I find this article informative about molting. To me, it is not about how fast the feathers grow back it's how fast they fall out that controls the speed of molting. How fast they fall out is controlled by genetics, not what they eat.
https://extension.msstate.edu/content/molting-laying-hens
When hens are laying eggs they need a lot of nutrients to form those eggs, especially if they are laying well. When they stop laying and molt, those nutrients are available to use to grow feathers. If a hen were laying well she may need fewer nutrients to form feathers so feed intake can drop. Nothing unusual about that.
Nothing about chickens is ever that simple. Feathers are mostly protein. Eggs contain a lot of protein but also have other nutrients, such as fats. The excess protein goes to feathers, the excess fats and such are burned to provide heat. So in a typical situation the hen's needs are provided by her using the nutrients that were going into egg production for feather growth and a need for increased body heat. Isn't nature clever?
A chicken will typically eat to its caloric needs. That means fats and carbohydrates, not protein. You only have one molting, the rest are laying, that makes it harder to adjust the feed to her needs without messing the others up. But that could mean she needs more calories instead of more protein. I'd consider tossing her a few grains of corn to increase her caloric intake.
Personally I do not alter their feed at all due to molt. I practically always have pullets laying when the others are molting so I feed a low calcium feed and offer oyster shells on the side for those that need them for eggs. The coldest my parents kept chickens was down to -10 F but the coldest I've had a flock myself was -4 F. Those were extremes for the location. Not sure how your temperatures compare.
https://extension.msstate.edu/content/molting-laying-hens
When hens are laying eggs they need a lot of nutrients to form those eggs, especially if they are laying well. When they stop laying and molt, those nutrients are available to use to grow feathers. If a hen were laying well she may need fewer nutrients to form feathers so feed intake can drop. Nothing unusual about that.
Nothing about chickens is ever that simple. Feathers are mostly protein. Eggs contain a lot of protein but also have other nutrients, such as fats. The excess protein goes to feathers, the excess fats and such are burned to provide heat. So in a typical situation the hen's needs are provided by her using the nutrients that were going into egg production for feather growth and a need for increased body heat. Isn't nature clever?
A chicken will typically eat to its caloric needs. That means fats and carbohydrates, not protein. You only have one molting, the rest are laying, that makes it harder to adjust the feed to her needs without messing the others up. But that could mean she needs more calories instead of more protein. I'd consider tossing her a few grains of corn to increase her caloric intake.
Personally I do not alter their feed at all due to molt. I practically always have pullets laying when the others are molting so I feed a low calcium feed and offer oyster shells on the side for those that need them for eggs. The coldest my parents kept chickens was down to -10 F but the coldest I've had a flock myself was -4 F. Those were extremes for the location. Not sure how your temperatures compare.
