Sheath question

[Stablecoop]

We’ve got a freedom ranger hen almost a year old who started a very hard molt about a month ago. Her flock mates bloodied her so we have brought her in to care for her and to let her molt without dealing with negative temperatures. She is almost done with her molt, but I don’t know if she can take the sheaths off of her butt feathers. We will need to reintroduce her slowly and in a controlled way, so her flock probs won’t be helping her preen. What should we do about the Sheaths on her but feathers? Thanks for your help!

 

[coach723]

She should be able to reach those fine. Thicker sheaths will take longer to come off, but it will happen. I have never helped a chicken remove the feather sheaths. Unless a bird had some kind of genetic problem, I would just let it happen normally. Molt can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months to be complete.

 

[Stablecoop]

She should be able to reach those fine. Thicker sheaths will take longer to come off, but it will happen. I have never helped a chicken remove the feather sheaths. Unless a bird had some kind of genetic problem, I would just let it happen normally. Molt can take anywhere from a few weeks to a few months to be complete.

Thank you so much! She is built like Chris Farley in the “fat guy in a little coat” sketch, and try as she might, she just can’t reach. I figured it out though, just pinched the sheaths a little with my fingernails and gently twist the feathers and they shed right off. She just freely stood there and was like “wow, thanks!” She is back to her fluffy butt self.

 

[coach723]

Glad you figured it out. Is she over weight? I've not had a healthy, normal weight bird not able to reach all area's to preen. Is her abdomen swollen? If she's got a health problem then that may be why the others bloodied her, they will often attack a weak or sick flock member.

 

[Stablecoop]

Glad you figured it out. Is she over weight? I've not had a healthy, normal weight bird not able to reach all area's to preen. Is her abdomen swollen? If she's got a health problem then that may be why the others bloodied her, they will often attack a weak or sick flock member.

Nah, she’s just a meat bird. Imagine a Cornish cross reaching its bum. They can’t. And she’s the new girl. And she molted a little late. We integrated her into an existing laying flock last summer. She is the low girl on the pecking order, and they got a blood feather and then all went sideways. Everyone else was done with their molt, she started hers later. We saved her from our all rooster meat bird batch, we don’t have high expectations but just wanted to try. She has impressed us! She is laying about 6 eggs a week! And all was well until we lost our Roo so there’s a little shuffling/tension happening that wasn’t there before. It was really easy to help her get those sheaths off though!! I was fearing that it would be a big deal/dramatic. It was simple!