molt questions (our first real molt)

[sals_chicks]

Hi All, I am in my second fall with my OG hens, and most of them went through some form of a molt, but a couple of them went through a HARD molt.

From what I observed, it was a textbook hard molt for both these girls with all the usual signs... pin feathers came in, and slowly they have feathered back out, the whole ordeal has been about 8 weeks so far... They ARE eating/drinking/scratching, and I am doing all the right things... But their combs are still SO pale, and they are still isolating quite a bit and standing around kinda droopy still from time to time.

Is this normal to still be happening? Things I've read here say to watch for signs of illness during the molt, but how can I tell what is normal molt and what is illness?

 

[sourland]

If they are eating, drinking, and otherwise acting normal , they are doing fine. Pale combs are due to reduced hormonal levels and 'droopiness' is part of the recovery their bodies are going through.

 

[Mrs. K]

I agree, the first molt I thought they were dying. But if eating, active, they are fine. They won’t redden until after the solstice, about February for me, it depend on day length.

 

[Possum-Pie]

Last fall/winter was our flock's first molt. We are in Pennsylvania and it started early Oct. and seemed to last forever. Some heavy loss of feathers, some you could hardly tell. Zero eggs from 4 hens from Oct. to Christmas day when our buff Orpington gave us a present of an egg. I threw out some crushed oyster shells occasionally for calcium but they didn't eat much of it. This year we had the same thing, plus some stress of 4 new 2-year-old hens we adopted, so I don't expect many eggs again...

 

[Mrs. K]

I am quite surprised, but I have a BA that started laying again after a molt! and we have not even reached the solstice.

But the crazy girl likes to lay on the floor, not in a nest!