- Feb 21, 2012
- 17
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Hi all. We started with four Brahma Bantam chickens almost two years ago and they are doing great. Last spring (2013) we added (2) New Hampshire Reds, (2) Buff Orpingtons and (2) Plymouth Rock Barr pullets. I was able to successfully integrate them with the Brahma Bantams. But in November I noticed that the New Hampshire Reds were losing feathers from their backs. I thought it must be a dominance issue but I couldn't determine which hen was causing the issue. Within a few weeks one of the Plymouth Rock and one of the Buff Orpington's were also losing feathers. I did a search here and found that it could be a number of possibilities.
Pecking order dominance, lack of protein, mite infestation, boredom, cannibalism, etc. I tried several things but so far with no success. I added black sunflower seeds to the run for additional protein. I used blukote to try to get them to stop pecking and pulling feathers. I checked the birds for mites but have never seen any evidence of them. I used Durvet D-Rooster Booster Pick-no-more and Manna Pro Poultry protector along with Hen saver aprons. I cleaned the coop extensively but again, no signs of mites. I believe I have enough space in the coop and run that I built (see attached photos) but the only answer I can come up with is boredom. I've been letting all (10) hens out of the coop and into the yard as much as possible but we have foxes, hawks, owls, etc. in our area so I hate to let them out when I can't watch them. The weird thing is that only four hens are affected. The original (4) Brahma Bantams along with (1) Buff Orpington and (1) Plymouth Rock have no feather loss.
As you can see from the attached photos I took of (2) of the hens affected, they look awful! They are laying fine so I hate to dispose of them, but I hate seeing them this way. Does anyone have any suggestion on what I might try next? Thanks for any input!
Pecking order dominance, lack of protein, mite infestation, boredom, cannibalism, etc. I tried several things but so far with no success. I added black sunflower seeds to the run for additional protein. I used blukote to try to get them to stop pecking and pulling feathers. I checked the birds for mites but have never seen any evidence of them. I used Durvet D-Rooster Booster Pick-no-more and Manna Pro Poultry protector along with Hen saver aprons. I cleaned the coop extensively but again, no signs of mites. I believe I have enough space in the coop and run that I built (see attached photos) but the only answer I can come up with is boredom. I've been letting all (10) hens out of the coop and into the yard as much as possible but we have foxes, hawks, owls, etc. in our area so I hate to let them out when I can't watch them. The weird thing is that only four hens are affected. The original (4) Brahma Bantams along with (1) Buff Orpington and (1) Plymouth Rock have no feather loss.
As you can see from the attached photos I took of (2) of the hens affected, they look awful! They are laying fine so I hate to dispose of them, but I hate seeing them this way. Does anyone have any suggestion on what I might try next? Thanks for any input!
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