QUESTION - GOLDEN LACED POLISH BACK FEATHERS NOT DEVELOPING NORMAL??

[tackyrama]

+We bought 25 golden laced polish from Cackle Hatchery this spring. At 7 weeks they are pretty much feathered out except their backs. Their backs are almost totally bare. This has lead to pecking with several being injured and separating them from the rest.

Is bare backs normal for this type of chicken?

 

[Crunchie]

I'm guessing that you have a picking problem. Polish are notorious for this. All chicks go through an "ugly duckling" stage where they are, well, ugly

and often have bare-ish looking places. But your chicks shouldn't have completely bare patches, and by 6 weeks they should be pretty well feathered out. Are they overcrowded? What percentage of protein does your feed have? I always start my birds on a 22% protein game bird starter/grower. I think all young birds need a good amount of protein, but Polish need plenty of protein because of all those feathers they need to grow!

I would look into the reasons why they are picking on each other and address that. They will feather out completely once you figure that out! Search the diseases/injuries/emergencies forum here and you should find a lot more information on picking.

Good luck!

 

[tackyrama]

Thanks for the reply chrunchie. They are actually 7 weeks old. I have total 70 chicks. 20 are still in the brooder. 10 are Wyandottes and all the others are mixed breed except the polish. All the chicks including the 3 week old brooders are totally feathered (including the backs). Only the polish have bare backs.

I am feeding 20% grower PLUS they are all free range so diet should not be a problem. I have a 16x20' coop so space is also not a problem. I have never had any pecking problems till with the polish. Only the polish are getting pecked. There are a few stragler looking feathers trying to fill in their backs but I can't tell if they get pecked off before they get fully grown or if they are just sparse in that location. I did not expect this kind of problem and I can't help but wonder if it is a problem to do with Cackle hatchery?