POOF!

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

That's what happened a few days ago--POOF!

I didn't hear the explosion, I wasn't outside to witness it. But clearly, clearly there was one.

I mean, how else would Debra Jo get into this shape?

This, ladies and gentlemen, is what we call around here an 'Explode-a-Molt'.

Meanwhile, Maggie's NOT going to tolerate pictures while she's molting!

"Put that away and LEAVE ME ALONE."

 

[K-12 Chickens]

Very funny!

I like the look of the chicken in the bottom picture!

 

[theoldchick]

Who knew molting could be so abrupt? The victim looks normal in the morning and by the afternoon you have a walking pincushion in your flock.

 

[Chickenfan4life]

Who knew molting could be so abrupt? The victim looks normal in the morning and by the afternoon you have a walking pincushion in your flock.

x2 So true!

 

[peepacheep]

I have a cranky hen sitting on the door mat, on the inside. Blanche, a BA, did an Explode-A-Molt this week. One day she had wing feathers, the next day they were gone. Like you, I did not hear an explosion but 2 nights ago I heard repeated thunking and indignant squawks as she tried to launched herself up to the roost and fell short. She was an injury waiting to happen so I brought her indoors. Carried her down to the pen yesterday morning, got things set up, turned around to put her in the run and she was not there. She went back to the house and was staring at the door. When I opened the door she walked over to the dog on her dog bed and made it clear the dog was to find another spot. Her body looks like a porcupine but no sign of wing feathers coming in yet. The dog and I are both hoping those wing feathers grow back quickly.

 

[Dowie]

 

[pipdzipdnreadytogo]

I have a cranky hen sitting on the door mat, on the inside.  Blanche, a BA, did an Explode-A-Molt this week.  One day she had wing feathers, the next day they were gone.  Like you, I did not hear an explosion but 2 nights ago I heard repeated thunking and indignant squawks as she tried to launched herself up to the roost and fell short.  She was an injury waiting to happen so I brought her indoors.   Carried her down to the pen yesterday morning, got things set up, turned around to put her in the run and she was not there.  She went back to the house and was staring at the door. When I opened the door she walked over to the dog on her dog bed and made it clear the dog was to find another spot.  Her body looks like a porcupine but no sign of wing feathers coming in yet.  The dog and I are both hoping those wing feathers grow back quickly.

It sounds like it's gonna take more than her wing feathers growing in to get her out of your house. She's moved in!

 

[TheSpiceGirls]

I have a Jersey Giant who molts this way. It's like she held her breath, and gave a good squeeze and POOF, all her feathers came out.

It looks awful. But on the bright side, she's a fast molter and those new feathers come in pretty quickly.

I have a Buff Orpington who takes about 6 months to molt. The complete opposite approach. She delicately drops one feather at at time and you can never even tell she's molting except for the 3-4 feathers I collect each morning from under her roost. If that bird lived anywhere else, I swear she'd have been Sunday Dinner a L-O-N-G time ago!