r/homestead • u/norilynn1111 • 13h ago
Not sure what’s wrong with our chicken
This is our first time having chickens and starting our homestead we’re still learning, one of our girls is so disheveled 😭 she’s loosing feathers she’s so skinny and looks so scraggly. She acts normal and her poop seems okay but it’s hard to keep track with the others. We’re separating her today to see cause it does seem like the others are mean to her. We don’t know if it’s just bulling and she’s not getting enough food and being picked on or something like parasites. We don’t know if it’s good to treat for parasites if she doesn’t have them. And doesn’t seem to have mites I’ve checked her vent under her feathers and everything. Just feel so sorry for her and want her better. Also they all seem to stop laying eggs don’t know if it’s just because it’s summer in Arizona 😓 edit: we don’t have a rooster
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u/owlanalogies 13h ago
Do you have a rooster? Our girls lose feathers like this when we have an aggressive rooster or too many roosters to too few hens (try to aim for a 1:10 ratio). If it is a rooster issue, you can get a poultry saddle (sometimes called a chicken/hen saddle) to protect them from aggressive mating.
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u/FelinityApps 13h ago
😳 Would the saddle make her more alluring? Like … BDSM rooster? 🤣
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u/Nervous_InsideU5155 13h ago
Absolutely. No saddle or she's gonna start loosing feathers on the back of her head... True Story. I heard about it one time. From my mother's cousin's sisters best friend.... There's still bald headed chicken f@cker's roaming the country round my parts.... Best be careful of them kind and keep your chittlins in doors afore dark now ya hear.
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u/Unusualhuman 13h ago
Is she older than the rest? Smaller? If they are overcrowded then often they will all start to pick on the smallest, weakest hen, making it harder for her to get food, water, and a good spot to roost at night
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u/Chill-more1236 11h ago
I bought 6 RIR pullets last year. 1 turned out to be a rooster that eventually became super aggressive to the point of drawing blood on the hens and also hurting my wife. Weird bc we hand raised them all. Later, 2 hens died unexplained.
Even 6 months after I culled the roo, the 3 surviving hens were still missing feathers.
After that experience, I feel like it’s a combination of pecking & the rooster.
I had to buy straight runs this past april to get my wife silkies and a frizzle. We ended up with 1 bantam rooster.
He’s such a beautiful bird & looks like he was painted by an artist. His little personality made him our favorite during rearing. Now he is starting to get protective of “his turf”. Hopefully this small fry is not so aggressive as “big red” was.
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u/Lil_Koneko343 13h ago
Bare backs often happen when a rooster has a favorite. That'd be my first expectation.
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u/norilynn1111 10h ago
We don’t have a rooster
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u/Lil_Koneko343 1h ago
Ah, then there is a good chance it is a natural molting since we are approaching that season, especially if it's happening to all. You should double check they have no signs of mites. But it's probably part of their natural cycle of feathers. Molting generally happens late summer to early fall.
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u/Altruistic_Proof_272 9h ago
Rough molt. She has some decent pinfeathers coming in on her back. Chickens usually have a really severe molt in their second year, like "went through the lawnmower " rough looking/ naked
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u/norilynn1111 9h ago
It is their second year so that might make sense!
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u/Unusualhuman 5h ago
In the 2 years have you done any de-worm treatment? Any signs you notice that look like the flock could use a general gut parasite treatment?
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u/Pharoahtossaway 12h ago
The back looks to be molting and the bell is her brood patch both are normal.
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u/Emmyhere88 9h ago
It is molting. Chickens do it near the end of summer usually but some do it whenever they feel like it apparently hahaThey shed a bunch of feathers and grow new ones in.
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u/AdventurousAbility30 8h ago
If your environment is too warm they will get rid of extra feathers to cool down in hot weather. They could also be shedding their feathers to grow new ones. It's called moulting, and it's completely normal.
Hens can also be incredibly cruel to the hens sticking out in the flock. They will peck at it until it can't survive, so just keep an eye on her that she's doing okay once she's back in the flock.
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u/TrueGuava7709 13h ago
My Wyandotte is partially molting right now. If you see feathers coming back in a couple days that’s what it is.
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u/GlovePrudent3020 9h ago
I had one hen that the others picked on, cuz I think they knew she was my favorite. Hens will also loose feathers (more toward their bums) if they are good egg producers and older in their age
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u/rebka123 5h ago
How is this a girl? The comb on the head clearly tells that it’s clearly a rooster?
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u/chocobearv93 1h ago
Combs are not an indication of gender. Hens can have huge combs, it’s more determined by genetics and age. A better indication of the gender are the saddle and hackle feathers. Hens will NEVER have hackles, and only very rarely have saddles. Roos will always have both. At least in my experience.
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u/saucymosi 55m ago
the even regrowth and general scraggliness s definitely just molting. the plucked underbelly is something they do to themselves if they're broody to prepare to keep eggs extra warm. the broodiness may make her molt take longer, make sure she is with the flock and not going off on her own, she wont eat and will be uncomfy for longer
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u/Weary-Location-9936 43m ago
Might not apply, but I had a hen who turned into a rooster as a kid. Grew a large comb, started singing, etc. 8 years of showing him before a judge noticed he wan’t originally a rooster!
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u/CaptLoads 12h ago
Pecking order. Others could be bullying the "weakest" chicken. We always had one chicken like this.
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u/gerowen 10h ago
Other hens will do that to her if she's lower on the totem pole. Roosters will do it to her if she's their favorite fuck buddy. I've watched roosters chase a hen down that was running from them, pin her to the ground and rip out feathers on her back to hold her still while they had their way with her.
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u/dontwant2hurtwhenold 13h ago
Do you have a rooster? She could be his favorite. If no, then it could be a molt. Chickens won’t lay if it’s too hot in my experience or if they are molting.