Molting Sucks!

[JP33]

My new black sex link "Betty" gave me three very large eggs then shut down on me! I started seeing a few feathers here and there, nothing really out of the ordinary but then...

Feathers everywhere!

Coop full!

All from Betty and she's looking pretty scary, have to say.

She apparently is an older bird, my others aren't picking at her so that's good, but man, I really miss those extra jumbo eggs of hers, dang it!

I hope she grows them back before winter.

Any of yours start molting yet?


...JP

 

[chicmom]

JP, if I understand the molting process, six of my hens should start molting soon.........I dread that.....I like my hens to be pretty. And of course I love those eggs!

I think, they should molt when they reach their second autumn season.......have you heard that?

 

[gryeyes]

As far as I know, none of my chickens have gone through a molt (or is that moult?) yet. HOWEVER, there are feathers EVERYWHERE. From EVERYBODY. It's like they have all contributed some, but nobody's got patches missing, or anything like that. I'm dreading the first molt. (Just checked the dictionary, moult is a version of molt. Both are correct.)

Anyway... do chickens really lose like that much of their feathers for it to be noticable? Do I have that to "look forward to?" Ick. I have been hoping that it's a gradual thing, some feathers here and there, but not enough to make 'em look ratty.

See, I'm still a newbie, with only 11 months of experience in keeping chickens.

 

[chicmom]

Quote:
I'm with you--ick! I sure hope my chickens don't get bald patches.....I think some molt fast (with the baldness), and others do it more slowly.....maybe yours are molting the gradual way. I saw some hens at an auction and they were half naked, UGLY birds! I was so shocked and they said they were molting.....that was when I was first into chickens, and I though that they were abused or something......

What will my neighbors think, when they see my hens free ranging and they're partially BALD! Oh, how I hope that doesn't happen!

 

[Lotsapaints]

Greyeyes yours are still young? They don't do a "hard" moult until next fall on your babies hatched this spring and your best layers get naked all at once and start now through November...I could never figure why they lost their feathers when it was cold poor babies just feed them more protein making feathers is harder than making eggs.....

 

[JP33]

Quote:
I haven't been through this before as I got my first chickens this past November & December, but that's what I'm hearing, the second season, is when the ugliness begins.

...JP

 

[mdbokc]

Try picking up one that is molting badly. Yuck!!!! They feel all rough compared to that soft, gentle, featherly feeling. And mine don't like to be picked up either. It seems to be uncomfortable for them.

 

[chick4chix]

I just saw this thread after I started another one asking about behavior changes. My girls are in a molt and there are feathers EVERYWHERE!! It looks like someone had a pillow fight in their coop and run. The EE's are getting the worst of it, and have stopped laying- the Wyandottes still look like themselves- but their production has gone down to an egg every 3rd or 4th day if I'm lucky- although I am seeing a few of their feathers they aren't bald like the poor EE's. One lost her whole tail in one day- my grandson (3 yrs old) didn't want to even look at her- he said "you're ugly" and then my granddaughter (5 yrs old) informed him it would hurt her feelings, and not to say that- ha. Now that they are in the middle of it- I just hope it doesn't last too long.

 

[gritsar]

Quote:
Sounds like a molt to me, or what we sometimes call a mini-molt. My chickens first adult molt, around 9 months old, wasn't bad compared to their second adult molt, which is going on right now.
I have two hens that are continuing to lay through their molt - last time it was one hen. They say if you have a hen with that trait, you should breed her, as it's desirable. Problem is, I don't know which two are doing it. They are being really sneaky about visiting the nestboxes.
ETA: Correction - this is their third molt, counting the 9 month old one. They also molted at 18 months. They are 29 months old now.

 

[JP33]

Quote:
Man, I picked up Betty today, she plum hated that yeah! She said "Put me the cluck down!"

...JP