Hens have so many feathers, and they can lose A LOT of them without it being obvious. They continue to slowly lose feathers then all of a sudden it starts to show and it looks really obvious, so we think it happens all in one day, when really it's been building up over weeks to months. I had one of my young turkey hens that squatted for the first time (as far as I know) for the tom right in front of me. After he got finished (he is a bit clumsy, being young) there were SO MANY feathers on the ground that if I hadn't seen all the action myself I would have thought there had been a predator attack. It was truly startling. That was 2 months ago. She is just now getting to the point where there is obvious feather loss, and I see them mating regularly. Feather loss in a hen that is limited to the saddle area, shoulders, and back of the neck/head is very typical of feather loss from breeding. If you also include front of the throat and/or front of the chest, that often happens in flocks where one of the hens is fighting with other hens often enough to cause feather loss.
You might consider getting a hen apron, also called a hen saddle, for your hen, as some hens can get so much feather loss that there's really no protection on the back anymore. Then they'll get scratches, then open wounds if it gets severe. And the sunburn can be quite uncomfortable. I love the hen aprons from Hensaver (
http://hensaver.org/). The products are some of the best quality I've ever seen, they really work, the customer service is great, the products are now made in the U.S. (there are a few items left over that were made abroad, but all new inventory is U.S. made), and it's a small company with a great background story. Most of the aprons that I use last 2-3 years, although I have one that's still fine after 4 years of continuous wear on the same hen (there are some girls that just take better care of their clothes than others). I use the single strap style with removable shoulder protection for the chickens (I like to be able to adjust its position if needed) and fixed shoulder protection for the turkeys (at almost 30 lbs, the toms are heavy enough to potentially pull the removable protectors off, but it's never been a problem with my 8-11 lb roosters). I have 24 chicken hens and 5 turkey hens, and I have Hensavers on 8 chicken hens. Two of the turkey hens will be getting them put on in a few days, when I have someone available to help at the right time of day. If you use them, don't be concerned about the gyrations you'll see during the first hour. It's like a kid wearing a turtle neck sweater for the first time, or a dog wearing an e-collar for the first time. Mine typically stop walking backwards or jumping after 30-60 minutes, and are 100% normal after a few hours. I did have one hen that just couldn't fly up to her perch in one, and luckily I only put it on her as a precaution, so I just removed it. None of my other hens have had any limitations whatsoever while wearing them. One hen seemed to walk crouched for a prolonged period of time. I checked it several times and couldn't find anything wrong with the fit, so I decided to give it a few more days. After the second day it poured rain all day, and all the hens got soaked. I usually just leave the aprons on -- they dry quickly. But this hen was miserable, so I took it off to dry overnight. When I put it back on in the morning she completely accepted it -- no more crouching as she walked. Despite my checking it, I must have had a feather caught in the Velcro or the elastic or something, so when I took it off and then put it back on her, the problem was instantly solved. And since this is the broody hen thread, it would probably be a good idea to take the apron off when a hen goes broody. It might weigh down the feathers on her back, so the chicks wouldn't stay warm while hitching a ride, or the chicks might get caught in the elastic when nuzzled under her wing.
Regarding your rooster not breeding in front of you, that might be a flock dominance issue. In a properly socialized flock, if there is more than one rooster the submissive rooster is not allowed to breed in front of the dominant rooster. If he tries, the dominant rooster will attack him. If the rooster considers you part of his flock, which is common in tame birds, then he might consider you the dominant flock leader, and would not want to breed a hen in front of you. I have actually read recommendations for taming mean roosters that included not letting the rooster breed hens in front of you, and rushing over and pushing him off the hen if he tries, since that is what the dominant flock member would do. Maybe your boy is being respectful of your leadership -- or maybe he's just shy.
Is your hen still laying eggs? If she is, then theoretically she's not molting, as hens should stop laying when they molt.
