[melholly]

My Light Sussex sat and successfully hatched 6/7 chicks. They are now 3 weeks old. We have them located in a converted duck house and safe run and rotate every 2 days for fresh grass.


Although Floss is a super Mum and still completely fierce if you come near a chick etc she's often been caught gazing wistfully out! Then about a week ago I noticed feathers appearing and I thought perhaps she was semi-molting after the hatch but today she's significantly had a go at herself and is looking rather pathetic.


She seems healthy otherwise but then I worry about what I'm feeding. I give chick crumb and give Floss her own bowl of mixed corn. She picks up scraps and I toss them the odd bit of scone/sultana etc but she seems to just break it up for the chicks.


Is she bored? Should I still have her 'cooped up' with the chicks? Is her diet to blame?


Any advice much appreciated - she's my best hen!

[Clansman]

I'd say she's just going through a normal moult.

Autumn is the natural time for them, the day length is shortening, egg production dropping of and if she's just raised some chicks she's an ideal candidate for it

[in the hills]

Difficult to say without seeing her but most of my broody hens have a moult as the chicks get to about that age.


Also as last poster says it is the time of year for a lot of hens to have a moult ..... many of mine are.

[melholly]

Thanks guys.


She seems fit and healthy, alert etc. It's just quite alarming seeing white feathers everywhere!!


Mx

[Steph Hen]

My light sussex hen, with 18 x three week old chicks is also dropping a lot of feathers, but figured just a bit of a moult as otherwise she seems happy.

One thing though, I think this is the first batch of my chicks that learnt to jump on mum's back... it was really cute, but now they're making her dirty! I guess it'll be fine - she doesn't mind.

[hughesy]

I seriously doubt that the tiny brain of your average chicken could harbour the concept of boredom

[melholly]

Funnily enough I've spoken to many and read plenty about bored chickens! Hence my post - links of boredom to feather pecking. Tiny brain indeed, you wouldn't have thought it but I can well believe it.


Glad though it seems to be the moult! Off to get a bit of poultry spice tomorrow.

[chrismahon]

Hi Melholly. Agree she may be a bit bored, but moulting is the probable reason. Bit worried about the mixed grain diet though, as chickens need extra protein to grow feathers. They usually get mealworms or sunflower hearts as a bit of a boost. The chick crumb has the protein she needs but is she eating any of it?

[ellied]

My broody moulted in the separate pen too, then came back into lay about 8 weeks.  I put ad lib chick crumb in a hopper and a handful of mixed corn in at night as I do for the rest, but I also bought some mixed wild bird food with crumbs of nuts, mealworms etc and sprinkled a little of that for her to scratch about and find during the day, both she and the chick loved it and I thought it was a bit of an expensive treat but the Mealworm mix was from Morrisons and not that bad for a kg bag.  The odd sunflower seed and raisin also found their way into the pen and tho I move the pen alternate days as you do, I also pulled up a few grass clumps by the root and dropped them in on the odd day so there was soil and perhaps an odd worm and bit of grass to play with on non moving day too.

[melholly]

Interesting re: mealworms. Floss and the chicks get sultanas, fruit, grass etc most days as well as the corn. She eats LOTS of chick crumb! I didn't think I could chuck mealworms in with the chicks but now I've typed that how silly was that thought! I'll treat her as she's a super mum!

Thank all!