clucker1 Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 Well, I've been keeping chickens for some 5 years now and still have to get to the bottom of why the silly things moult at this time of year. Sometimes it is cold and they still moult.....does it go back to thier dinosaur ancestors, only they didn't have feathers as far as I know Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjp Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 partly because at this time of year if they still lived wild there's a plentiful supply of food which is high in protein and carbohydrates to some extent .but also the breeding season is over so they aren't laying eggs which use a lot of protein. winter is just around the corner so food will be in short supply and the new breeding season starts just after the winter equinox as the days get longer so they need to be 80-90% ready to go so that the chicks start to hatch when there's a plenty full supply of young tender plant and grass shoots to feed not only the chicks but the emerging insect life. but it's also practical to moult from a safety point of view at this time of year there's a lot of undergrowth , leaf litter and leaves on the lower level trees and shrubs to hide and shelter in and in part predators don't need to feed their young so they aren't hunting as much also chickens along with most animals still work to natural time not railway time like the human race does ,so they can still detect the little changes in the daylight times which is why come the middle of August hens start to moult and by the middle to late September you come home to a run full of feathers . cockerels tend to start moulting earlier and are more discrete as they don't what the younger boys to challenge them timings' and observations based on my own mob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mars Posted October 5, 2015 Share Posted October 5, 2015 I agree with sjp I think they moult now because spring and summer are for reproduction which has very high priority in biology. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrsatroy Posted November 11, 2015 Share Posted November 11, 2015 That's very interesting! My lovely cochin Hazel Nut has gone from a beautiful, big fluffy hen to a mangy half feathered bird in the matter of 2 weeks! Glad to know she's just following her natural cycle! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted November 11, 2015 Share Posted November 11, 2015 sjp is absolutely right There are some late moults this year though; most are usually over by now, but I am hearing of some birds, which have only just started Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mullethunter Posted November 11, 2015 Share Posted November 11, 2015 Mine are in the middle so I'm glad it's mild - the Pekins look shocking! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sjp Posted November 12, 2015 Share Posted November 12, 2015 my lot are more or less finished now one or 2 of my older girls have had a slight colour change and it's an improvement my CLB through as gone more grey and at the moment I'm not sure whether I like it have to see what she looks like in the sun. Fred my main cockerel is getting frisky much to the girls annoyance most because they don't want to know and one because she keen but he ignores her my lot moulted early this year and have finished quicker even the 2 that normally take a couple of months will be done by the end of this month at the latest the way it's going if this dammed warm weather continues I might get eggs back for Christmas this is my first year were all my lot have stopped laying by early November last year the last one stopped about this time but a pullet laid her first egg the Sunday of the National so I only had a week with no eggs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Groovychook Posted November 12, 2015 Share Posted November 12, 2015 cockerels tend to start moulting earlier and are more discrete as they don't what the younger boys to challenge them That's really interesting as I've always wondered why my boy just loses the odd few feathers here and there. He hasn't got any competition here but it's obviously a deeply ingrained instinct in them. Thanks for sharing that My mob have been moulting for what seems like an age this autumn. I'm hoping that my re-feathered girl will lay me an egg soon... I'm determined not to buy any! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ain't Nobody Here Posted November 12, 2015 Share Posted November 12, 2015 A couple of mine are in full moult just now . Great timing, just after I announced at my new job that I could bring 2 or 3 boxes of 4 eggs in a week, I'm now getting one egg a day . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted November 12, 2015 Share Posted November 12, 2015 Mine all moulted early, no real serious moults. My chocolate wyandotte bantam always does a lovely colour change from mid-brown with blonde highlights to deep graphite type brown. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alis girls Posted November 12, 2015 Share Posted November 12, 2015 I have one who's fluffy all over but her neck looks like someones attempted to strangle her and failed. I could stuff a duvet with her feathers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gavclojak Posted November 12, 2015 Share Posted November 12, 2015 My oldest girl Barbara is having a moult at the moment and is very sorry for herself. She gets a big handful of mealworms in the afternoon as a treat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
