No molt yet but new feathers?

[MountainMomma359]

Hope I'm in the right place. New chicken mom as of this year. I only have 4 girls, 3 from chick age and one I got as an adult. The oldest, Momma, I was told is 1.5 - 2 years old so I would think she should molt this year. She came to me with lots of missing feathers on her neck and back due to a rooster. She is now growing lots of new feathers in those areas but I had just assumed she would do a full molt first, then grow all new feathers at once. Is this normal, or is she maybe a bit younger than he thought?

 

[Yardmom]

This is normal. Chickens molt at different rates. Some loose/grow a feather here and there over a month. Sometimes not every feather molts. Often it is hardly noticeable, but then it may appear that the bird has all new feathers. Others look pretty silly for a couple weeks while every feather falls out and regrows. I think the growing of feathers on the bald spots is a lot more noticeable than the spots regrown under old feathers.