One chicken losing feathers, but still laying regularly.

[Bawkinghen]

I have an EE about 14 months old who I have noticed is losing feathers on the base of her tail (where it meets her back) and all under her neck. Her neck looks quite bare, actually. She is the only one and she's still laying just fine, which tells me she's not molting and I don't think she has any mites or anything buggy. We did close off a rafter up in the coop that she had been sleeping on all alone for most of her life and now she is forced to sleep with the other hens. We would have let her roost there, but it is right over their waterer, which is covered, but is not fun to unlid when it has a big pile of poo on it. Could she just be the outcast and nobody wants her to sleep next to them so they bully her? I've never seen anyone bother her during daylight hours, so if she was being bullied, it would have to be at night or something. Any thoughts of advice?

 

[Odelia]

My sisters chicken was the same age last year. She had several large bald patches on her belly last spring and just kept on laying. My sister treated her for mites. Cleaned out the coop and treated it as well. She didn't grow new feather all summer, or even in the fall. It hit winter and then she stopped laying and finished her molt. They don't always follow the recommended schedule.

 

[Bawkinghen]

Oh...so it could just be regular old molting then? I always thought that made them stop laying. I hope that's all it is...