Feather loss on tummy

[Eggcessive]

I can find bare spots on my hens in various places. I would look her over for lice and mites on her skin especially under her vent and under wings. I cannot see any evidence of broken feathers, but sometimes feather loss can be from self pecking or feather picking by others. Here is a piture of the typical bare chest of a broody hen:

 

[2000096904]

That looks like luna's belly

 

[2000096904]

Thanks guys now I'm pretty sure that Luna is a broody bird. That's a great thing. actually we just bought 14 unique hatching eggs

 

[Eggcessive]

If you let her sit on them, make sure that she stays in the same nest, and that no other chickens go into it and lay eggs. I write the date on the egg, to keep track of them, and have an incubator ready in case the hen suddenly decides she doesn’t want to be broody anymore. Good luck.

 

[2000096904]

I have a egg incubator ready but I will put the eggs under Luna first. If I have to incubate the eggs when and how do
I introduce the chicks to my flock?

 

[Eggcessive]

I leave my broodies in the coop, and let them hatch their chicks in the nest box. When the first hatches, I block them from getting out of the box accidentally, and being hurt by the others. Once all chicks have hatched within 24 hours, I move them all (including any unhatched eggs) into a dog crate with food and water. There I show each chick where the food and water is, and make sure they cannot escape the crate. On the third day, I open the gate and let the broody hen decide when to take her new brood out of the crate. They usually venture out with Mom, and return to the dog crate for a week or two.

I lock them in at night and open the crate each morning. Eventually she will teach them to roost with her. A good broody hen will not allow any of the other chickens to get near her chicks. Of course the first day out of the crate, you need to check that she is protecting them. The other hens usually respect them, and after awile they are part of the flock. Once I had a broody abandon her babies after 2 weeks, and since the flock was so used to the chicks, and they aleready knew how to forage for food and water, they survived. They slept together each night in a nest box keeping each other warm.

 

[2000096904]

Ahhh she is broody again she is still plucking feathers but it is bearly visible!

 

[CindyinSD]

Did she end up hatching those other eggs for you?

 

[2000096904]

No the other members of the family wanted to use the incubator.