[Spacey]

Yesterday one of the girls started plucking the feather out of two of the others. She has made them really sore. She has been temporarily seperated and the two that she was attacking have had savalon rubbed on and flour sprinkled on them until we can get out today to get the anti-peck spray. My 9 year old boy has just been out to collect the eggs and one was covered in blood. I believe this is one of the girls that was attacked but think the blood could just be a coinsidence rather than linked to the attack. It was all going so well too. Chooky the plucker laid her biggest egg ever yesterday 97g and the blooming egg today is 87g (which i guess could be why it is blooming)

[azubah]

Sorry to hear of your problems. It is a worry when things go wrong.
Some people on here recommend feeding the feather pecker on fish flavoured cat food. Since she is laying such big eggs she is probably very hungry for protein.
Also there is a lot of sulphur in feathers. This is what makes the characteristic smell of eggs. If you can up her sulphur intake this may help. You could feed eggs back to her occasionally, and I think cabbage contains a lot of sulphur too.
Hope the situation improves. You could also get a 'bit' for her that stops them from gripping the feathers.

edited to add:
having looked at the comment below, I have to add that I did mean scrambled and cooked. I just forgot to say so. Senior moment.

[colliebird]

Sorry to hear of your problems. It is a worry when things go wrong.
Some people on here recommend feeding the feather pecker on fish flavoured cat food. Since she is laying such big eggs she is probably very hungry for protein.
Also there is a lot of sulphur in feathers. This is what makes the characteristic smell of eggs. If you can up her sulphur intake this may help. You could feed eggs back to her occasionally, and I think cabbage contains a lot of sulphur too.
Hope the situation improves. You could also get a 'bit' for her that stops them from gripping the feathers.

Personally I wouldn't feed her eggs, unless they are scrambled!!! One of my hens started to peck at eggs this springtime and I had to close her in a pen and I put an artificial egg in with her.  She soon lost the desire to peck at eggs.  She's never done it since.
I had a period when I had several problems with my hens early this year and had to put one out of it's misery.  That's part of keeping animals I'm afraid, and it's the sad part.
Hope things start going well soon.

x x x

[jo40]

Hello
I too have a feather plucker, her diet is supplemented with poultry spice and life guard, I tried cat food but she wouldn't eat it.
It was almost comical to watch her stalk my other hens, waiting round corners for opportunities to peck!
She has now been removed and looks very dejected living in isolation, as a last resort the beak bit has arrived this morning, waiting for OH to get home and help me fit it. If that doesn't work, well, I suppose I will have to make a decision. What's going through my mind is I don't want to wait until my orpingtons are bald and my lads little favourite is dead before I tackle the bully  
Jo

[Spacey]

Thanks for your comments 

I've just driven all over the place to get an anti-peck spray! Ended up finding it in the nearest pet shop!    :blink:

Chooky the pecker is struggling again this morning to lay her egg. I shall be placing a nice big order today for poultry spice, antiseptic spray, flubuvent anything else??

[North Devon Dumpling]

Got Oyster shell?  Just found to our cost (or more likely our girls cost) that being free range (ours are) doesn't mean that they get everthing they need from their mash, corn and stuff they pick up in the garden!

Interesting about the cat food Jo, ours go nuts for it.  They occassionally get into the house when we are not looking thank goodness they haven't found the cats room otherwise there would be a war and I am not sure that the cats would win!

Hope things get better Spacey.

[Spacey]

Yes they have a bowl of oyster/grit in their run and I chuck some where they like to scratch about in the flower bed too.

I have sprayed the other girls and attempted to return chooky but she went straight to Margot and plucked some more feathers so Chooky has been in solitary again 

[jo40]

Hello again
Forgot to say  the anti peck spray didn't work either
As for the cat food, I was surprised too, xxxxx finest, fussy things
 
Jo

[beulah59]

Try Ukadex

http://www.chicken-house.co.uk/cgi-bin/sh000001.pl?REFPAGE=http%3a%2f%2fwww.chicken-house.co.uk%2fcgi-bin%2fca011111.pl%3fACTION%3dSHOWCART&WD=ukadex&PN=ukadex_anti_peck_spray.html%23a480#a480

Expensive but very effective ...

[Spacey]

Thanks for that, we have ordered it.

I have let all four girls have a run around the garden and they were fine but I won't put Chooky back in the run/coop until I have got the spray etc that are on their way!

[chickenlady]

I have lived with 3, then 2 feather pluckers for a year now! im afraid once they have formed the habit i have found it is very hard to stop, after trying EVERYTHING! including re homing the worst offender. for her own good more than anything (very traumatic experience  ) beak rings have been a blessing!   they are fiddly to get on, and you think you are hurting them cause they make a real fuss, then mope around for a couple of days shooting you evil looks! and you feeling really guilty. but they are marvelous! my birds came with the plucking habit already and i thought in my niavity that once i got them home they would stop, but they didnt!   i now have a happy contented flock with no feather plucking. just wish i had used them in the very beginning and saved myself all the months of worry, and that i looked like a bad chook keeper if i had to use the rings!
Also, make sure they have lots to do, string up a cabbage just above their hieght so they have to work for their food. and scatter their corn around so they have to go looking for it!
hope some of this helps?
Debbie

[hillfooter]

Feather pecking usually is due to habit not nutritional problems.  It starts as a response to overcrowding and boredom.  Try not to provide everything to hand for the chickens so they have to forage,  active busy chickens don't develop this habit so have several feed stations and drinkers around so they don't all congregate around one, also provide several areas of shade as if they aren't all crowded into one area that can encourage the habit. Once it sets in though it's difficult to stop and beak bits are the most humane way.  They do need replacing periodically as they get bitten through eventually.

Use Gentian Spray on wounds which is a bright purple colour and is quite bitter tasting so discourages pecking.  Isolate bad cases until the wound dries up as bleeding wounds are sure to be pcked and can lead to canabalism.

I'd be interested to know if anyone has experience of this problem being cured by feeding protein which would suggest its a nutrition problem?