My Easter Eggers are Losing Neck Feathers

[WhitWhit1017]

Hey there! So a little about my flock before I ask my question so you can get a little bit of an idea of why I think this is a bit odd.

So I am somewhat of a beginner in the backyard chicken raising world. I got my chickens through my local 4-H Chick Chain (I'm 17 btw) and have had them for a little over a year now. Everything has been going pretty well no major problems or issues. They are all happy healthy laying hens until this afternoon when I went outside and discovered that the majority of my Easter Eggers are missing their infamous feather balls that grow under their beaks. Closer examination revealed that they are missing neck feathers right under their beaks as well. The weird thing is that its just my Easter Eggers; my Buffs and Dominiquers are perfectly normal. Could it be mites or something else? How can I fix the problem?

 

[Eggcessive]

Are they close to molting age for the first time which can be around 16-18 months old? It can be very common for EE's to lose their muffs due to feather picking by other chickens. Just make sure they are getting enough protein in their layer or all flock feed. 16% to 20% is the usual amount. They need to have enough room, to get outside daily, and not have lights on more than 12 hours daily. I have many bearded chickens and about 1/4 of them get pecked by buddies on the roost.

 

[WhitWhit1017]

Are they close to molting age for the first time which can be around 16-18 months old? It can be very common for EE's to lose their muffs due to feather picking by other chickens. Just make sure they are getting enough protein in their layer or all flock feed. 16% to 20% is the usual amount. They need to have enough room, to get outside daily, and not have lights on more than 12 hours daily. I have many bearded chickens and about 1/4 of them get pecked by buddies on the roost.

They could be close to molting but I figured since my flock is all the same age they would all start together (I could be wrong like I said I'm not the chicken expert, I'm learning new things every day). As for them getting picked on I figured that I would have noticed it sooner since they've been together since day one. The amount of space might be an issue since they can't free range due to the fact that we have several bird dogs who stay outside. I'll have to look into the protein; as of right now I am feeding them Dumor Layer Crumbles which contains (Crude Protein (min.) 16.00%, Lysine (min.) .70%, Methionine (min.) .35%, Crude Fat (min.) 2.50%, Crude Fiber (max.) 7.00%, Calcium (Ca) (min.) 3.80%, Calcium (Ca) (max.) 4.80%, Phosphorus (P) (min.) .50%, Salt (NaCl) (min.) .25%, Salt (NaCl) (max.) .75%, Ruminant meat and bone meal free.) Is there something else that you would suggest me trying or adding in?

 

[DamnChickenz]

I'm having the same problem. Its also just my easter eggers. My rirs are perfectly fine. Also its not all of my easter eggers just 2/5