Newbie - Pecking or Vent Gleet or Mites?

[BettyDavis]

We are newbies and received our RTL, 2 in June and 6 more last September. We were getting 5-8 eggs a day up until a few weeks ago and then down 2-4 day the last week. The girls were getting along well but noticed a bit of scruffiness and signs of pecking on the backs of neck. It’s been very cold and a lot of snow this winter. Recently changed out the bedding in coop and the run is sand floor. 3 hens have completely bare backsides on either side of the vents down. Not sure what to make of this and how to tell if it’s boredom or a health issue? Witnessed one of the older hens pulling the feathers out of these 3 pretty often. Photos not pretty but maybe help.

 

[azygous]

Since you witnessed one hen picking at the others, you could assume you have a feather picker and she's shaving these others. The uneven pattern of baldness does look like picking is going on.

If this one hen that you suspect is the picker has an unblemished butt, you have more evidence she's a feather picker. The easiest, quickest way to curb this behavior is with pinless peepers, a device that fits onto a chicken's beak to interrupt forward vision to make it less likely she can acquire a target.

We need to know your general location for background info.

 

[BettyDavis]

Thanks! Would it be general boredom she started feather picking? Location is Central Ontario, Canada.

 

[azygous]

We can't, as a rule, know for certain what is behind feather picking. We understand that it has many possible causes from diet to space issues to individual cognitive quirks.

Since you live where it's winter, and winters are sometimes challenging, your flock may indeed be suffering from boredom if they are cooped up a lot. It can't hurt to address that by either finding a way to let them out as often as possible or increase their run space.

As mentioned, pinless peepers are one of the more effective methods to control the picking. There are dietary things you can try such as increasing the protein in the feed the chickens eat. And another is something we've recently started trying - CBD for our feather picking flocks. You're lucky to have cannabis use legal where you live. You might decide to give it a try. Here's the thread I recently made that discusses this. https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...lly-found-a-cure-for-feather-picking.1651769/ I've had moderate luck with this in my flock.

 

[MIchickenlady]

I vote feather picking. I have treated a hen with vent gleet and also have a feather picker who is on the verge of finding a new home
Your pics look like feather picking to me...I am going straight to the article about CBD for feather picking to read it tho!
Hope that helps

 

[BettyDavis]

We can't, as a rule, know for certain what is behind feather picking. We understand that it has many possible causes from diet to space issues to individual cognitive quirks.

Since you live where it's winter, and winters are sometimes challenging, your flock may indeed be suffering from boredom if they are cooped up a lot. It can't hurt to address that by either finding a way to let them out as often as possible or increase their run space.

As mentioned, pinless peepers are one of the more effective methods to control the picking. There are dietary things you can try such as increasing the protein in the feed the chickens eat. And another is something we've recently started trying - CBD for our feather picking flocks. You're lucky to have cannabis use legal where you live. You might decide to give it a try. Here's the thread I recently made that discusses this. https://www.backyardchickens.com/th...lly-found-a-cure-for-feather-picking.1651769/ I've had moderate luck with this in my flock.

Great advice, thank you again! Actually have some CBD stored in the freezer.