now she is sunburned.She has been like this for months.A friend of my fiance's said she has a bacteria that will spread and we should put her down.Please help!
What do you mean by bacteria, is there actually something growing on her back, or is that the excuse for lack of feathers? If you actually notice a bacteria then putting her down may be for the best, but I am having a hard time believing such would be the case.
As suggested by others the most common reason for hens to be missing feathers on their back is from roosters. Sometimes this is from rough mating, over mating, or your hen could just have rally soft feathers. So make sure that you get rid of any roosters that seem rough, and keep it down to one rooster per every eight-twelve hens.
Sunburn really just out some icing on the cake. Bare back hens are common, and it is an easy thing to cure, but now this will be in the way first. Be sure to treat it as normal sunburn with creams. Also you need to fix her up with a chicken saddle, or separate her completely from the flock until her feathers grow in. I suggest a chicken saddle they work great. There are pattern online for sewing and crocheting them if of interest, or you could purchase them made online as well.
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The saddle is a piece of fabric that covers the back, and allows the feathers to come in. Despite common believe of feathers growing during the molt, feathers constantly grow like hair. The only reason that you aren't seeing any new feathers, is because repeated damage occurs, not permitting them to develop. The chicken saddle gives her a chance to do this. Not all hens willingly wear chicken saddles, but my girls that do, you can see a definite improvement in about a month. But you shouldn 't take it off until after all the feathers grow in.
Best wishes,
Jamie/Rhoderunner
On my dads farm, we had chickens (hens) with the same problem. It comes from them being brutally raped by the roosters. Yes, sounds terrible-it is. Some hens have died that way.
I think it happens when two roosters are fighting over the particular hen, or possibly when the rooster has an increase in his sex drive. Such roosters should be put down-they are a threat to the hens.
And the hens can become sick from this. Not having feathers makes them vulverable to a variety of things, including freezing temperatures.
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To stop this unwanted behavior, watch your chickens and single out the roosters who are doing this. Like I said, these roosters should be put down immediately.
Most roosters know their territory and will leave the others alone (each rooster "owns" about 13 hens). But when they try to invade the others territories, thats when violence errupts. You have a choice of either killing the most aggressive of the two, or simply seperating them.
Separate her from the rest of the flock. Put a salve on her back and put antibiotics and vitamins/electrolytes in her water. You can get these at a feed store. Your chickens should have protection from direct sunlight during the day. It is likely that another chicken in your flock has been picking on her-could be male or female. Make sure that they have plenty of space, overcrowding sometimes encourages cannibalism. Now, when she has healed introduce one of your nicer, milder chickens to befriend her. Keep them together for about five weeks. While she is being rehabilitated and re socialized, figure out who the aggressor or aggressors are and they will have to be the ones separated or culled.She actually can recover if you do this.
Put her down, bacteria reproduce very fast and thus can evolve very quickly. If you can't do it have your fiance do it for you.
