Looking for Guidance on Restoring My Chickens’ Feathers

[FeatheredFamily6]

Hi everyone,

I’m looking for some guidance on how to help my chickens regrow their feathers.

Background:

About three months ago, I noticed severe pecking in my flock, primarily targeting the booty feathers. The most dominant hen was the main culprit, so I isolated her for a few days, and after reintegrating her, the pecking stopped. Since then, I have monitored them closely and haven’t seen any further feather picking.

However, I’ve noticed that some of my birds are still struggling to regrow feathers:
• Three birds have thinning feathers around their necks.
• One chicken has no feathers on her lower back.
• My biggest concern is Diamond—she has no feathers on her stomach, vent area, thighs, or legs, and she has a wound/bruise on her chest that I’ve been cleaning.

Additional Details:
• They are all about a year old.
• No visible mites or lice (I’ve checked thoroughly).
• They have a large coop and run, and we’re expanding it soon to accommodate six more chickens.
• I’ve been providing extra protein, herbs, and calcium to support feather regrowth.
• Sometimes at night, they seem a bit anxious when settling in.
• I took Diamond to the vet a month ago, and they didn’t find mites or lice but also didn’t offer much insight.

They are all eating and drinking, all have energy!

I’m wondering if this could be a late molt, stress-related, or something else. Since I’m not seeing any pin feathers coming in, I want to explore other potential causes before taking another trip to the vet.

I’d really appreciate any advice on what might be going on and how I can best support them. Thanks in advance!

(I’ve attached photos of the run, as we’re currently reconstructing the roof and expanding it.) - it’s been extremely windy these past few days so don’t mind the contraction plastic it’s been ripping off by the high winds.

Additionally if anyone has insight on how much I need to expand the chicken run to accommodate 6 more chickens that would be helpful!

I love my girls so much and I just want to make sure they are healthy and happy.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Yes, probably pecking. When an entire feather comes out the feather generally rows back fairly soon. But if just a tiny amount is left in there the feather will not grow back until the next molt. In Massachusetts that will probably be next fall. It doesn't matter what you feed them, the feather will not grow back until the molt.

As long as the pecking has stopped, I don't think there is anything you can do. As long as the pecking has stopped, they are not going to suffer. They just will not look as cute as they normally would.

 

[FeatheredFamily6]

Yes, probably pecking. When an entire feather comes out the feather generally rows back fairly soon. But if just a tiny amount is left in there the feather will not grow back until the next molt. In Massachusetts that will probably be next fall. It doesn't matter what you feed them, the feather will not grow back until the molt.

As long as the pecking has stopped, I don't think there is anything you can do. As long as the pecking has stopped, they are not going to suffer. They just will not look as cute as they normally would.

Okay, thank you!

 

[Seaslug]

In my experience, the hens pick at each other when they are roosting at night -- and having more than a single roost bar can make it easier for the hens to pick one another's feathers unless they are very far apart. I see my hens give the occasional peck to one another in the run when they are eating but it does not explain the occasional bare patches under the neck or near the tail, which I suspect comes from interactions in the coop.