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Sunday, March 6, 2011

Frozen Chicken

We had our normal very cold Winter this year and you can see the effects of it on the chickens. The black spots on Leopolds head are the tell-tale signs of frostbite.


Leopold almost never left the coop from the middle of January through the middle of February. I don't blame him, looks like he got a healthy dose of frostbite and it was obviously bothering him. I read somewhere that I could have put Vaseline on his crop and comb to prevent this but he doesn't let me get too close to him. I don't think this will have any long term adverse effects, but it may make him look meaner to any potential enemies.


Several of the hens also have little black spots but no one has it anywhere near as bad as Leopold.


Speaking of Leopold, he has been having his way with the girls and he seems to pay Lucy a little bit too much attention. I may have to visit Mandy's Rabbit Ranch and pick up a chicken saddle.
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15 comments:

  1. Razzberry CornerMarch 6, 2011 at 5:11 PM

    Your Lucy and my Lucy, too, have been too friendly with the roosters!

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  2. From Beyond My Kitchen WindowMarch 6, 2011 at 5:35 PM

    He is still a handsome rooster!!

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  3. AutumnMarch 6, 2011 at 6:09 PM

    Poor Leopold! I have acutally never seen a chicken with frostbite before. I feel bad for Lucy too... :/ I guess that was too much of a good thing.

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  4. IanHMarch 6, 2011 at 7:47 PM

    Gold Laced Wyandotte s! If Leopold needs more exercise send him over. I have 8 hens and no roo.

    I wonder what the offspring of a Colombian Wyandotte and a Gold Laced will be like? Methinks we will find out in the spring, if it ever comes.

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  5. basicliving@backtobasicliving.comMarch 7, 2011 at 4:34 AM

    Poor Leopold. I hope it's not too bad and he heals quickly. My Duke used to have a huge single comb, but poor thing has gotten frost bite so bad the past couple of years that now he has no spikes left on his comb at all :( I initially tried to prevent his frostbite with Vaseline, but I don't think it did anything other than make dirt stick to his comb.

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  6. Kritter Keeper at Farm TailsMarch 7, 2011 at 5:09 AM

    ah that is sad...frostbite is painful.

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  7. OhiofarmgirlMarch 7, 2011 at 6:29 AM

    He'll be fine. Besides, chicks dig scars
    ;-)

    If you are really concerned you can put vaseline on his comb to help protect it from the cold. Inappropriate jokes not included. Who am I kidding - there are soooooo many inappropriate jokes about greasing up your...um... rooster. And yes you can delete this b/c its a family show. hee hee hee

    love ya baby!

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  8. DanniMarch 7, 2011 at 8:36 AM

    Oh, poor Leopold. Though I'm sure this hasn't slowed him down one bit from strutting his stuff - especially given how Lucy's back is starting to look.
    I've heard mixed reports on the use of Vaseline to prevent frostbite. The pattern I've seen is that it's the people who have never tried it who say "You should try Vaseline, I hear that prevents frostbite in freezing weather" - lol. This year I've read a number of comments from folks who say they tried it and it didn't do a bit of good.
    You may need to knit King Leopold a warm hat (shaped like a crown, of course) to go with your other royal tiara-wearing critters.
    :-)

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  9. Chai ChaiMarch 7, 2011 at 2:07 PM

    Lynn - Saddles for all my friends!

    BMKW - He is a handsome fellow, his fellows have great sheen in the sun.

    Autumn - I haven't seen it before either but it looks painful.

    Ian - Our next batch of chickens will be the Blue Laced Wyandottes, they are very attractive. It will also allow us to tell the hens apart (age wise).

    BTB - I can see how dirt would be a problem. Now that the pain is gone he is back to his normal self.

    KK - He was in quite a bit of pain, I just hope that there is not chance of infection.

    OFG - This is farm talk, have your read the sheep sheering comments over at Schoonover
    Farm? Lets just say that some of the boys didn't enjoy the experience....I suppose the Big Man sports a few scars of his own....

    Farmgirl - Looks like the Vaseline myth has been put to bed. Leopold has done a few things for me to remind him that I have a nice warm pot in the kitchen, does that count?

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  10. luckybunnyMarch 8, 2011 at 9:05 AM

    He is still handsome, chickens are super tough, I've found that out. Actually a lot of birds are, especially in winter when the parasites are down. Years ago I had a Muscovy duck attacked by a dog, and his chest was actually cut open - I mean it was awful. We were sure he'd die within a short time, but he actually went on to completely heal and live many years after, no infection! Only thing we gave him was something for pain.

    I've had many chickens deal with this over the years, it's not fun, but I find it rarely gets infected. He'll get through it and be alright. and LOL at your last comment!

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  11. DanniMarch 8, 2011 at 10:01 AM

    Ack! I feel really awkward about my last comment to you regarding the Vaseline... when I wrote my comment, Ohiofarmgirl's comment wasn't there (or hadn't been published yet) - I never would have written what I did following her recommendation! Please extend my apologies to her - I'm truly not *that* big of a jerk!!!

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  12. Chai ChaiMarch 8, 2011 at 2:30 PM

    Luckybunny - Thanks for the infection information, that was the one thing that was really bothering me as I had no idea what I could do at this point. Our own Honey survived her compound fracture this Fall, so I agree with you on how tough some of these birds can be.

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  13. Chai ChaiMarch 8, 2011 at 2:33 PM

    Farmgirl - OFG is tougher than both of us together as she has taken on killer Ganders, Roosters, and fox all by her lonesome. BTW, I "blame" OFG for the goats that we have here as well!

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  14. AnonymousMarch 8, 2011 at 9:50 PM

    I had never seen frostbite on chickens either - thank goodness!!! Sounds like Leopold is going to be just fine...unless he continues doing things that have him going into a nice warm pot! Now I have to go check out the chicken saddles :)

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  15. Chai ChaiMarch 9, 2011 at 12:53 PM

    Shannon - He had better start behaving. I have learned a lot this Winter but I could have done without the frostbite.

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