Chicken Moulting: What is it? What can you do?

[@mtaj9235]

Good info

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Thank you

[@donnyrose3394]

Thank you for such helpful tips.

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Glad they were useful 🙂

[@DreamSneak]

I'm picking up 4 Barred Rocks next week and I've watched loads of your chicken videos to prepare. Great content, invaluable. Keep it up!!

[@donnawojdacz6969]

New sub and am loving every video! Thank you for sharing your English life! Someday we may be able to visit your amazing country♥️♥️♥️😊 from USA

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Thank you Donna, that's really kind of you.

[@hw476]

Thank you for recommending this vlog Fiona. 😁

[@EnglishCountryLife]

No problem😁

[@Northumbrian-Today]

Great content. Keep it up. Thanks

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Thanks, will do!

[@trillium8652]

How do you group and shelter chickens when there is snow and bitter cold? Do they all go into one larger shelter/coop or still scattered among the smaller cops? I’m in the US. Love your content and presentation. Thank you.

[@EnglishCountryLife]

We try and consolidate the chickens in winter to 2 coops. One for the Orpingtons and one for the egg layers. This is for warmth as well as allowing us to make repairs to the coops that aren't in use.

[@samerbako2358]

Hi the English country life do you know where I would be able to buy Orpington chickens and cream legbars too

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Try looking at Preloved.com. There are a lot of small breeders that sell chickens through that site. Also try www.omlet.co.uk/breeds/map/chickens These sites for backyard flocks will be the best bet.

[@meggmegg6656]

Thank you for that great explanation!

[@EnglishCountryLife]

I'm really glad it's useful! It's that time of year so I thought it would be good timing. Did it cover all of your questions?

[@meggmegg6656]

Video is great! I only have a dog and cat. Live in the suburbs in the US. UK farming twitter/youtube provides me positive relaxation to watch. Animals and scenery are so beautiful. Maybe in another life, you know? How long does it take the feathers to grow back? Does it only happen once a year? Does it hurt them when you touch the pins or just the person touching them?@@EnglishCountryLife

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Maybe it's a life you can still get...? You've got some great questions there so here goes. The feathers each take about between 2 and 4 weeks to grow depending where on their body they are and how big they are. The pin feathers don't hurt people picking them up but it does hurt the chicken. It's really not comfortable for them to be picked up when the feathers are growing. A major moult will normally happen once a year in moderate climates but chickens can have smaller moults during the year replacing small amounts of feathers. If there is a very hot spell chickens can have an extra moult to help them keep cool. Their bodies are very clever

[@meggmegg6656]

Thank you. You explained it well!🙂

[@charleschocolate2497]

How long is the molt time??

[@EnglishCountryLife]

It's not an easy answer to that question. Every hen is different and will molt in different ways. Some will have a catastrophic molt losing nearly all of their feathers at once. In this case it's probably a minimum of 4 weeks. At the other extreme there are chickens that lose feathers on their necks first, then breast, then back until it reaches their tail. This can take 3 - 4 months.

[@stevencoster2767]

I have a mixed flock of 7 hens here in the Costa Blanca. One of my hens (Sussex) has not moulted she is number 2 in the pecking order. Last autumn should have been their first moult (over 1 year old). It’s now April and no moult. Her feathers are in a sorry state but otherwise is very alert, eating and laying. Have you seen this before? Should I be worried?

[@EnglishCountryLife]

It does happen occasionally & clearly makes it harder for her to stay warm and dry but isn't unduly concerning. She may well moult mid year

[@stevencoster2767]

@@EnglishCountryLife thanks! Cold is not a problem here really. Currently 22.5°c

[@yavin99]

My hens are molting right when it got cold out and my one girl her comb is very dry and shriveled looking and wondering if that's normal for molting.

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Several of ours are moulting too. Most hens combs are smaller and less red (often becoming a pale pink) when they are off lay - it's partly to signal to cockerels that they are not ready to breed

[@ASmileAdayful]

Is it normal for 11 week olds to lose Feathers in July, is this a baby thing rather than a moult. And ty for your help on worming expecting delivery today 👍

[@EnglishCountryLife]

It depends. Until they reach maturity chickens grow successive sizes of feathers going through at least 4 versions of feathers. Normally you'll notice lots dropping but not any bald spots. If they look like the pictures of Gannet in this film you may need veterinary advice. I hope that helps

[@ASmileAdayful]

@@EnglishCountryLife ty its OK no balding, just dropping out👍

[@EnglishCountryLife]

@@ASmileAdayful Just growing bigger feathers probably then 😉

[@ASmileAdayful]

@@EnglishCountryLife😘

[@MarneRiver2139]

Hi Fiona & Hew Quick question for you guys and I’m really hoping that you might be able to help. We have four hens and a rooster. 2 of the hens and the rooster are about 8 months old (and both hen laying) they are what we think is a buff Orpington/buff Bhrama mix Our other 2 hens are at about 6 months old (born sometime in September we think we got them at 16 weeks on dec 17 2021) and they are old Cotswold Legbars. Both of the these are laying well as well. So knowing a bit of the back ground our question is around moulting, the older two hens appear to be going through a second moult since we have had them, one was quite a hard moult when they were younger and this one seems to be a lot softer Our Legbars only being 6 months old seem to be going through a fairly hard moult one harder than the other The rooster also appears to be losing a few but nothing like the girls and so far all info I can find seems fo think that a moult wouldn’t happen untill 14-18 months olds. Do you know if this is actually normal at all??? I can’t seem to find anything on the internet about chickens younger than 12 months experiencing this. Any help you could give me and my patter would be amazing Kind regards Hannah & Matt P.s. our rooster Calcifer is a little eager shall we say and seems to have quite the libido lol so we are wondering if he has anything to do with this ……

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Hi Hannah & Matt. It's quite likely that what you are seeing is feather wear - especially if it's most obvious on the hens back. If that's the case the easiest solution is chicken saddles kzbin.info/www/bejne/mIPbnIuNn69ghNU

[@etothemtothejtotheb6993]

What did chickens do before hot water bottles and electric heaters were invented?! 🤔🐔🙄

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Died of hypothermia on occasions or suffered in extreme cold

[@etothemtothejtotheb6993]

@@EnglishCountryLife I guess at one point in history every one kept animals all together or even in with them to stay cosy!? Perhaps some chickens are more hardy than others?

[@EnglishCountryLife]

@@etothemtothejtotheb6993 Ultimately Chickens are jungle fowl & not adapted to extreme cold. Orpingtons are heavy feathered so tolerate cold better than lighter feathered breeds but can still suffer in harsh Winters. Frostbite on longer combs is not uncommon. Whilst some chicken keepers may shrug, we prefer to prevent suffering & provide as comfortable environment as possible.

[@smack_dab]

I thought my chicken was getting picked on

[@EnglishCountryLife]

Was it just moulting?

[@smack_dab]

Yes for sure. Thansk

[@smack_dab]

Follow up question: I have 10 chickens, why is only one of them moulting?

[@EnglishCountryLife]

@@smack_dab Not all chickens moult dramatically, nor all at the same time. Some moult late, after brooding, or through stress. This may be a dramatic late moult. If you can see new feathers coming through, I wouldn't worry. We have hens that have finished moulting and others still in moult.