Shivering Hen halfway through molt.

[dmbnj]

I have one girl that was broody late summer which seems to have delayed her molt. She's half naked now and shivering. I brought her inside until she grows out her feathers a bit. Anything else I can do? Should I leave her out with the flock or is inside better? Temps here will be 30-40 during the day and 20's at night. No heat in coop.

 

[cavemanrich]

Just take her in for the night, and out during the day. If she is away from the flock too long then you have to integrate her back into the flock. Give her some extra protein by supplementing her feed with meat, or sardines. It will allow her to grow her feathers faster.
Another option to consider is chicken sweaters. They are available, but I do not have details on those at moment.
WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, and

 

[Mrs. K]

Just take her back out to the flock. Make sure she can get out of the wind in both the coop and the run. She will quickly grow her feathers back.

Separating birds from the flock, tends to cause more problems than it fixes. 20 degrees is not cold to a chicken out of the wind.

 

[aart]

Just take her back out to the flock. Make sure she can get out of the wind in both the coop and the run. She will quickly grow her feathers back.
Separating birds from the flock, tends to cause more problems than it fixes. 20 degrees is not cold to a chicken out of the wind.

Just take her in for the night, and out during the day. If she is away from the flock too long then you have to integrate her back into the flock. Give her some extra protein by supplementing her feed with meat, or sardines.

These^^^^.......
...... but no sweaters.

 

[Morrigan]

A sweater might be uncomfortable with all the new pin feathers growing in.

 

[dmbnj]

They'll be no chicken sweaters here. I put her back with the flock. The run is covered with plastic sheeting and the coop is insulated.

 

[Biddybot]

I just experienced this with one of the brown egg layers. They're all either molting or have just finished up and this one poor hen dropped almost all her plumage all at once and looked like a porcupine for a while. She took to sleeping and sometimes just resting in one of the nest boxes for a couple of weeks, no doubt to stay warm and keep away from the other hens who might have been tempted by all her pinfeathers, and I indulged her by keeping the box well filled with extra shavings and cleaning it out every day. I also separated her briefly from her flock a few times to give her a feed of mashed up hard boiled eggs for extra protein, but aside from that, left her with the other birds and let her make her own decisions about whether to come outside at all or stay indoors. She survived just fine, even the -10C/14F cold spell we had, and is almost fully feathered again and back outside running around doing chicken things with her buddies. As long as your hen has a warm safe spot to retreat to if she wants and no one's harassing her trying to pluck her pinfeathers, I think it's usually better to leave a heavy molter with the flock--it keeps their spirits up to have their friends nearby and there's less stress if they remain in familiar surroundings. Pampering her with a few feeds of something protein-rich will help too and make her feel good.

 

[Al Capon]

Give her some extra protein by supplementing her feed with meat, or sardines. It will allow her to grow her feathers faster.

Really, just like regular sardines in oil, tossed out on the lawn? Or do you have to stir em up, mix em with food or what? Never thought they'd chow down on fish, good thing sardines are relatively cheap.

 

[MissChick@dee]

Really, just like regular sardines in oil, tossed out on the lawn? Or do you have to stir em up, mix em with food or what? Never thought they'd chow down on fish, good thing sardines are relatively cheap.

Oh! I just have my girls sardine’s for the first time (they love fish) they went Postal!!!! I offered them by hand...since it was their first time Yikes!! They had them gone in 3 seconds!!
A new fan favorite at my house.
I’ll be putting them in a dish from now on

 

[MissChick@dee]

They'll be no chicken sweaters here. I put her back with the flock. The run is covered with plastic sheeting and the coop is insulated.

A chicken saddle would offer some insulation trapping her body heat somewhat. It will keep the cold off her skin. I had a naked one too. In the bitter cold I put it on. Her feathers grew under it very nicely.