Please Help!!

[Ms Fluffy]

Okay, so I am *very* new to chickens. My four ladies are suffering from my beginner-ness. And being a high schooler there really isn't much I can do during the day. Plus both my parents work.
Iowa winters can get pretty harsh and this winter my parents and I thought it would be best to bring my girls in for the winter. They stayed in our basement and kept at a temp. of 60-70 degrees. They all laid eggs happily. However, since it is now spring I've been bringing them outside and letting them get fresh air. I bring them in for the night because 1.) it gets very cold and 2.) my mom (who is a strong animal rights person) doesn't want them outside where other animals can get them. We live in the city and I have probably only seen two raccoons in the city during the 10 years ive lived here. Any way, onto the problem. . .

My orpington is the class bully, the other three ladies are losing feathers around their necks and their feathers are not soft anymore. They look like they are molting. But Ive been told the molting happens in the fall or late summer. My americana is the only one who lays eggs during this time, although they are very deformed. My Road island red looks like she has died and came back to life or that I found her in some pet cemetery and is a zombie chicken. My astrolorp is getting random bleeding around her legs from where I am assuming the girls have picked on her. also, my orpington is eating her feathers. And btw, my orpington looks great! she is not losing feathers at all.

They have been fed great quality chicken feed, meal worms, oyster shells, fresh greens, and given fresh water twice a day. The room they were staying in the basement had light, warmth, places for them to roost, and very big so space was not an issue. I just do not know what is going on with them. They all got along GREAT before. it was when I brought them into the basement and when spring began that problems began. These girls are spoiled, given the best food and shelter, given lots of snuggles. Any help would be advised. They are not sick, but my astralorp has these black bumps on her head that do not go away even with iodine. Plus my orpington picks on her so much especially around her comb that I have come to believe they are just wounds with dried up blood.

THis morning i did put my orpington in a separate cage outside where she can SEE the other girls but not touch them.

 

[Yay Chicks!]

Hi, and

Chickens actually do pretty well in the cold. Folks in the coldest parts of Alaska have chickens that are doing fine without supplemental heat. They definitely don't need temps of 60 to 70 degrees. And you shouldn't have to worry about the raccoons if they have a secure coop to roost in at night.

I don't know why you have bullying. Perhaps they are bored. I used to have one that would get picked on until I let them free range. They don't even free range all day. Just in the late afternoon or sometimes just an hour before dusk.

Do you have a secure coop outside? How about an outside run so that they can be outside when you are at school?

 

[Ms Fluffy]

yes they do have a good secure coop. Thank you for responding so quickly! Are there any chicken toys or something that can help with the boredom?

 

[3riverschick]

yes they do have a good secure coop. Thank you for responding so quickly! Are there any chicken toys or something that can help with the boredom?

Buy a small head of green cabbage. Drill a hole thru it and run a piece of cotton clothesline thru the hole at the top of the cabbage. Run the clothesline out the stem end of the cabbage thru a "fender washer" (or something like it) and tie a knot. The fender washer will keep the cabbage from sliding off the end of the rope. Position the head of cabbage so it is just above head level of the birds. So they have to stretch but not jump to peck at it. Hours of fun for the birds. Great exercise. Good nutrition. Satisfies the pecking thing so they don't peck on each other.

Also you can buy them a "Forage Cake". Excellent product. Your Mom will really like it because it is all natural. It is a supplement to their normal feed. Basically the birds get all the nutrients they would normally get outside from this "cake" It's just a wonderful idea . Bring the outside in to the birds. http://www.wildbirdsuets.com/foragecakes/
Best Success,
Karen in western PA. (finally...it's warm!!)

 

[Ms Fluffy]

Okay, I will try the toys. What about the bullying/pecking? Three out of four of my chickens are losing feathers on their necks and butts. My orpington isn't losing any at all. She picks them off the other girls and EATS them. (yes, I know) i've been adding extra protein in their diet.









These are pictures I took yesterday of my "going-naked-hens". My astrolorp has a bandage on her leg cause, as you can see, she is picked on so much that it is making her bleed.