is this mites or a molt?

[sydney13]

about 1 month ago my silkie started to lose some of her chest feathers and i thought it was a molt. now she has a big bald patch on her chest and im getting a little worried. could this be a molt or does it sound like a parasite? i know that when they molt they loose the wing feathers and stop laying but she recently started laying her first eggs and i dont think she has lost any wing feathers.
this was pic a few weeks ago but now she is even more bald

i gave her a bath one day and noticed underneath her feathers look like this

she had scaly leg mite a few months ago and for about a month i was putting vetrx on her feet each night. some of the scales are still risen up and i was wondering if she could still have the scaly leg mites or if those scales will always stay up?

 

[Year of the Rooster]

Has she been broody at some point? If she was, then she would've plucked them herself. Feathers take about 6 weeks to grow back.

 

[dawg53]

Looks like mites to me.

 

[CMV]

That looks like a broody patch to me. I see no evidence of lice. Mites would not be readily visible without closely checking the bird's body completely after dark. She has new feathers emerging, so I wouldn't worry about it. Mite damage is usually more widespread, not just reserved to one area. That's why I suspect she has pulled her own feathers out in an attempt to brood. Silkies are well known for being broody.

 

[dawg53]

CMV. Is their skin dark in color too, looking peppered as well? My first thought was broody as well, but after a closer look with my magnifying glass...it could be dirt...but the OP said she had given the silkie a bath. Maybe mite poop or eggs?

 

[Year of the Rooster]

Quote:
I think that would depend on whether or not the OP actually used shampoo or just rinsed/dipped them in water.

 

[sgtmom52]

Quote:
Silkies have black skin.

It looks like a broody patch to me too. Those are new feathers growing in that picture.

 

[dawg53]

OK thanks sgtmom, I didnt know, I've never even seen a silkie in real life lol. But it does look peppered, maybe OP didnt rinse, oh well.

 

[sydney13]

those little dots in the feathers are just the dirt from a dust bath she took right before the bath. like you said i didn't rinse well or use shampoo so the bath only seemed to make the dirt burry into the feathers and it stayed like that for a while. she hasn't been broody yet but she does try to cover her eggs with hay so maybe she also tries to cover them with feathers, although i haven't noticed feathers in her nest.