Molting

[Karen in East Texas]

Everything I've read about chickens molting, and from previous experience, they molt usually late summer or early fall. It is only June and my girls and their rooster are dropping feathers now. Is this something I should be concerned about?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Sometimes they do drop a few. Their feathers are getting older by now and are getting worn from daily activities, like dust bathing, mating, sitting in nests, and even roosting can rub off feathers.

 

[PennyM]

What about 16 week old chickens? I've been finding quite a few feathers lying around but my girls don't look ratty or anything.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

What about 16 week old chickens? I've been finding quite a few feathers lying around but my girls don't look ratty or anything.

Yours are probably going through their last baby molt which last until 5-7 months. Once they get their adult feathers they won't molt usually until the next fall after they are over a year old.

 

[PennyM]

Thanks, oldhenlikesdogs!

 

[aart]

Everything I've read about chickens molting, and from previous experience, they molt usually late summer or early fall. It is only June and my girls and their rooster are dropping feathers now. Is this something I should be concerned about?

Welcome to BYC!
How old are these birds?
Anything unusual and/or traumatic happen to the birds lately?

 

[Karen in East Texas]

Welcome to BYC!
How old are these birds?
Anything unusual and/or traumatic happen to the birds lately?

My hens are a little over a year old. The rooster I'm not sure of other than he appears to be young. He might be a year. He is a game fowl that showed up here one day in May and decided to stay. Until he came I didn't have a rooster. I guess he could be considered unusual for the hens. Also the first of spring was really warm, then it cooled down quite a bit, and now is very warm.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

A rooster will break and wear feathers off of hens when he mates. A vigorous rooster can get some hens pretty bald.