Ever headed down to the chook pen one morning to collect your eggs just to be struck by that heart stopping moment when you notice feathers scattered far and wide? Every chicken owner knows that dreaded feeling when you think a fox has come through. This time though, your girls are all happy and safe, phew!
Then comes the second heart stopping moment…where are all the eggs? You may have been feeling pretty smug up until that point given you haven't had to pay $12 a dozen for eggs at the shops. But you may soon have to start scaling back on the daily poached eggs for brekky because moulting season is officially here!
Even though there’s no eggs and your backyard is a mess with feathers, it’s an important time to give your flock some extra love and care to support them through. Read on to understand why chickens moult, what to expect and how best to care for them during moulting season.
Why do chickens moult?
Typically around late Summer/early Autumn chickens stop laying eggs, lose all their feathers and grow new ones back. This once a year event is called moulting and marks the end of a hens egg cycle.
Moulting generally lasts around 8-10 weeks and usually coincides with the very end of breeding season, when the days start to become shorter and sunlight hours decrease. It’s a good time for birds to shed the old and spend their energy on growing new feathers, in preparation for winter.
Even though birds may look a little shabby, the moulting process is a normal cycle and there’s no need to worry. All poultry including waterfowl, turkeys and peacocks will go through an annual moult.
Occasionally moulting can be a sign of illness or stress. If your chickens are moulting outside their typical season and displaying other symptoms such as lethargy or limpness, this would be cause for investigating other potential underlying issues further.
What should you expect when your chickens are moulting?
When birds are moulting, they usually will start with their neck feathers, then back and breast, and finally shedding the tail and wings. During this 8-10 week period, they will either slow their laying or stop completely. This is because they need to preserve their energy and use the protein, that would usually bring about their eggs, to make new feathers.
Other commons symptoms you may notice during a chicken’s moulting season include:
- Weight loss
- Pale skin around their face and comb
- Shrinkage of the comb and wattles
- Skittish birds
- Avoiding being handled.
Moulting tends to be an uncomfortable and exhausting process for chickens, so their personalities will often flatten. This is often more noticeable in roosters who for the rest of the year will show off and flap their wings, but during the moulting season, will keep to themselves.
How to care for your chickens while they're moulting
During the moult it's important to ensure your chickens have a high protein diet to support them. Over 80% of a feather is made up purely of protein, so while a chook is busy growing new feathers their protein levels can easily be depleted. A scratch mix with a minimum of 16% protein, like The Poodle and The Hen's Layer/Breeder, will help a chicken stay strong and healthy during this time.
The process of losing feathers and growing new ones can make a chook’s skin quite sore and tender. We would recommend staying clear of handling birds during this time so as to avoid any additional discomfort. If they resist being held and flap their wings around then new feathers are likely to fall straight out or bleeding can occur.
It’s also best to keep roosters and hens separate during moulting. Whilst most roosters are typically disinterested in breeding during this time, we want to ensure the hens aren’t being harassed by them.
So keep your chooks happy and hold tight, it’s only a matter of time before your chickens are back laying eggs daily and greeting you happily again!