Molting or social problem in the flock?

[morefam]

I’m new to the whole chicken thing. We acquired 4 hens and a rooster in late May. Recently I noticed the butt of a hen picked at. That same hen now has plucking signs at the upper wing/shoulder. What is causing this? Is this a social thing?

 

[WalnutTree]

Can you send a photo of her whole body?

 

[aart]

Could be 'rooster wear' on the back, back of neck and shoulders.
Some birds have brittle feathers that break easily when the male mounts them.
Or she may be being 'over-mated'.
How old are these birds?

Would also be good to know how big your coop and run are.
Dimensions and pics help immensely.

Oh, and..... Welcome to BYC! @morefam
Where in this world are you located?
Climate, and time of year, is almost always a factor.
Please add your general geographical location to your profile.
It's easy to do, and then it's always there!

 

[morefam]

Can you send a photo of her whole body?

I took these this morning. She now has a red spot on her chest. They’ve all lived together for over a year. Nothing new has happened. What’s happening to my hen?

 

[WalnutTree]

That's a hard one. Seeing as they're about 3 months old, as you said, it's likely she's molting.
As @ArizonaDesertChicks said

I just found some great information online and it does like like pullets have 3 partial molts before becoming an adult and one of them is between 12 & 16 weeks.

https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...eason-for-losing-feathers.119855/post-1417588

 

[aart]

Seeing as they're about 3 months old

Didn't see that, but this.....

They’ve all lived together for over a year.

If she just over a year or so, it's probably a molt.
But the feathers look very odd.
Do you have pics of what they looked like when you got them in May?

 

[morefam]

Can you send a photo of her whole body?

I took these this morning. She now has a red spot on her chest.
View attachment 2271897

That's a hard one. Seeing as they're about 3 months old, as you said, it's likely she's molting.
As @ArizonaDesertChicks said https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...eason-for-losing-feathers.119855/post-1417588

Didn't see that, but this.....

If she just over a year or so, it's probably a molt.
But the feathers look very odd.
Do you have pics of what they looked like when you got them in May?

 

[morefam]

This particular hen is somewhere around 4. The new chicks have NOT been integrated yet. Our coup is a 6x10x10. We also have a 5x10x6 dog run we’ll be adding on when the new chicks move in. She’s the only one with feather loss.