Sick chicken

[LilTexas]

 

[Mother of Chaos]

View attachment 4211799

Sorry, your text got lost. What’s going on with him/her?

 

[LilTexas]

This is my Buff Orpington, she’s lost feathers around comb and tail. She has a black spot on her comb. Other chickens in coop suffering feather loss but no black spots, what’s wrong with her?

 

[Ruffled Feathers Studio]

Sorry, your text got lost. What’s going on with him/her?

This is my Buff Orpington, she’s lost feathers around comb and tail. She has a black spot on her comb. Other chickens in coop suffering feather loss but no black spots, what’s wrong with her?

 

[Mother of Chaos]

The black spots on her comb can be for several reasons, but one of them could be from pecking her comb by other chickens.

Pecking might also be the cause of the feather loss.

How many chickens do you have?
How old are they?
How big in square feet is your coop?
How big in square feet is your run?
Do the ever go outside the run to forage?
And finally, do you ever see signs of irritation or quarreling among your flock?

 

[LilTexas]

The black spots on her comb can be for several reasons, but one of them could be from pecking her comb by other chickens.

Pecking might also be the cause of the feather loss.

How many chickens do you have?
How old are they?
How big in square feet is your coop?
How big in square feet is your run?
Do the ever go outside the run to forage?
And finally, do you ever see signs of irritation or quarreling among your flock?

I have a coop 4’6 x 4x 4 that hold 18 chickens; 7 are in the coop.

 

[Mother of Chaos]

I have a coop 4’6 x 4x 4 that hold 18 chickens; 7 are in the coop.

Ouch. 4’6” x 4’ (height isn’t counted) shouldn’t have more than 4 chickens. I think you’re seeing the results of serious overcrowding, resulting in pecking and feather-pulling at night.

Do you have a coop camera that you can use to monitor what’s going on?

General space recommendations for a coop: 4 sq ft per bird, 1 linear foot of roost space per bird.

For a protected run: 10-12 sq ft per bird, up to 15 sq ft per bird for those with extended severe weather (snow, rainstorms) that would keep birds confined.