After going through a year of dealing with a feather picker intent on removing feathers from exactly that particular spot at the base of the back, I feel qualified to diagnose your "missing feathers problem" as being done by a feather picker, not a rooster mating.
You most probably have one culprit. Look for the hen, and it's usually a hen, who still has intact back feathers. Then observe her interacting with the others. You will probably see her liberate a feather as the victim conveniently places her back in close proximity to the feather picker's beak. In the case of my feather picker, an EE named Flo, she was so fixated on shaving feathers that she would run around in a frenzy pursuing her passion. Originally I thought Flo had a nutritional imbalance, but it turned out to be purely mental. She was wired that way, and the problem began about the time she was beginning to lay.
For the longest time I believed Flo would never be cured. I tried many tactics, but putting pinless peepers on her finally curtailed her behavior.
I thought Flo was destined to wear the peepers permanently, but after a year, I took them off her, and she's not picked another feather. I guess the peepers helped to "re-wire" her brain.
If, as Flo was, your hen is precious to you, it's worth trying to reform her rather than culling her. But it will take patience and time. The peepers are uncomfortable at first, but the chicken gets used to them. But the beak holes remain tender and touching the peepers does cause discomfort. Also, the peepers make it hard for the hen to compete for food, and navigating things like the flaps on the pop hole becomes a challenge. It's not something that's going to make life any easier for the hen who has to wear them. And then sometimes they don't accomplish what you'd hoped.
But this is what you have, no doubt in my mind. Look for the one still sporting perfect back feathers.
You most probably have one culprit. Look for the hen, and it's usually a hen, who still has intact back feathers. Then observe her interacting with the others. You will probably see her liberate a feather as the victim conveniently places her back in close proximity to the feather picker's beak. In the case of my feather picker, an EE named Flo, she was so fixated on shaving feathers that she would run around in a frenzy pursuing her passion. Originally I thought Flo had a nutritional imbalance, but it turned out to be purely mental. She was wired that way, and the problem began about the time she was beginning to lay.
For the longest time I believed Flo would never be cured. I tried many tactics, but putting pinless peepers on her finally curtailed her behavior.
I thought Flo was destined to wear the peepers permanently, but after a year, I took them off her, and she's not picked another feather. I guess the peepers helped to "re-wire" her brain.
If, as Flo was, your hen is precious to you, it's worth trying to reform her rather than culling her. But it will take patience and time. The peepers are uncomfortable at first, but the chicken gets used to them. But the beak holes remain tender and touching the peepers does cause discomfort. Also, the peepers make it hard for the hen to compete for food, and navigating things like the flaps on the pop hole becomes a challenge. It's not something that's going to make life any easier for the hen who has to wear them. And then sometimes they don't accomplish what you'd hoped.
But this is what you have, no doubt in my mind. Look for the one still sporting perfect back feathers.
