Too early to molt?

[casportpony]

No mites or lice on any of the hens, that I can see. I can dust them with DE or a medicated powder, but doesn't safeguard treat for external parasites as well?

What I want to know is: Does a hen become lethargic during a molt?

She never eats the pelleted food for some reason, so I regularly make pecker blocks or mashes to get her to eat a balanced diet. Maybe I should do more of that while she's molting?

It was encouraging to read that hen's waddles and combs shrivel when they molt, because that was my biggest red flag. When my hens were overcome with worms or cocci, they acted a lot more lethargic than she is acting now, and proceeded to act worse VERY quickly. Getting them to eat was a chore, and they would not perk up upon my approach.

Again, I still feel like if I don't take action above and beyond the normal she could get worse. I will try the probiotic protein idea, she'll like that. What signs should I be looking for in case this isn't just a hard molt for her?

DE doesn't work. If you think she doesn't have any bugs, do an experiment, dust her with poultry dust, not DE, put her in a box on white paper towels, cover the box and come back in 45 minutes, you might be surprised.

Safeguard only kill internal worms, ivermectin kills mites, but not feather lice.

-Kathy

 

[austinclarksf]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'm going to watch her closely and try to get her to eat more. I'll let you know how it works out-

 

[austinclarksf]

Buffy is doing fine. I think it was a harsh molt for her, coming off 2 rounds of de-wormer she probably had zero gut flora.

Some probiotics, some protein, and lots of fresh water (+acv/electrolytes) and she's gained her color back in her face and waddles. Her comb is still quite a bit smaller than it used to be, but she's still in middle of a molt.

Thanks for your help all.