Chickens / By Russell Crow Most chickens will stop laying eggs while molting. Molting typically occurs each year when sunlight hours are decreasing in the lead-up to winter.
Losing feathers and re-growing them is called molting and occurs every year when the days get shorter. During molt, chickens typically stop laying eggs and use this time to build up their nutrient reserves. Even though they are not laying, it is critical that your chickens have a high quality diet during this time.
How do you speed up the molting in laying chickens?
You don’t have to go crazy with some cutting-edge feed that’s guaranteed to make your chickens produce eggs the size of a garden gnome.
Usually, a chicken’s first molt will occur at about 18 months old, but then they’ll likely molt annually after that. They will continue losing their feathers for about eight weeks, and then it might take them up to 16 weeks to grow all their feathers back.
I have 1 chicken with a bare back and 1 chicken with bare spots on its chest and stomache area and have a reduced egg production. Some extra things to pay attention too are farmer kittytexaschickmama, wynedot55s6bee, chickenmommy, ibpboo, mangled, chickenmommy, or ibpboo.
In addition to a decrease in activity, your molting chicken may eat and poop less as their metabolism generally slows down. With that, their combs and wattles will also shrink and become less brightly colored – a sign that also coincides with egg laying patterns.
How to make high protein treats for molting chickens?
Pack the protein Just like humans, birds need a different diet depending on their current activity or life stage. Keep stress low While on vacation, people generally want plenty of comfort and room to relax. It isn’t so different inside the coop during molt. Transition back to layer feed.