She is pulling her feathers out on her head and neck????? Why????

[kezabel]

One of my hens is pulling her feathers out on her head and neck, well at least I think she is but all of a sudden she has little black stumps where her feathers should be. Is she moulting(its still winter) and she has also stopped laying eggs, she is only about 8 or 9 months old she only started laying in June. She also seems flighty lately she usually isi the sweet one who clucks around my feet when I'm down in the run, but not anymore, I'm worried about her. She is eating and drinking still.

 

[annek]

Are you sure that one of your other chickens is not pulling out the feathers?

 

[shuizar209]

Maybe she is getting picked on. Watch her closely. She may be broody. Does she stay on the nest most of the day and squak when you come near her?

 

[kezabel]

I'm not sure if its one of the other hens pulling her feathers out, she was on top of the pecking order until another one of our hens grew much bigger than her and now she is top hen. I haven't seen any of the other girls pecking at her but I'll be keeping an eye on it now

 

[kezabel]

She isn't broody, she hasn't even layed and egg in the past 2 weeks and is never in the coop unless its bed time. She was the first hen to lay and now the others have started laying she has stopped, I can tell her eggs from the other because they are smaller and whiter. All our hens are bantams and we only have 4. She is a Bantam Langshan here is her picture before her feathers were disappearing on her head

Could it just be she is changing? Loosing her feather and getting new ones?