Chicken Feather Loss & Cannibalism: Causes & Solutions

I get lots of questions on my Facebook page about chicken feather loss, usually asking how to stop it, but before any suggested solutions can be offered, the underlying problem must be identified.  

Feather loss and bald spots are often the result of stress-related conditions that must be fixed so that feather picking does not degenerate into a flock-wide problem. Chickens are cannibals and they learn to pick from each other, so ending unwanted picking as soon as it begins is critical to avoiding a bloody epidemic.

The following are some of the more common causes of feather loss:

MOLTING

Bald spots are common in chickens during a molt. Molting is the natural, regular shedding of old feathers and growth of new ones. Molting occurs at fairly regular intervals for each chicken, and ordinarily begins as daylight hours shorten at the end of summer, however, it can occur at any time due to lack of water, food, or sudden change in normal lighting conditions. Broody hens tend to molt furiously after a period of broodiness Chickens molt in a predictable order beginning at the head and neck, proceeding down the back, breast, wings and tail.

Chickens are vulnerable to pecking during the period of re-growth due to the visible presence of blood in the newly emerging pin feathers.

Emerging pin feathers contain a blood-filled vein that can attract unwanted attention fromother birds.

SOLUTION

Learn the normal molting patterns of flock members so that bald spots are recognized as normal. Be watchful for broken pin feathers and pecking from other flock members. Separate any bird with damaged or bleeding pin feathers from the flock to prevent further injury.

Freida is just re-growing feathers after a period of broodiness. Someone has been picking at
her pin feathers as is evidenced by the broken feather shafts and blood.

Broody nest, feathered by the mother hen.

BROODINESS  

A broody hen is one that is inspired to sit on a collection of eggs until she hatches chicks. She plucks her own breast feathers to expose the warmth and moisture of her skin directly to the eggs, hence the expression "to feather one's nest," meaning to prepare for something.
After a period of broodiness, a hen’s hormones and her feeding and drinking routines return to normal, resulting in the loss of large amounts of feathers.

SOLUTION

Break up broody hens that will not be permitted to hatch eggs to stop the hormone roller-coaster and prevent a prolonged interruption in normal eating, drinking and elimination routines. After a hen has hatched chicks, provide her and her chicks with starter ration, which is higher in protein that the layer feed she had been eating prior to becoming broody and will help supply her with the protein and energy needed for feather re-growth.

The Broody Breaker: a wire-bottomed housing unit that discourages broody behavior.

OVERCROWDING

A chicken is naturally inclined to forage for food by scratching and pecking at the ground. When too many chickens occupy too small a space, appropriate pecking opportunities are limited, chickens get in each other’s way and on each other’s nerves. Aggression can result from overcrowding which leads to feather picking and cannibalism. Birds with little personal space will also begin picking at novelties on one another such as a fleck of dirt, a feather shaft, or an insect. Innocent exploration very easily results in small skin wounds. Chickens are drawn to the sight and salty flavor of blood and one small skin wound can quickly become a life-threatening injury inflicted by many chickens. By nature, chickens are cannibalistic- they can and will kill another chicken by pecking them to death.

SOLUTION

Space is one of the keys to happy, healthy chickens. The bare minimum space requirements are four square feet per bird in the coop and ten square feet per bird in the run. If chickens will be confined primarily to the coop and run daily, a much greater space allowance must be made to avoid feather picking and boredom. 

Flock block substitute can serve as an occasional boredom buster.

BOREDOM

Just as with children, bored chickens will get into mischief. Chickens that are confined primarily to the coop and run daily are more inclined to begin feather picking out of boredom and curiosity than free-range chickens. Free-range chickens seldom run into trouble with boredom, but when inclement weather prohibits free-ranging, boredom busting activities can be offered.

Foraging opportunities can be created for chickens that cannot free-range.

SOLUTION

Same solution as overcrowding, above and introduce boredom-buster type activities such as adding a bale of hay to the run. Chickens will spend hours scratching and pecking through a hay bale. Sprinkle some high protein treats into it such as black oil sunflower seeds makes the activity even more enticing. Grow sprouts or Chicken Salad to create foraging opportunities.

Provide feed in crumbles form instead of pellets to extend the amount of time birds spend pecking feed to satisfy their appetites. Treats or snacks can be employed as an occasional distraction, but should not be relied upon primarily as entertainment. No more than 10% of a chicken’s daily diet should consist of extras other than layer feed.

Adding green, high fiber treats such as kale, cabbage, etc. to a brooder or run can help alleviate boredom.

