Moulting and the laying hen Mature birds normally undergo one complete moult a year. The main factors that trigger moulting are: hormones secreted by the thyroid gland physical exhaustion and fatigue completion of the laying cycle birds lay eggs for a certain period of time reduction of day length, resulting in reduced feeding time and consequent loss of body weight.
Pullets and laying Pullets hatched in season i. For example: Pullets that start laying in June at 6 months of age should continue to lay until the following April. Pullets that start laying in March should continue to lay until the following February. Occasionally some of these birds may moult after laying for only a few weeks, but should begin laying again after the shortest day of the year 22 June , and continue until the following autumn.
Hens and laying The time a laying hen ceases production and goes into moult is usually a reliable indication of whether or not she is a good egg producer. Poor layers: moult early November—December are out of production for 6—7 months replace their feathers in 6—8 weeks seldom cast more than a few feathers at a time and rarely show bare patches.
High egg producing hens: moult late and for a short period of time no more than 12 weeks replace their feathers in 2—4 weeks come back into production very quickly. Year-round egg production You can achieve year-round egg production by purchasing pullets in autumn at point-of-lay 5—7 months. Keeping hens during the moult Advantages: It may be cheaper to keep a bird through a moult than to buy replacement pullets.
Fewer replacement pullets are needed and buying can often be deferred. A few days before Christmas, I found my favorite hen, Frida, in the coop suddenly looking quite bedraggled and partially naked.
She is a singularly minded hen who routinely chooses not follow conventional wisdom even chicken wisdom. Frida began her molt approximately seven months earlier in mid-summer. Unbeknownst to me, back in early June, Frida began her first adult molt. She quietly lost the feathers down both sides of her torso. You had to pick her up and feel nude chicken skin under your hand to discover that she was shedding plumage. Also at that time, she was enjoying the life of a free-range chicken every day, so the coop was not filled with tell-tale feathers.
Frida continued to lay regularly. She also failed to grow in pin feathers in the appropriate time range according to the experts. It simply did not appear to be a molt to me. I worried that she was diseased or parasite ridden; maybe chicken mites? Much to her chagrin, I checked and rechecked her and the coop for lice and mites.
When I failed to discover any I gave her a delousing bath anyway and treated the coop heavily with diatomaceous earth for good measure. I decided to let nature take its course after that. This year has been like no other.
We are talking about the weather. But even with the long weeks of rain, there have also been sunshine and a few heatwaves. This means moulting season is well and truly on its way…. As the evenings start drawing in and the days become shorter this can act as a trigger for birds to start to moult.
There are several reasons why hens begin to moult. Some moult at the end of an egg-laying cycle, others due to stress, hatching eggs, lack of water or even changes in the coop. One minute your girls will be looking their best, preening those glossy feathers and strutting about the place looking fabulous. The next thing you know, their feathers are starting to drop! But be assured, this is completely normal and all part of the natural cycle that your hens go through every year.
Moulting allows your hens to shed any damaged or loose feathers and replace them with a fresh set. The whole process is usually gradual, to ensure the hen has enough feathering to protect her from the elements, but in extreme cases, a hen may drop most of her feathers in one go. Most hens will have their first moult around the age of 18 months, and whilst it is usually in the autumn, some hens will buck the trend and moult in the summer. On average, a moult can normally take from 8 to 12 weeks but can last longer.
On our BHWT, we have many products that can give your hens a boost when they are going through a moult. Products such as Nettex Vit Boost Tonic can help to support chicken overall health, particularly in times of stress such as moulting, laying, heat stress, mite infestation, illness, or during the introduction of new birds to the flock. All you have to do is add it to their drinking water.
Eggs Raising Baby Chicks. What are they? In layman's Breeds Eggs Kids Corner. Chicken keeping is quite addictive and once bitten Chicken Behavior Chickens Protecting the Flock. Roosters are a contentious issue among backyard chicken keepers. On the one hand, these charming chaps can be a huge benefit in keeping your flock Chickens Health Nutrition.
To keep chickens happy, healthy and laying bounties of delicious eggs, they need to be fed a varied diet rich in protein and calcium- most Chicken Coops Chickens Eggs. Time to peek inside those poultry nesting boxes and gather all the egg-ceptionally fresh eggs! This is truly the most egg-citing part of Chickens Plain and simple, the answer is no! Hens are one of the most captivating creatures on the face of the earth. They are beautiful, intelligent, Health Incubating Raising Baby Chicks.
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