molting hen....

[barkerfarm]

We have a molting hen that I have had to remove from the rest of the flock due to the fact that she is being pecked to the point of bleeding..... what can we do? we have 19 hens and haven't had this problem before.

Thank you

 

[TigerLilly]

Keep her separated until she's heeled (take care of her wounds) then try to re-introduce her to the flock. Are you sure she didn't have any wounds from something else to begin with that would've attracted the other chickens & caused them to start pecking at her?

 

[barkerfarm]

no she didn't have any other wounds at first but did notice blood from being pecked. She is VERY happy being on her own... she is getting her feathers back nicely!

 

[Trishkabob]

we have a SLW that we had to separate when a (former) rooster pecked her. She also loved being alone (to rest) and was reintroduced well after the rooster departed (we have only 3 and let them out to range at the same time and she decided to go hang out with them at her own speed). She continues to go her own way more than she used to but seems happy.
Actually, though, she is the one molting now and we are concerned because she seems much more skittish than usual. She is isolating herself more and her feet look weird (and in a chicken, that is saying something): there is redness between her toes that I never saw before, almost like they are raw. Is this part of the normal stress they go through when molting? She is a year and a half old and this is a more extreme molt than she had last year. We are giving her a bit more protein (tuna) and lots of BOSS....