bald chicken

[molliedogspabottom]

Hello all

one of my light sussex has lost a very large amount of her feathers, bald in places ( a lot of places).

At first I thought she was just moulting but the loss seems excessive and it is very cold at the moment, should I bring her in and keep her warm then reintroduce her in about ten days or so when the new feathers have grown ?, they are all showing and are growing fast .
She is eating well .
I have had red mite in the chicken house and have almost sorted that out, pressure washed the perches and then treated the house, boards and perches, we are going to do the same again because I noticed 2 or three on the folded paper fan last night.
Can I do anything to help, or will she be OK?. Hope you can help

Thanks Heather

 

[foxy]

It does sound like a hard moult, specially as she has a lot of pin feathers coming through already. It does look a bit shocking when they drop like that but normal. Ensure a well balanced diet, I add a teaspoon of cod liver oil plus a teaspoon of poultry spice to their feed twice a week when moulting, plus ACV in water(25ml per litre) and a clove of garlic for good measure! You can give a little mixed corn in the afternoon this will help warm her durig the night,and as long as she has companions she should be fine and not need bringing in, I have never brought any of mine in when moulting but everyone is different and thats up to you. Keep up with the red mite treatment, they do take a while to get rid of but sounds like you are almost there!

 

[molliedogspabottom]

Hi foxy

thanks for such a prompt reply, the girls get mixed corn in the morning , they have a very large piece of fenced off field to forage all day , then they get fresh ( well thawed ) sweetcorn and some bread in the late afternoon with more mixed corn and always food in the henhouse.

I put cider vinegar in their water every time which is fresh every day, and occasionally add chicken spice to their food but I will add all the time now.

Do you add the oil just enough to coat the grain, and how much garlic do you add?


Thanks for your help Heather