose feathers on her underside, and decided to separate her in a smaller pen. I've searched the BYC forums, and checked her vent and underside for mites, but the skin looks healthy. Attached are a few pics of what appear to be new wing and body quills coming in (the black stuff in the last photo is just dirt), but I was hoping for some input from veteran members to confirm whether she is just going through a summer molt, or if I need to treat her for parasites?
If this is a molt,1) does it normally happen during summer (we've had excessive rain in the northeast for the last month, so heat isn't an issue), and 2) would multiple birds molt at the same time? My EE, who only began laying last November at 6 months old, stopped laying 2 weeks ago, and only has a small patch on her belly missing. Thoughts?
Thanks for any advice!
I've had my flock for about a year, and got my BO hen from the builder who sold me my coop. He didn't confirm her age, but I'm thinking she was at least a year old when I got her last June. She molted last fall, from October - December, and started laying again sometime during the winter. Although she is at the bottom of the pecking order of my 4 birds, she's been doing fine and I haven't had any cause for concern.
Recently I noticed a bare patch in her outer primary wing feathers, and have been finding loose feathers in the coop. She seems to still be laying, but today I noticed even more loose feathers on her underside, and decided to separate her in a smaller pen. I've searched the BYC forums, and checked her vent and underside for mites, but the skin looks healthy. Attached are a few pics of what appear to be new wing and body quills coming in (the black stuff in the last photo is just dirt), but I was hoping for some input from veteran members to confirm whether she is just going through a summer molt, or if I need to treat her for parasites?
If this is a molt,1) does it normally happen during summer (we've had excessive rain in the northeast for the last month, so heat isn't an issue), and 2) would multiple birds molt at the same time? My EE, who only began laying last November at 6 months old, stopped laying 2 weeks ago, and only has a small patch on her belly missing. Thoughts?
Thanks for any advice!
