Please Help ...New to chickens and I don't know what to do!

[LittleHouseDreams]

Hi, I hope someone can help me, I have 3 BO hens that are about 7 months old and just started laying a few weeks ago. Now I have one hen who is picked bare underneath and a bit bloody and nasty and another hen is starting to look the same and the 3rd seems fine. They are not broody and I think the feathers are getting eaten as I do not see them in the hen house or the coop. They have plenty of room so I don't think it's because of cramped quarters and this just started in the last week. My question is how do I stop this and how do I treat the wounds? Do I bath her and if so with what? Also I am in northeast Ohio and it will be cold soon (15 degrees at night) and I am worried about my hen being out there with bare skin. Should I bring her in? Thank you thank you, thank you for any advice.

 

[PortageGirl]

Ok, lets see then, I may not know exactly what's best but someone here will surely have some advice, a little more info will be helpful though...

Underneath where? Butt? Vent? Chest?

What are you feeding them?

Have you seen them picking at each other? Or is it happening overnight?

OH!! And hello fellow Ohio-an!!

 

[vicegrip]

I would PM Silkiechicken or Wynette.


Good luck

 

[luvarabhorses]

Any chance of getting some pictures? Meanwhile keep a close eye on them and see if there is a featherpicker in your group.

 

[Ridgerunner]

I'm not an expert and certainly defer to others but has their environment changed lately or have you done anything different. For example, if you used quicklime instead of DE on your litter it would not be good. I'm not accusing, just searching for clues.

 

[Indiana hens]

Blood stop powder 1st. dust with poultry dust. Isolate in cage. Sounds like maybe dust mites( I have not ever had lice)but maybe lice. Allergy is possible. If dust mites I bathe them in 2 gallon warm water 1 cup of goat wash(permrethrins) 1/4 cup dish liquid. Air has to be warm enough to let them dry. Keep their head up out of the bath. Keep them clean.

 

[Lollipop]

Spray their bare spots with Blu Cote or smear it with Noxema face cream. That will stop the pecking .

Sounds like they are short on protien. What do you feed them A commercial layer ration with16 or more percent protien is best. To help with what they need, give them about 3-4 morsels of cheap catfood each, every day. These two steps should stop your problem.

Lots of folks seem to be having naked chicken breasts and bums this winter. Sounds like your hens are pecking the new growth trying to get more protien.

 

[LittleHouseDreams]

Thanks for your responses.

The bare areas are underneath between legs and around the vent.

I feed them layena and give them scratch but the scratch I have does not have sunflower seeds in it.

Do I need to wash them/clean up the bare spots before I spray Blu-coat?

Can I leave my bare hen out if the weather goes below freezing?

Thanks for any advice.

 

[PortageGirl]

sunflower seeds are very yummy to them, so yeah, they'll at least love it and they have good protein in them.

Did you look them over closely for mites etc? that sounds like a very good thing to check for, and yeah, she'll probably be ok if your coop is at least draft free, I don't think this cold snap is supposed to last too long.