Red Skin

[Val3rie]

Hi -
My chickens had been badly pecked and I got rid of the worst offenders. Now no one is pecking (knock on wood) but a few of them have a lot of skin showing. One in particular, her skin is very red, it looks like... well it's just red, I'm not sure if it's red from the cold. I feel like putting some vaseline on it or something maybe it's chapped. It looks angry and I'm surprised the other's aren't picking it just because it's "red" (not bleeding). The other's have normal colored skin with some red blotches here and there. It looks almost like sunburn. Maybe some sunscreen? it's FREEZING cold here in NY and windy.... I just can't wait until they all grow feathers back in! That leads me to another question... do they grow feathers once a year? Or is it continuous?

PS they had bad wounds but they are all healed up nicely now. and I have no roosters.

 

[MoodyChicken]

She'll be ok. It's just irritated skin. You could put lotion on it if you want, but she'll recover on her own just fine.

Chickens molt once a year, but if feathers are plucked they will grow those back immediately.

 

[Val3rie]

Thanks... some of them show no signs of "immediately" haha

 

[MoodyChicken]

By immediately I mean that they'll start growing them as soon as the feather is plucked... it won't be "BAM, THERE'S A NEW FEATHER FOR YA!" But within a few weeks she should be fully feathered again.

 

[Val3rie]

Then I think mine are never growing back as it's been a few weeks and it still looks just like bald skin!

 

[mylilchix]

I have a some baldies right now, too. My flock looks pathetic between the roo's advances (he's been removed) and the pecking that occured afterwards. It's taking a LONG time, but I'm starting to see some improvements. Good luck!!

Sonja

 

[Reinbeau]

I've got similar problems, two GLWs are absolutely bald halfway up their backs! I've got a BO roo, one roo with 14 hens, and he is tearing them all up - do I need to get rid of him? I will if I have to, but I'm afraid to upset the dynamics out there - although bare, red skinned hens can't be too happy, can they?

 

[mylilchix]

I ended up throwing together a quick mini coop for our roo, and putting him in a seperate area. He can see the girls, he just can't get at them My girls had saddles on too, but he's a big blue cochin roo. He did a number on my faverolles and smaller cochins! Unfortunately when we moved him, it shock up the pecking order for the worse. Things are slowly getting better, but we have a long road a head of us on feather growth!!

Sonja

 

[Reinbeau]

If you do separate him, is it permanent? I don't know if I can do that, I just don't have the room out there to get too elaborate (.6 acre with a huge veggie garden and other gardens, so the coop is where the coop can be). It also seems awfully mean to isolate one chicken.....

 

[mylilchix]

No, it's just until the girls have feathers again. He's inside my chicken run now. I took a small pallet and built a box on it with leftover 2x4s and plywood. I stuck that in the corner of our run. Then I took another pallet, covered it with chicken wire, and attached it to the new mini coop. He can still see the girls, and we have one who has figured out how to get in with him. He's not completely isolated just seperated.

Sonja