The feather pulling continues

For a while the little girls didn’t seem to be getting their necks plucked but of course this turned out to be too good to be true. Over the last couple of weeks I have noticed Amber’s neck getting gradually more bare.

Pepper is the main culprit and one day I looked out of the window and could see Amber stood in front of Pepper while Pepper pulled feathers from her neck so hard that Amber was being pulled forward with each tug. This really upsets me and I just don’t understand why Amber doesn’t move away. When I am in with the girls and I see this I spray Pepper with the water spray while telling her off.

The other time that the feather pulling occurs is during the dust bath. The girls will be having a lovely time together in the dust bath while pulling feathers from each other. I go in and tell them off and feel really mean for breaking up the party. They are having such a lovely time and when I tell them off they all leave the dust bath and glare at me in disgust.

I feel so sad to see their looks being spoiled again after being fully feathered since their moult. I also know from last year that this could mean having bare patches for another year until the next moult.

Bluebell’s bare neck

Bluebell was the only one not to get her neck feathers back. All the other girls had a complete and sudden moult with feathers dropping out and then regrowing whereas Bluebell seems to have moulted a few feathers at a time. I therefore couldn’t really tell if her neck feathers started to come in and got pulled straight out again or if they have never returned. Her appearance doesn’t seem to have changed and her neck just seems to have stayed bare. Because of her colouring it doesn’t show so much on her though.

Dotty’s neck is missing feathers but isn’t getting any worse at the moment

Dotty’s neck started showing a bare patch long before the little girls but doesn’t seem to be getting any worse at the moment although it could be just be a matter of time.

Ambers neck is getting very bare

Amber’s neck has quite quickly gone from pristine to quite bare. You can see from her beak that she was talking to me as she was moving towards me. The little girls are now the easiest to photograph because as soon as I squat down they come to me.

Honey’s neck looks okay

Honey doesn’t seem to be targeted so much at the moment but I am not sure why that should be. It could have something to do with her being bottom girl and therefore not drawing attention.

Top hen Pepper’s neck is untouched as always

You can tell Pepper is top girl as she never has her neck plucked but she is beginning to get a bare patch on her bottom again. It’s as if because no one will pluck her neck they target her bottom instead where they can get away with it. She is the only one at the moment that has missing feathers on her bottom.

A closer shot of Bluebell’s bare neck

This shows more clearly Bluebell’s bare neck.

A closer shot of Dotty’s missing neck feathers

Dotty always looks quite fierce in head on shots but she is a real softy. She pecks at the little girls the least, she shows the most affection by fluttering her head under Pepper’s body at bedtime and jumping on me every morning when I walk through the gate. She sings the most happy song at treats time but she also shouts the loudest when she has laid her egg.

A close up shows a bare patch is beginning on Honey’s neck

Honey likes to jump on the the little coop when I squat down so that she is on eye level with me.

Ambers neck is much more bare than Honey’s neck

Pepper on my shoulder as usual

When I am crouching down Pepper always jumps on my shoulder so I thought I would try to get a photograph. I pointed the camera blindly and hoped for the best. You can see that her neck is fully feathered.

I know, from past experience, that there is nothing I can do to stop this and that although it frustrates me it doesn’t worry the girls, but I still hate to see it. Much as I talk to these girls though, they just don’t take any notice!