Raggedy ‘ens
Poor hens.
Apparently all my hens are trying to grow a new coat of feathers before the cold weather really sets in. They are all in molt at the same time.
Because it takes a lot of calories to grow a new set of feathers, they are eating nonstop and have pretty much stopped laying. From 8 hens I get 2 eggs a day; 3 if I’m lucky.
And in the mean time, they look raggedy and miserable.They’ve got big bald patches here and there where the new feathers are just growing in. You can’t see it here but Bossy is missing almost all of one of her pantaloons except a small ruff on the bottom. It’s pretty funny, really.
I wonder if the molt will be over before cold weather really sets in – if egg production will go back up for a little while, or if we’re going to be down to 2 eggs/day until March?
October 25th, 2011 at 9:38 pm
Store bought eggs are not the same:(
October 26th, 2011 at 11:07 am
I’ve got a dozen and a half here for ya if you want! (Shhhh, don’t tell my dad).
October 31st, 2011 at 6:46 am
I tried to call you over the weekend to come get them, but I guess u weren’t home. I’ll try later on in the week, with my crazy schedule that probably means Thursday.
November 6th, 2011 at 10:09 pm
Will the chickens be OK (forget the egg-production part) for overwintering if they are in molt? Won’t they be cold and possibly get sick? I did see a site where they sell chicken blankets you strap on them, but I thought it was a joke…
November 10th, 2011 at 5:55 pm
The molt seems to be mostly over. It usually only lasts a few weeks.