Question about my silkie roosters first molt

[TheBoyds]

Hi guys. My little dude has been shedding feathers for a few weeks now and he is super low energy. He seems to be eating and drinking normally, his comb was always a weird purple raspberry looking thing and it looks the same. He just stands around a lot and started sleeping in a nest box instead of climbing the roost. We grabbed him the other day and didn't see any mites on him. Wondering if this kind of behavior is normal during a molt. Thank you all!

 

[SmiYa0126]

Hello! What are you feeding him? Can you get him some raw yolk and sweeten the water or give him watermelon to get his glucose up?

 

[TheBoyds]

Hello! What are you feeding him? Can you get him some raw yolk and sweeten the water or give him watermelon to get his glucose up?

thanks for getting back. We've been giving him scrambled eggs with melon and berries fairly frequently.

 

[SmiYa0126]

Does he get any chicken feed? Like all flock?

 

[TheBoyds]

Does he get any chicken feed? Like all flock?

yes we give him the same stuff the ladies get, and they have a small area where they free range

 

[SmiYa0126]

What's the feed that you feed your hens?

 

[TheBoyds]

What's the feed that you feed your hens?

Ill have to check when I get home but its a layer feed from tractor supply and Murdochs

 

[TX Chick Noob]

What I have seen posted frequently on BYC is that layer feed isn't good for roosters. It gives them too much calcium and can give them health issues. If you have a mixed flock you need to be using an All Flock type of feed and put oyster shell out free choice. Your hens will eat what they need to get enough calcium.

 

[SmiYa0126]

I buy chick starter when my hens are molting, they do so much better, all flock works too, they need more protein when molting. This is the year for my hens to molt and only three of them are doing a soft molt.

 

[TheBoyds]

Thanks for the replies guys I learned something today!