Molting in dead of winter help!!

[Chickychicky123]

I have 1 chicken molting currently, it’s the dead of winter. She is half bald and shivering. What do I do for her?! I don’t want her to suffer?

We have a mildly insulated and adequately ventilated coop. Our run is roofed and currently wrapped in plastic to keep out snow and some wind. They are normally free range except for really horrible weather days I keep them inside. We do not add lighting and we do not supplement heat.

We live in Wisconsin and we will not hit above 30 this week with lows in the negatives. This is my first year keeping chickens and I wasn’t expecting any molting. I had one molt in November (hatched in February) and one is molting now (hatched in April). The other 10 that were hatched in June are fully feathered and still laying.

 

[azygous]

I guarantee she isn't suffering as much as you think she is. She is probably losing body heat at a faster rate than normal, so giving her access to more carbs will help. It will also help to give her an infusion of animal protein a few times a week. This would include canned mackerel or tuna or a high protein feed such as Feather Fixer.

I have some extremely old hens (12-13 years) and they are very uncomfortable when it's below freezing. I hang a heat lamp in the run during the day for them to stand under and get some warm rays. They take full advantage of it.

 

[Mrs. K]

It sounds heartless, but the best thing you can do is leave her be. Anything new will stress her. She should regrow feathers faster with the cold weather, or at least in my experience. And may be a bit cranky for a bit.

But really letting her do what she wants, is best. If she is active, alert, eating and getting around well, let her be.

Mrs K

 

[Alaskan]

Increase her nutrition if you can... I like freezer burnt salmon.. scrambled eggs are also a great choice.

Make sure she is on a high protein feed (18 or 20% is good)

You have her out of wind, which is great.

I think Wisconsin is far enough south that you have 10 hours or more of sunlight???? If not, a light so that she has enough hours a day to eat would also help... chickens don't eat in the dark.

As long as you are hitting in the 20s F in the day ... I think she should be fine...

If you aren't even getting that warm, and she is half naked... I might cave and provide a bit of heat... maybe a heating pad in a nest box (if she would sleep there), or just have her sleep in a not too warm spot in the house every night.. (but my house runs cold, I have a back room at 40F that would be perfect).

But heat lamps give me the willies... I once had one up, a cold gust of wind circled around me as I opened the door, hit the bulb and made it shatter.

 

[Alaskan]

It was called Erythromycin, it came as a powder that I had to add to water.

View attachment 2524568
I also took a quick picture of the hen so you can see what I'm talking about. I'm sorry about the blurryness, Mildred apparently doesn't like to have her picture taken. As you can see, she's missing the feathers around her neck and the upper part of her back right now. The feathers around her head already came in.

I added more shavings to the coop today and I'm playing with the idea to put up a heating lamp above the place on the roost the chicken is using in the picture. I don't want her to be hot, but I'm thinking maybe she'd feel better if there was a place with temperatures slightly above freezing temperatures.

Since her chest feathers still look good... I think she is probably fine...

 

[Alaskan]

Any heat source can cause a fire. I would be leery of a heat source under wood chips!

I agree that any heat source can cause a fire...... but I do think the heating pads, especially the ones made for pets, are pretty safe.

I have never had a broken bit on any of my heating pads... and I have never had a spot that made enough heat to be a fire risk.

I think with heating pads the biggest fire risk is if you bend them, and at the plugs.

I duct tape my plugs to keep dust from creeping in.

 

[Ilovemychicks08]

All 3 of my chickens are molting. And I live in Wisconsin. They seem to be doing fine with snow and negative weather. And I have no extra heating.

 

[Happy hen lover]

I have one in molt. She looks a mess, feathers in every nook and cranny in run! I just make sure she gets her share of protein treats ( she's lowest in coop order)

 

[aart]

She started loosing feathers around her head and neck first and new feathers are also already coming in.

Did she lose other feathers too or just around the neck?
Chickens molt and grow a new set of feathers 2-3 times before around 6 months of age, those are called the juvenile molts.
Some pullets will have a partial molt their first fall/winter.
Most birds will have their first full adult molt their second fall/winter.

 

[hannah and the chickens]

I have 4 of 6 moltings right now in the coldest temperatures we have seen in Michigan this winter! Of course, it's their first molt and they are getting frostbitten combs
I am working on making sure their coop isn't letting out moisture, completely unsure if I should shut the coop door. Small coop life ugh. They seem to be fine aside from the combs all of them are RIR hybreds. Got em from a feed store if that says anything for ya lol

I was taught to keep moisture out of the chicken coop as much as possible because chickens are able to tolerate cold and dry air conditions better than high moisture. So as long as the chickens aren’t exposed to direct airflow, try leaving a door or window open.
Putting vaseline on the combs is supposed to prevent frostbite (it has to be water-free Vaseline though)