pulling her own feathers, or getting pecked - does it matter? and what to do?

[cityeggs]

Hi there! I have 3 pullets (11mo) and recently noticed that our Australorp is showing some skin under her ears on both sides - I will take pictures later ( I never have my phone when I'm out there). There's no bleeding and it's only really noticeable when she stretches out her neck. I know it could be from poking her head through the cattle panels the fenced area, but the others do that too and they don't have it. It seems too early for molting - don't they typically do that when they're 18mo? Or could it be a slow molt? She seems healthy - comb is red, she's laying regularly and seems her chipper self.

They have a 4x5 coop with attached 5x10 secure run and a fenced in area they can access during the day that is at least 15x10. There's not much in there for them to play with at the moment, but a few things to hide behind, and plenty of area to scratch around - the surface is covered with wood chips. They're currently on Modesto Milling layer pellets, which are either 16 or 17% protein at the moment (mainly bc it's easiest to get locally). They get maybe 1/3 c of vegetable scraps or 1/4 of fermented scratch as treats daily, and currently they have their pick of the wild plums that fall from the tree above their run.

BA does seem to be at the bottom rank of the 3 pullets - she tries to get a better sleeping position on the roost, but our RSL is pecky and persistent, and our no-guff GLW doesn't give up her prime position easily, though she does it by just staying put, not by agression. I haven't seen RSL pull feathers since she was a little chick (and that was only once she pulled a cheek fluff on our long-gone EE cockerel), and she's never made anyone bleed, and I've only seen a little pecking at roost time when I'm there (though I'm not there very often), though she does try to peck me.

What can I do? Does it matter whether BA's pulling her own feathers (could she do that under her ears/high up on her neck?), or whether RSL is pulling them? Aside from upping the protein content of their feed (which works out well anyway, because I've now got chicks and will have to switch to chick food or all flock anyway), would you do anything different if it's one or the other? The only way I can think that I'd figure out one or the other is by getting a coop cam, which sounds like a pain, and if I'm not actually going to do anything different, it doesn't seem worth the bother.

Thank you!

 

[azygous]

Try the higher protein feed and phase out the layer. Most people think a chicken is fully grown at one year, but they continue to fill out for another year after that, and if they are laying eggs while continuing to grow, it can tax their bodies to deliver enough protein for both jobs. Layer feed simply does not contain enough protein for continuing growth.

That said, some feather picking is compulsive and not necessarily from a protein shortage. This has been the case in my flock for many, many years. It seems I always have two or three compulsive feather pickers at any given time. It's maddening. About the only thing I've discovered that has any chance of working is pinless peepers, and those can cause irritation and scarring of the nares if worn for more than a couple months at a time.

One other thing can cause self picking. Feather mites. Look at her skin around the feather shafts in those bald areas. If you see redness and especially see a scabby accumulation around the feather bases, you are likely seeing feather mites. Ivermectin is the best treatment.

 

[cityeggs]

Thank you! I did look the other day to see if I could see anything that looked like mites, but wasn't sure exactly what to look for, so with that description, I'll take another look!

 

[rosemarythyme]

The location of the damage doesn't sound self inflicted. From the description I think there's some possibility that it's from putting her head through the fence. Any photos so we can get a better look?

 

[cityeggs]

I meant to take photos this afternoon, but got distracted by the new chicks (esp. one that I was worried about). I will get my act together to take a picture tomorrow and post it. There was another thread I found in my search that had a photo and looked very similar, but now I can't find it (and the person didn't come back to say what they'd done/whether anything worked).

 

[cityeggs]

Here are the photos - I'm not very good at the one-handed photographer while holding chicken moves - sorry they're blurry and not great shots for what we're trying to see! It does look like she might have a little feather loss under her chin also, which suggests that it could be the fence/head scenario, though all 3 girls trade off sleeping on the dropping board (with Nectarine, the RSL, parking herself there most often these days), and it's only a few inches below the roosting bar, so it's theoretically possible that she's pecking up under BA's head too.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Skin doesn't look irritated so that's good. Location and the way the wear matches on both sides makes me think it's from her sticking her head out and rubbing against the fence.

 

[cityeggs]

Try the higher protein feed and phase out the layer. Most people think a chicken is fully grown at one year, but they continue to fill out for another year after that, and if they are laying eggs while continuing to grow, it can tax their bodies to deliver enough protein for both jobs. Layer feed simply does not contain enough protein for continuing growth.

That said, some feather picking is compulsive and not necessarily from a protein shortage. This has been the case in my flock for many, many years. It seems I always have two or three compulsive feather pickers at any given time. It's maddening. About the only thing I've discovered that has any chance of working is pinless peepers, and those can cause irritation and scarring of the nares if worn for more than a couple months at a time.

One other thing can cause self picking. Feather mites. Look at her skin around the feather shafts in those bald areas. If you see redness and especially see a scabby accumulation around the feather bases, you are likely seeing feather mites. Ivermectin is the best treatment.

I've gone back and forth on the all flock/chick feed vs. layer feed over the last few months. I did chick crumbles for the first 5 mo, then all flock for another couple months, but even with OS and their egg shells, it felt like their shells were really thin, and I had to give a calcium tablet periodically to the RSL bc she had a few episodes of soft eggs, which is why I tried the layer feed. It certainly makes sense that they're still growing and would still need higher protein for longer than a few months. Is there anything else to do to up the calcium while I'm giving them chick/all flock?

 

[rosemarythyme]

Is there anything else to do to up the calcium while I'm giving them chick/all flock?

Depending on the size of your flock this may be inconvenient, but you could feed a mix of layer + starter/all flock. I feed roughly 30-40% layer pellets and the remainder in grower (you may want to switch up numbers, depending on the nutrition panel of the feed(s) you use). It ups the protein slightly over just layer, and increases the calcium intake a little more than if feeding grower alone.

 

[cityeggs]

Depending on the size of your flock this may be inconvenient, but you could feed a mix of layer + starter/all flock. I feed roughly 30-40% layer pellets and the remainder in grower (you may want to switch up numbers, depending on the nutrition panel of the feed(s) you use). It ups the protein slightly over just layer, and increases the calcium intake a little more than if feeding grower alone.

Thanks! I was wondering if that might work/if it would make enough of a difference. I can definitely do it now, though once I integrate the new chicks, that would be a pain until they're at POL.