Our two-year old hens (Barred Rock and New Hampshire Red) are moulting. The Red moulted in the Fall, so I'm surprised to see it happening again, so soon. They are acting as I would expect them to while mouting - not laying, slightly less active, but still pecking around the yard, eating, drinking and being chatty. Most things I've read indicate that Spring is not typically moulting time, so I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced hens shedding feathers this time of year. We had a mild winter, except for occasional light snow but it's been grey, colder and wet the past several weeks. I wonder if that might be a factor? Thanks!
Somewhere, I read that molting is triggered by the lessened light. Maybe your hens have a combination of things that made them especially sensitive to the lack of sunny days? Be sure to check them carefully, I have heard of something called a 'deplumming mite' that causes them to loose feathers. I suspect that there can be several things that could contribute to feather loss. Hopefully you get them back to normal before long. BTW welcome to the forum~!
