Missing feathers on RIR

[adkhunter1590]

Hi everyone. I'm wondering if anyone can tell me why only 1 of my RIR hens is missing some feathers along her back. More and more feathers seem to disappear over time. My only thought is that the white leghorn rooster we have is abusing her. He was a new addition to the flock along with 2 white leghorn hens about a month and a half ago. We lost one of the white hens already so now the roo mostly hangs out with his lone white hen. He chases my other 7 RIR hens around until our black roo (breed unknown) chased him off.

Are white leghorns usually a spooky breed? Neither one of them like to be near people. Or the rest of the flock much.

Here's a couple pics. First 2 are of the hen in question missing feathers.

And here's a couple more of the rest of the flock enjoying a wintry mix day

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[chicklover 1998]

it is either from a roo or she is going through a little molt, a chicken saddle can help, leghorns are a spooky breed, and she is a red sexlink not a RIR

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

That looks like mating damage. You might give the roos toenails and spurs a trim to help prevent that wear and tear.

My Leghorns weren't flighty, in fact, I'd describe as overly affectionate, but I'm pretty sure that isn't the norm for them as a breed. With treats and time, they'll probably come around.

Good luck

 

[adkhunter1590]

Thank you. Your right she is a red sex link!! That is my bad. I meant to write red sex link. I had RIR on the brain I guess. But a few of my other hens are RIRs lol. Sorry about that!


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[adkhunter1590]

That looks like mating damage. You might give the roos toenails and spurs a trim to help prevent that wear and tear.

My Leghorns weren't flighty, in fact, I'd describe as overly affectionate, but I'm pretty sure that isn't the norm for them as a breed. With treats and time, they'll probably come around.

Good luck

Thanks for the tip! I figured it was due to mating inflicted damage. The white leghorn roo that I'm pretty sure is doing the damage is most likely going to be culled from the flock here any day now. He is beyond flighty. Get within 25 feet of him and off he goes. The times you are able to get up close he can get aggressive towards you. I mostly just hate watching him chase the hens around the yard all day until our big black roo has enough and runs him off.


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[donrae]

She's not being abused by a rooster, but it is mating damage.

Some hens are simply prone to more brittle feathers. You might try boosting the protein in the feed you use, see if that helps.

 

[Taterrtots]

Help! I have a hen who is missing feathers mainly on her back but also some on her bottom. A few months ago we had an aggressive Roo and I figured this was just mating "damage". They still haven't grown back and now she seems to be picking at it. Is there something I can put on it to help? How do I know if it's something besides mating "damage"? If I need to put "something" on it, should I separate her from the rest of the flock? We have 15 other laying hens and I don't think I could pick out her eggs, and if I did are they still edible after putting "something" on her? If not, what's the wait time? I notice she does some regular dusting in the yard and was hoping that would help. Any/all advice/tips/suggestions would be great. We're still on a big learning curve here. I do prefer to keep things as natural as possible. I have taken some pictures of her below. TYIA

 

[two j farm]

You need a hen saddle for your hen. You can make them or buy them online. Just look up hen saddle or hen apron. They really work!

 

[Taterrtots]

Thanks. I looked them up, they're pretty cute.I might try to make one. Do you think the missing feathers are from the Rooster we had? How can I tell if it's something else? I was concerned about mites but don't see any bugs on her.

 

[two j farm]

My hens looked like that it could be from the rooster or the other hens maybe pecking her. You can dust her for mites it won't hurt even if she doesn't have them. I dust mine every 3 or 4 mouths