Not an emergency. 3 of 6 hens seem to be pecking out their own back feathers?

[Onnie1776]

I have had my hens now for over a year and they have been really healthy - knock on wood. For about a month or so now, I have noticed that 3 out of the 6 hens are missing back feathers above their tail. At first I was afraid the other chickens were pecking at them, but as I watch them it really seems they are doing this to themselves.

I feed them Country Feeds Layer 16% Feed and supplement them with fruits and veggies. I also put nutridrench in their water. I add grit and oyster shells to their feed. I think they have a really healthy diet.

They have a fenced in yard that is about 400 sq ft. Right now it is just lawn, but i plan to add some plants to spice things up.

They have two coops - one little one and one big one that are open at all times except at night when i lock them in the big coop. They even have a chicken playground that they never play on.

I have cleaned out the coop regularly and put diatomaceous earth in with the shavings in case it was a mite or lice of some sort.

Nothing seems to be helping and the 3 keep pecking away at their back feathers. What can be wrong?

 

[HoopyFrood]

I'm afraid I don't have experience with this, but it's great to ask they community.

Can you provide pictures? That would probably help others diagnose. I'm following to see what we can learn.

The DE may help keep parasites like lice and mites at bay, but those feathers are not common targets of those things as far as I know - limited understanding!

But that is where the uropygial gland is... I wonder if that has something to do with it?

 

[rebrascora]

I would not mix grit and oyster shells with their feed. You are diluting the nutrient content of their feed by doing so. If they are filling up with grit and oyster shell, they do not have as much room for food. Those items are best offered in separate little dishes or even scattered on the ground so that birds can get them when they need it rather than trying to force them to eat it in their feed. Only very small quantities are needed. What does your layer feed look like? Is it a pellet or crumble or a grain mix. If it is the latter, a dietary imbalance can occur where the birds selectively eat their favourite components of the feed, usually the high carbohydrate grains and corn and leave the pulses and lentils that are higher in protein. They sometimes bill their feed out of the feeder onto the ground to enable them to find and eat their favourite bits and sometimes rats come in overnight and clear up the other stuff..... creating two problems, a dietary imbalance which can lead to all sorts of health problems, some even potentially fatal, and a rodent infestation.
If your feed is a pellet or crumble then it may just be the grit and oyster shell being mixed into it that is causing the problem or it could still be a lice or mite issue. Excessive preening due to irritation will cause feather damage/loss. I assume you don't have a rooster as that would suggest it was mating damage.

 

[Onnie1776]

Thanks for getting back to me. I took a picture of one of the girls' back so you can see what I am talking about. I have been putting Blue Kote on the raw areas, so that is why she has a lovely blue sheen

I will remove the oyster shells from their feed. I give them pellets. They used to be on the crumble but they wasted it a lot so I moved them to pellets, which they seem to like.

I feed them fresh fruit regularly and they appear to be a healthy weight. The thing that gets me about this is that it is only 3 of the 6 have this issue and like I said, they are doing it to themselves.

I had a rooster, but my dog got him

 

[sourland]

Was the feather pecking a problem when you were feeding the crumbles ? Any chance that the crumbles had a higher % protein ?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Can you post a video of their actions?

Are you seeing them physically pulling out the feathers or are they preening? What are they doing with the feathers they pick out-eating them or are they falling to the ground? There is an oil gland at the base of the tail on their back, chickens will appear to be "picking" at that area sometimes, but are actually getting a bit of oil on the beak to apply to their feathers.

If you had a rooster previously, some of feather loss could be due to mating. Broken and rubbed off feathers from mating usually will not grow back until a hen molts since the feather shaft is still intact in the skin.

 

[lazy gardener]

Do a thorough inspection of birds AND COOP for mites and lice. First, do a google search for "poultry mites and lice" and read up on the subject for identification, and treatment. If you do have an issue, DE will do absolutely NOTHING to take care of the issue. You might even consider treating them with permethrin to see if that solves the problem, though my preference is to not treat anything unless a treatable problem is FIRST identified.

Also, if you can put your general location in your profile, that will help immensely in giving advice specific to your geographical area.

 

[Onnie1776]

Was the feather pecking a problem when you were feeding the crumbles ? Any chance that the crumbles had a higher % protein ?

Same issue. The pellets and the crumbles were the same.
Country Feeds Layer 16% Feed Pellet

 

[Onnie1776]

Do a thorough inspection of birds AND COOP for mites and lice. First, do a google search for "poultry mites and lice" and read up on the subject for identification, and treatment. If you do have an issue, DE will do absolutely NOTHING to take care of the issue. You might even consider treating them with permethrin to see if that solves the problem, though my preference is to not treat anything unless a treatable problem is FIRST identified.

Also, if you can put your general location in your profile, that will help immensely in giving advice specific to your geographical area.

At first I thought it was mites or lice of some sort. I went out in the dark with a really bright flashlight and looked at the hens up close but found nothing. It seems I can only really get up close and personal when it is sleep time!

The strange thing is that only 3 of the 6 hens are pulling feathers. The other 3 don't do it at all. I figured if it was a mite or lice they would all be infected.

I have looked through the coop and found nothing. I clean it regularly too. I am in New Paltz New York, which is the southern part of NY. Thanks for trying to help me out!

 

[lazy gardener]

There are microscopic feather shaft mites. That's why I suggested that you treat them even though you don't see any mites. There has to be some irritant that is causing them to feather pick, and mites/lice don't always infect the whole flock.