My chickens have about stopped eating, I'm really woried.

[infinitijeff]

I live in SC and the temperature is hanging around 50 degrees. The food is fresh. I feed laying pellets and cracked corn mixture inside the house. They are molting. I know that I need to extend the run to add more hens.

 

[SycolinWoodsChickens]

I'm pretty new to chickens too but the other posters are right. A rooster should not be keeping hens from food. My roo was a jerk but he did find food for the girls and wait to make sure they had enough to eat. He terrorized them in the morning so we had to set up extra feeders in the duck pen so they could eat in the morning. We sent the roo to freezer camp for attacking us and our egg production has gone up slightly since he's been gone (only this weekend but we are getting a few more eggs a day).

Also, if they are moulting they will not lay - at least that what I have read - and I plan to start a second flock so that when my current flock moults I will continue to get eggs. And if you aren't supplementing with light during the winter your egg production will go down.

IMHO, if they ate better with him out of the coop then I'd consider isolating him until he matures or getting more hens to distract him or get rid of him.

 

[ChickensAreSweet]

Quote:
Make sure you don't give so much cracked corn that you dilute your protein out and affect your egglaying (eggs are protein). Corn is usually only about 7% protein, and layer pellets are usually around 16% protein.

 

[Organics North]

Quote:
Make sure you don't give so much cracked corn that you dilute your protein out and affect your egglaying (eggs are protein). Corn is usually only about 7% protein, and layer pellets are usually around 16% protein.

Yep that corn will do nothing to help them through a molt. It is just candy. I am thinking it is just molt, my birds eat way less and act real shy and funny when in molt... Key is feed them what they need to make new feathers.. Feathers are protein...

Feed high protein treats...

ON

 

[Judy]

Quote:
This sounds like they are overstressed when he is with them. No way a roo should prevent his ladies from eating; on the contrary, he should be standing back and letting them eat first, guarding them. That is not a good roo in my book.