Molting: Why Your Hens Do It and How You Can Help Them — Randy’s Chicken Blog

Increase Dietary Protein

Since those new feathers your birds are growing are made almost entirely of protein, increasing the protein in their diet is probably the most important thing you can do for your flock. Normal balanced layer feed is usually around 16% protein. During a molt, consider increasing that to 18–20% by switching to a higher-protein feed and offering some high-protein treats.

When changing feeds, make the switch gradually by mixing increasing amounts of the new feed into the old over the course of about a week. There is commercial chicken feed specifically formulated for molting chickens, but any chicken feed with an 18-20% protein content, like a grower feed or an unmedicated starter, will work just fine.

This is also a good time to lay off the scratch for a while and substitute some high-protein treats. Sunflower seeds are about 15% protein. Cooked eggs are a wonderful source of protein, although they may be a little impractical since your egg supply has probably dwindled to approximately zero while your flock is molting.

Black soldier fly larvae are another excellent option, containing roughly 32% protein. Chickens love them—insects, after all, are a natural part of the diet of free-ranging chickens.

One word of caution about these delicious and nutritious little treats: A July 2025 paper published in Poultry Science found that Chinese-sourced black soldier fly larvae contained, on average, 25 times more lead and 8 times more arsenic than North American-produced larvae. Until that problem is resolved, I’d avoid BSFL produced in China.

Another high-protein snack option is cooked meat or fish. Your chickens won’t complain. In fact, they may decide you are finally doing your job properly.

And don’t forget the oyster shell. Continue offering it free-choice, or provide some other source of calcium. Your hens may not need much calcium for eggshell production while they’re molting, but they still need calcium for normal body functions and to replenish calcium stores in their bones- depleted after months of producing eggs.

Reduce Stress

Molting is a stressful time for your flock, so adding more layers of stress is counterproductive. If you bought new chicks in the spring, the timing can sometimes work out so that they reach the age when they should be incorporated into the flock just as the older hens are beginning their molt.

Introducing young pullets to an established flock is already a high-stress event. Don’t pile a molt on top of it. Try to get the introductions underway well before the molt begins. If that isn’t possible, wait until the molt is nearly finished.

For the same reason, don’t introduce new adult birds during the molt, and don’t move your flock into new quarters. Your chickens have enough going on without adding a new address to the list.

This is also a good time to spend a little extra time in the coop keeping an eye out for bullying–molting hens can be particularly vulnerable. Watch for feather pecking, too. Those new pinfeathers are filled with blood and can become tempting targets for other chickens. If a hen becomes a target, isolate her immediately.

And then there are all those feathers lying around the coop. You may feel an overwhelming urge to conduct a major coop cleaning operation. Don’t! Your hens don’t mind walking through a few piles of feathers, and excessively fastidious coop cleaning just adds unnecessary stress during an already stressful time. This is one of those situations when doing less is actually doing better. Let the feathers accumulate for a while. You’ll have plenty of opportunities to clean them up later.

Avoid Handling

Imagine having a bazillion little needles sticking out of your skin. How much would you like to be touched? Exactly. That’s how your hens feel about it when they’re molting. Not only are pinfeathers tender, but they are filled with blood and vulnerable to breaking and bleeding.

You may feel bad for your hens with their bare patches of skin, protruding pins and ragged appearance. But this is not the time to show your sympathy and affection with big hugs. Leave those girls alone!

Skip nail and spur trimming, minor bumblefoot procedures, or anything else that involves unnecessary handling until the hen’s feathers have grown back. There is one important exception: If a hen has a pinfeather that is broken and bleeding, deal with it. Wipe away the blood with a damp cloth and apply gentle pressure to the broken feather with some styptic powder on a clean cloth or piece of gauze. If the bleeding continues or other hens are attracted to the blood, isolate her.

And then there are those folks who think chicken sweaters are a good idea, especially when their hens are missing half their feathers. I have said a few words about chicken sweaters before. Chicken sweaters are never a good idea! Especially during a molt! Because no handling!

A molt may make your coop look like a catastrophe at a pillow factory, and the sudden drop in egg production can make you wonder if your hens have gone on strike. But molting is a perfectly normal and necessary part of a chicken’s life.

Your job is pretty simple: give them plenty of good-quality protein, keep stress to a minimum, pay attention to how they’re doing but resist the urge to fuss over them.

In a nutshell, feed them well, keep them happy, and nix on handling, hugs and sweaters!

Before long, those sad, raggedy hens will be sporting a brand-new set of feathers—and, eventually, will get back to the business of making eggs.