Relaxed Farming - our farm in your classroom

As said yesterday, this is the time of year when a lot of poultry moult. This means they shed a lot of their old feathers and grow new ones for the winter. These new ones keep them warm and well protected so that come the spring, they are then in fabulous condition - ready to lay loads of eggs and raise lots of chicks. Some birds shed more feathers than others, some take longer than others to grow new ones, and some shed feathers from all over their bodies whilst others just shed from their back or neck!! In order to grow new feathers it is really important that the birds have a lot of protein in their diet and so some owners give extra 'tonics' or 'supplements' to help with this.
The Light Sussex on the right is looking very bare but look closely and you can just see the start of new bright white feathers coming through whilst the Bluebell in the middle has hardy moulted at all and already has the start of new feathers covering her back. And poor old Victoria (first photo), one of our female turkeys, is looking very scruffy and it has to be said, a little sorry for herself. She has lost nearly all of her tail feathers and a lot from her wings. It may be a few more weeks before she is back to looking good again. The birds' afternoon treat of corn is really important now as this helps to give them extra energy and so keep them warm.