Hen losing Feather all over, losing weight, not eating much,,,what is it?!

[Sarahndipity723]

I have an 18 mo black Leghorn hen
who is ailing,,,she's even lost tail feathers.
Her feathers are now gone in large splotches,,,some feather shafts are broken .She is not eating much now, doesn't leave her roost much,,,she does come out for a little food and water. Her feed is Organic laying pellets,,,
I suspect mites but I do not see any on her, I did see small white mites ,not lice,a few months ago on the door of hen house.I don't see them now, I applied DE months ago.
I'm about ready to grab her and put
into a lg dog crate, TX her with Ivermectin, pressure wash hen house and follow up with DE in hen house.
I did just use permethrin dust for chickens on her recently with great reluctance,,,
She is the last hen I have left,,,the flock was killed by 4 loose dogs, but she was out about about for weeks afterwards but no longer .
Why else would a hen lose feathers all over other than mites pls?

 

[LaurenRitz]

I would guess stress and depression, if she's alone. You said feather shafts are broken, so either something is doing this to her or she's doing it to herself.

 

[HorseGirlAbby]

She’s probably just molting, and I wouldn’t worry too much. Could you post some photos? You should be able to see the new feathers coming in if she is molting. It’s a natural process, just replacing old, damaged feathers with new ones. Poor girl is probably also pretty stressed and lonely though. Could you get her some flockmates? It’s never a good idea to have a single hen.

 

[nuthatched]

What's her diet?
Don't use d.e around you or your birds, it's a respiratory irritant.

 

[Sarahndipity723]

I would guess stress and depression, if she's alone. You said feather shafts are broken, so either something is doing this to her or she's doing it to herself.

OK,TY,,,
Oh,No,,, At my Wits end;
I thought it must be mites,
and doused her with permethrin powder this AM,,,was stripping hen house and pressure washing tomorrow or Mon,,,
All these things create more stress,,,
perhaps I ll hold off on the pressure washing,,,
I've got her new companions on the way,,,2 new 14wo pullets awaiting pick up but I wanted to figure out this issue 1st and deal with it,,,
Maybe I ll just pick up the pullets so this poor hen isn't alone,,,

Thanks

 

[Sarahndipity723]

She’s probably just molting, and I wouldn’t worry too much. Could you post some photos? You should be able to see the new feathers coming in if she is molting. It’s a natural process, just replacing old, damaged feathers with new ones. Poor girl is probably also pretty stressed and lonely though. Could you get her some flockmates? It’s never a good idea to have a single hen.

Thanks,,I e had chickens off n on for 13yrs, this is far beyond molting,,but Thank you.

 

[Sarahndipity723]

What's her diet?
Don't use d.e around you or your birds, it's a respiratory irritant.

Organic layer pellets,she used to sneak into the dry cat food dish on the porch,too ,,,,but no longer.

 

[Sarahndipity723]

What's her diet?
Don't use d.e around you or your birds, it's a respiratory irritant.

Organic layer pellets

 

[nuthatched]

Organic layer pellets,she used to sneak into the dry cat food dish on the porch,too ,,,,but no longer.

Which have what protein level?
Has she ever been dewormed?

 

[Sarahndipity723]

Which have what protein level?
Has she ever been dewormed?

Yes, she's been dewormed with Ivermectin approximately 4 months ago,,,
The Lawyer pellets are 16% protein,,,I give her an oz of dry cat food(30%) as she's not eating much of her feed ,,,,
The dry cat food is not new,,,the whole flock would go raid the cat's dish whenever they could.
Show poultry breeders in this area use cat food to grow feathers in nicely ,,,