Trying to figure out what's wrong with my chicken

[Ksg]

my hen is 9 weeks old and I just noticed this discolor on her back. My other Rhode Island Red does not look the same. I have 6 others in the coop. I'm new to this and a little nervous. She sleeps on the floor while the others perch. Is she getting pecked when I'm not around? I don't notice it when im with them.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

That does look like other birds are plucking her feathers. How big is their area? Crowding is a common cause of pecking.

 

[Ksg]

I have an 8x8 shed for them and a 10x6 run. I have 7 hens.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

That does look like other birds are plucking her feathers. How big is their area? Crowding is a common cause of pecking.

Agreed. Looks like feather picking to me as well.

Any photos of the inside of your coop and the run?

Just for kicks - are all of your chickens female - do you have a male?

Consider adding more roosting bars in your coop and making more space in your run. General rule of thumb for runs is to have 10sqft. of run space per bird. Also supply some perches in the run/some places for them to get away from each other.

Ensure they have adequate space to move around water and feed stations and that she is not being kept from either one.

For her back, you can apply some Blu-Kote to help cover and heal the wounds.

Observe your flock to see how they are interacting with one another. Sometimes you won't see picking/plucking until it's roosting time. Also if one of the others is a male (cockerel) overzealous mating can cause feather loss like that too.

 

[Ksg]

Thanks for the input, do you think I should do anything else inside here? They all love to roost at the window at night and fight over the self. I do not have a rooster. 7 hens. The one that was having the issues with the feathers looks better today. When they all were getting ready for night she came out of the coop and begged me to pick her up. It was kind of weird . Is that normal? I put her up on the shelf with the others.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I would either remove the shelves, or add more roosts at that height, they are probably all bickering to sit up high, and there's not enough space for all. All chickens want to roost as high as possible.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Thanks for the input, do you think I should do anything else inside here? They all love to roost at the window at night and fight over the self. I do not have a rooster. 7 hens. The one that was having the issues with the feathers looks better today. When they all were getting ready for night she came out of the coop and begged me to pick her up. It was kind of weird . Is that normal? I put her up on the shelf with the others.


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I think you answered some of your own questions More than likely the girl getting plucked is low or lowest in pecking order. The top 2-3 pullets will be having that prime spot at the window, others will be picked at and bullied away (this is normal, just as long as they aren't too rough).

Re-arranging your roosting may help. I'm not very good at coop design/arranging. Hopefully someone else will have some ideas or you can post photos and ask on the coops threads - those folks over there are so creative.

It can be normal for a bird to beg to be picked up. I have one that does that from time to time, just seems to beg for a cuddle.