The phenomenon of feather plucking even has a scientific name – pterophagy.
If this "process" is not stopped, it can lead to the birds starting to peck each other.
The main cause of pterophagia is inadequate nutrition, lacking essential vitamins and minerals, which is often the case because some farmers believe that chickens can be fed table scraps. Instead, you need to make an effort to create a balanced diet.
Another reason could be the constant changing of the menu.
Don't give one feed today and another tomorrow. Variety should be in moderation, so make sure that the chickens have a constant menu.
The third reason is seasonal molting, during which chickens require more vitamins.
If you don't give them the right amount with their feed, they may start pecking each other's feathers. To prevent vitamin deficiency, feed your chickens proteins and add premixes.
The problem can also be caused by skin parasites that cause itching in the chicken. A similar situation is observed in the case of allergies.
Chickens may start plucking in the winter when they are confined to the outdoors and spend a lot of time in the coop. To keep them busy and from getting bored, hang a head of cabbage or a bunch of healthy dried herbs in the coop.
Finally, the reason may be related to too close placement of chickens in a small chicken coop, when the farmer wants to save money on the construction of the chicken coop, but at the same time wants to raise more chickens.
Earlier we talked about how to properly clean a cat’s ears .
