Molting.... Is there a "Normal"?

Posted by Misty Butler on January 10, 2011 at 5:22am

Two of my girls are molting, I THINK. I have come to this conclusion by researching the net, advice on this board and my chicken books, etc. But things are getting ugly, they are really loosing their feathers around there necks.... are they cold?  How long does this continue? AND, my main question, how do I know if something is not really wrong? Could they be sick? 

 

And the really aggressive Red, yah, she's back at it.... every single morning I open the coop and she is the last one out just so she can pass by and bite my toes (I'm now wearing my Uggs, ouch!). She flares up her feathers and circles me, rushes me.... until Sophia comes and walks between us and lets me escape .... weird huh? I feel bad because she's just so ugly right now with all the molting and such.... but is she telling me that she's sick... or just insane?

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Replies

  • Shelly Martin January 17, 2011 at 1:32am

    Thank you Chris...good to know...sometimes a trip to the vet is priceless when it comes to my kids pets!!!   This particular girl is not their favorite so I think we will wait it out and hope she's just molting. 

     

    I'll work on getting my courage up to check her for lice....yuk!  

     

    Just to make sure I've got it right...some hens will lay throughout the molt and some will not lay at all...is that correct? 

     

     

  • Shelly Martin January 16, 2011 at 4:39pm
    I have a similar looking hen that is also 9 months old with feather loss...  hope she's molting....would hate to have to deal with a disease...  is there a chicken doctor in the city?
  • Misty Butler January 11, 2011 at 1:36pm
    Great site. I have been researching a ton about mites and other critters. What is your opinion on  DE? I was going to pick that up and start treating with that to see if things didn't improve.... outside of that I am completely at a loss here. Is there a Chicken Doctor?
  • Misty Butler January 10, 2011 at 10:11am
    Here are some photos... WARNING! Ugly!5021549852?profile=original

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    https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/5021549879?profile=original
  • Misty Butler January 10, 2011 at 9:09am
    Juliet is a Red Sex Link, I will try to snap a photo this morning of her, the other "molter" is white.... maybe you can tell me what she is. They were both laying strong then one day, nothing. I feed them all just the Organic Lay Pellets from Western Ranchman and with the onset of the really cold winter I have added some lettuce, tomatoes, flax seeds, grapes, plain yoghurt, blueberries, carrot shavings for them to warm them up a bit. .... advice on this? They all will be 9 months on Friday.

    If it's mites, what do I do?

    If it's attitude, how long do I put up with it, does it ever change or will she try to kill me one day???????
  • Bethany Lobocki January 10, 2011 at 9:03am
    Just to be safe...check for lice. They seem to be worse during the cold months. To do this, while holding the bird lift up her wing and watch that little bald area...if there are lice you should see one or more of them scurry around on her skin. They are whitish to really light brown in color, and small but large enough you should be able to see 'em if they are there. And you'll find white chunky looking stuff at the base of their feathers around the vent...those are eggs. Lice can make them look quite raggedy.
  • Rachel January 10, 2011 at 8:39am

    How old are your birds (sorry if I missed this info elsewhere) and what breeds are they? It's likely molting. Molting generally goes in an order. Neck feathers are towards the beginning and it makes them look horrible. ;) I'm fairly certain (based on probability) that your description coupled with the time of year that this is a molting issue and just fine. If these are still new birds, as Chris suggests, they may not end up being tip-top layers. If they're a high egg production breed though it won't matter too much.

    Are you sure the red chicken is a hen? I don't own Rhode Island Reds anymore because of this trait. She is not telling you that she's sick, she's telling you that she's a jerk. (Chickens will do everything they can to hide illness).

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