Nutritional Deficiencies

Chickens that are deficient in protein, sodium and/or other dietary essentials will seek out alternative sources of the deficiency to satisfy their nutritional needs. That search will often lead to pecking excessively at their own preening gland, the feathers around it and feathers of other birds. Protein deficient birds may pick and eat feathers. Feeding chickens too many treats/snacks/kitchen scraps can interfere with their daily nutritional requirements, causing aggression and problem picking behaviors.

This is the preening gland, located at the base of the tail feathers. Oil in the gland is salty & hens will over-work the gland when deficient in certain essential nutrients.

SOLUTION

Provide a nutritionally complete feed appropriate for the age of the bird. Limit treats/snacks/extras to 10% of their total daily diet. Treats should be limited to healthy, high protein, high fiber choices.

Excessive or aggressive treading of a hen by a rooster cause feather loss.

OVER-MATING

When a rooster assumes the mating position on top of a hen, he balances himself by holding onto her neck feathers with his beak and standing on her back (also known as treading). Over time, treading can result in feather loss to both areas of the hen’s back. Roosters can favor particular hens, giving them more attention than others, thereby causing excessive damage to their feathers and skin.

Hen saddle being modeled by a Henbag.

SOLUTION

Ensure a reasonable rooster-to-hen ratio of no less than ten hens per rooster. Clip and file a rooster’s nails to minimize feather and skin damage to the hen. House the rooster apart from the hens or pen his favorite hens away from him when necessary. Purchase or make a hen saddle for the affected hen. A hen saddle is a cloth cape worn by a hen for the purpose of protecting her feathers and skin. 

EXTERNAL PARASITES

Mites and poultry lice damage the feathers and skin of chickens, often causing bald spots. Irritation from these external parasites causes a bird to pick their own feathers and skin to obtain relief.

SOLUTION 

Monitor the skin and feather health of birds routinely for external parasites. Provide dust bathing areas for birds to maintain the health and appearance of their skin and feathers. Loose sand or dirt is sufficient for dust bathing purposes.  Treat all birds and coop when an infestation is discovered.

Nest BOXES- Too Few or Too Public

Too few nest boxes: Hens will fight over nest box space, using their beaks to express their preferences. A shortage of nest boxes can result in feather picking and injuries.

Too public: When a hen lays an egg, her cloaca becomes visible as it escorts the egg out of her body. The sight of a red, moist cloaca can attract curious flock members who naturally investigate by pecking the area. This can lead to picking, injury and cannibalism.

SOLUTIONS

Make available one nest box for every four hens in a flock. Keep the nesting area dimly lit and private. Hang nest box curtains to ensure privacy, reduce stress and keep the cloaca from public view during egg-laying.

Egg laying is a particularly vulnerable time for hens. Nest box curtains supply privacy and safety.

TOO MUCH LIGHT

Lights that are too bright or lights that are kept on too long can cause boredom, stress, aggression and picking. Lights kept on in brooders 24 hours per day often result in chicks picking themselves or each other. 

SOLUTION

Limit the number of hours of light hours to 16 per day for chickens of all ages. If using heat lamps in brooders, only use red light bulbs. Ideally, a brooder will contain a radiant heat source that does not employ light at all, such as the Brinsea EcoGlow, which will allow chicks to benefit from natural diurnal sleep-wake cycles.

OVERHEATING, Particularly in Brooders

Just as people can become irritable and prickly in the heat, so too can chickens. Chicks in brooders are at particular risk of being overheated when heat lamps are employed and overheating can result in agitation and pecking. The solution is to provide a large enough brooder to permit chicks to escape the heat when needed and monitor the brooder temperature. More about brooder heating here.  

STRESS

Many of the above cited conditions fall into the catch-all category of stress. Chickens do not manage stress well and it can result in feather picking and cannibalism. Some of the most common stressors include: housing changes, excessive heat, excessive light, overcrowding, predator attacks, new flock members, lost flock members and changes of any type.

CARE OF INJURED BIRDS

Any time a bird is injured from feather picking or the skin is compromised, the bird must be housed separately from the flock until the injury is completely healed to avoid further injury the flock.

Sources and additional reading:

http://msucares.com/poultry/feeds/poultry_feathering.html

http://www.novusint.com/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=BRdtxRFqyEg%3D&tabid=2976

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This post was shared with: Homestead Barn Hop, SaltTree, The Original Farmgirl Friday Blog Hop @Deborah Jean's Dandelion House