What are Lavender Orpington chicks supposed to look like?

[K0k0shka]

This is my first time with Lavender Orpingtons. I don’t particularly like this variety, because of the feather issues, but I wanted English, and there’s only one breeder within driving distance of me. She happened to only have lavender eggs available when I got a broody, so I ended up with 6 lavender chicks hatched in May - 5 males and a female.

Their feathers always looked kind of ragged, especially on the boys. They got worse with age. I sent pictures to the breeder, and she said they looked terrible, but said that it didn’t look like the shredding gene, and that it was environmental (so “it’s not me, it’s you”). The chicks also had strangely red ears when they were younger (she said that that was not right either, and was also environmental). But the chicks grew up with my flock, in the same environment, eat the same food, and the rest of the flock looks healthy and has nice smooth full feathers. I have other English Orps, mature hens of other colors, that look fine - both as adults, and when they were chicks. So I find it hard to believe that it would be environmental, yet it would only affect the lavender chicks.

I processed the cockerels a few days ago. The pullet always looked less bad than them, and except for some fraying on the back, actually looks fine to me. But when I sent the breeder pictures of her today, she said that the pullet looked awful too… And I realized that I have no bleeping clue what these birds are supposed to look like! She’s too busy to send me pictures, so I gotta ask you guys for help and opinions.

So the question is - what is a GOOD Lavender Orpington juvenile supposed to look like? Can you show me some pictures? And do you think my 2-month-old pullet looks bad? If yes, how so? I’m so confused by these birds…

P.S. Copying my explanation from further down the thread, in case somebody doesn’t see it:

I should have explained the feathers Those are her dead brothers’ feathers. I didn’t want to waste them, so I dumped the pluck bucket in the run, so the chickens could pick through for any scraps of skin. Then I’ll rake them in and they’ll compost. There were no lavender feathers on the ground prior to this.

 

[Vickischics]

Forget about that breeder. She's a nut and doesn't know how to answer your questions and blames you.. Don't listen to her.
How old are your Pullets?
Are they laying?
The pullet in the middle picture appears to have feathers missing on her neck.
How many females and how many males do you have?
Are they in the same coop?
What are you feeding them?

 

[Tonyroo]

Forget about that breeder. She's a nut and doesn't know how to answer your questions and blames you.. Don't listen to her.
How old are your Pullets?
Are they laying?
The pullet in the middle picture appears to have feathers missing on her neck.
How many females and how many males do you have?
Are they in the same coop?
What are you feeding them?

She has 1 pullet, all 3 pictures of the same bird. Her yard has feathers all over the place. Lol.

 

[Vickischics]

She has 1 pullet, all 3 pictures of the same bird.

Thats the only chicken she has?

 

[Tonyroo]

Just 1 lavender pullet, others were cockerels and culled.

 

[K0k0shka]

Forget about that breeder. She's a nut and doesn't know how to answer your questions and blames you.. Don't listen to her.
How old are your Pullets?
Are they laying?
The pullet in the middle picture appears to have feathers missing on her neck.
How many females and how many males do you have?
Are they in the same coop?
What are you feeding them?

All 3 pictures are of the same pullet, taken a few minutes apart. She doesn’t have any missing feathers. She’s 2 months old and is the last one left from that batch of chicks (the rest were all males and I processed them). Other than those young males that I processed, I don’t have any other males. The flock consists of this pullet, two 1-year-old hens, and five 2-year-old hens, all living together. This pullet was hatched by one of the hens and raised with the flock. They all eat Purina Flock Raiser, and the rest of them have beautiful, luxurious feathers.

 

[Tonyroo]

All 3 pictures are of the same pullet, taken a few minutes apart. She doesn’t have any missing feathers. She’s 2 months old and is the last one left from that batch of chicks (the rest were all males and I processed them). Other than those young males that I processed, I don’t have any other males. The flock consists of this pullet, two 1-year-old hens, and five 2-year-old hens, all living together. This pullet was hatched by one of the hens and raised with the flock. They all eat Purina Flock Raiser, and the rest of them have beautiful, luxurious feathers.

Is she suppose to be a regular lavender or English breed?

 

[K0k0shka]

Thats the only chicken she has?

I have other chickens. Says so in the original post This is the only one left of the lavenders, and the only one with issues.

 

[Vickischics]

All 3 pictures are of the same pullet, taken a few minutes apart. She doesn’t have any missing feathers. She’s 2 months old and is the last one left from that batch of chicks (the rest were all males and I processed them). Other than those young males that I processed, I don’t have any other males. The flock consists of this pullet, two 1-year-old hens, and five 2-year-old hens, all living together. This pullet was hatched by one of the hens and raised with the flock. They all eat Purina Flock Raiser, and the rest of them have beautiful, luxurious feathers.

Ok, I initially thought she had been picked on by the males one too many times. But, since they're gone, here are my thoughts.
Its very hot in most places and she is still young at 8 weeks. Based on all the feathers in the run, I'm going to say she is replacing feathers. Aka Molting.

 

[Tonyroo]

@ColtHandorf , I need your perspective on this pullet.