Why chicken starts to loss their feather at the age of 14 months.

[tuanle]

Hi,

I noticed that one of my chicken’s feather start to fall off a lot, and she is only 14 months old. I am not sure what the reason that causes the chicken to loss their feather.

Have anyone ever have similar experience that can share? What to do about it?

 

[Araucana16]

Maybe it's molting...

 

[redsoxs]

Check for parasites - particularly around the vent area but every else, too. Lice and mites can cause this. You will need to treat the whole flock if she is infested. Also, make sure she isn't being feather pecked by a flock member. Good luck to you!

 

[canesisters]

Can you post some pictures? It could be a molt. Or if she's got some sort of lice or mites she might be over preening. Or maybe someone else is pulling them out.

 

[tuanle]

Attached are pictures that I took this morning. The feathers are all over on the runway, and her tail used to be longer. Now, it is almost no tail at all.

 

[tuanle]

Check for parasites - particularly around the vent area but every else, too. Lice and mites can cause this. You will need to treat the whole flock if she is infested. Also, make sure she isn't being feather pecked by a flock member. Good luck to you!

How to go about to treat the flock? Is there some spray/medicine that I can use to treat the whole flock?

I am planing to clean out the whole coop (replace the sand on the runway and power wash the coop). But not sure what to do with the chicken that have parasites.

 

[Eggcessive]

Are you sure it is parasites? Do you know what to look for? The first molt can occur from now through the Fall, and that is what it sounds like, but here is a link to click on for helpon identifying lice and mites: http://ohioline.osu.edu/vme-fact/0018.html