Is he moulting or what?

[Margaid]

I feel as though I'm becoming totally paranoid about my birds.

I took their treats and corn out this afternoon and noticed that the cockerel has lost quite a lot of feathers around his neck. I've noticed maybe 4 feathers in the house when I poo pick but thought it was Henny because he treads her so often. He's about 35 weeks old. Is he just moulting at a rather inappropriate time (we've still got about 4 inches of snow and it's minus 7 outside as I write) or should I look for some other cause. If so, what should I be looking for?

 

[karminski]

it very well may be a moult this weather is up and down like a yoyo at the moment , i suddenly noticed one of mine yesterday looking like shes been plucked theres no normal feathers at all just the underneath fluffly stuff :lol: she seems ok though an one of my whites has even started yet were as the other 3 are looking nice and wihte again but not for long though .double check for any signs of lice or mites though but thats very unlikely with it being so cold they are really tiny so you wil need to look thoughly though the feathers escpecailly at the base close to the skin .

 

[Marigold]

Chickens do sometimes just do a neck moult, if stressed about something, (eg snow?) or for other unknown causes. Normally in hens this stops lay for a bit while they regrow the feathers, but I don't know about cockerels. So long as he's OK in other ways, not a cause for worry, I would think. If you can catch him, check for mites etc as Karminski says, and look to see the new feathers begin into sprout from the feather shafts to replace the old ones. He will look a bit like a hedgehog round his neck as this progresses. Marigold did this last Spring and looked a terrible sight for a while!

 

[Chuck]

Could be a moult or could be the hen pulling them out and they often go for the neck feathers. It seems to be affection and if so, it will probably continue till the divorce. ? Origins of the term 'hen pecked'

 

[bantiekeeper]

My partridge dotte is in the final stages of a neck moult. She had a normal moult some months ago. She is fine in all other respects so it could be due the cold weather.

 

[Margaid]

They are still a bit skittish to try and pick them up but I 'll try and look at his neck when they go to roost. We've got biting cold south easterly winds so they're not coming out much, especially as there's still snow on the ground. His hackles are beginning to look scruffy as well. He wouldn't move from the step the first time it snowed, and then tried to fly across it, so I suspect he's more upset by it than the hens seem to be - Henny missed a "laying day" but she laid again yesterday.

I did wonder if it was the hen - I'm worried that they're getting bored because of the snow. Henny has missed out a few times on the mealworms and sunflower seeds but she gets first go at the mash which has peas in it so she should be getting enough protein. One side of his neck was looking quite bear, but it's only about an inch in length.

I'll see what I can spot this evening - although I think he may be henpecked as he's not the most assertive of birds.