Roosters or molting?

[mgill87]

We got our chickens July of 2017. They never really had a first molt, besides when they're initial feathers came in. They came as straight run so we had about 80 roosters. We sold most and were 1 for every 10 hens was good... so kept 10 roosters for 150 hens. Turns out there were way too many for our hens still. Our hens have too many feathers missing and they just look so bad... We have since dispatched all roosters. We just havent noticed much change in their feathers. Some do look better, most are the same. How long does it take before we start seeing a difference in their feathers?

 

[coach723]

The feathers usually come back in during molt, so they will likely molt this year probably late summer early fall. Actual onset of molt can vary but that's the usual time of year. They may do hard or soft molts, but I would guess the majority of them will get filled in. Once you start seeing pin feathers coming in you'll know, some may start earlier than others. Pin feathers are usually most obvious around the head/neck, tail and under wings. If any are extremely bare and need to be protected you can use hen saddles until the feathers fill in, otherwise it's just waiting til molt. Increasing the protein in their diets while growing new feathers can help also, feathers take a lot of protein.

 

[Mark Armstrong]

I’m kind of new to chicken keeping, in just over a year now, I have several birds whom I think are molting by I’m not sure, this is a pic of one of my black stars, I have 3 or 4 more in about the same shape, concerned

 

[coach723]

That looks like rooster damage. Even if your roo to hen ratio is acceptable, which is usually about 10 hens to one roo, sometimes roo's are just rough, or they favor certain hens who get over mated. You can either separate the roo or use hen saddles to protect their backs. The feathers will probably not come back in until they do molt.
Here is a source for hen saddles, you can also make them yourself:
http://www.hensaver.com/

 

[Mark Armstrong]

He's only about 6 months old and pretty aggressive as well, he chases the hens quite a bit, I've haven't seen him pecking on one of them but it must be happening, I work during the day but let them out during my at home hours, they have plenty of room in the run, my egg production has fallen off a little here lately too, a couple of the hens are loosing their neck feathers as well

 

[coach723]

The feather loss on the backs is mostly from his feet/claws when he mounts them. They also grab the back of the head/neck with their beaks to hang on causing feather loss there. A young, hormonal rooster can be a terror, and he may or may not calm down as he matures. If you can separate him during the day and just let him roost with them at night it will give your hens an appreciated break. If he's aggressive to you I would consider not keeping him. Some roo's are better than others, they are all individuals, and unless you are going to hatch your own eggs it's not necessary to have one at all, unless you just want one. I keep one or two usually, but I'm picky. I don't keep mean/aggressive ones or ones that hurt my hens. Only the good ones get to stay and reproduce. Some people have a separate coop/run for roosters only, considered a bachelor pad.