Picked on Chick needs help!

[jcwaterside]

I have 10 assorted hens, between the ages of 14 to 10 wks. Lately, one of the older EE chicks started missing feathers on her back, just above her tail feahers. No blood, but there is a patch about the size of a quarter. I think she is being picked on, but can't find the one who is doing it. Also, how do I treat the picked on hen? Thanks in advance for your help!

 

[Percheron chick]

It's not uncommon to see this kind of missing feathers at this stage. It's probably a case of needing more protein in the diet for who ever is doing the picking. Once a chick picks a feather and there's blood, it just keeps going. Switch them over to a bag of game bird starter or throw out a few handfuls of dry cat kibble for them to scratch at until they quit. (maybe a week) You can also take some Blue Koat and paint her where they are picking the feathers. Covering up the red is a deterrent.

Back off on the treats for now as most are very low in protein.

 

[jcwaterside]

Thank you so much! I may need to switch them to the next level of feed. I still have them on start and grow. Whst do you think?

 

[Percheron chick]

The starter is typically 18% protein and the "next" one, the layer drops down to 16%. Game bird is 22%. Cat food is 35%+. I wouldn't want them on the layer yet for both the low protein and high calcium.

I had that same problem when I started feeding too much winter squash to get rid of it. Added the game bird plus some cat food to get them to stop feather picking.

 

[jcwaterside]

Great! I'm on it! Have a great day