Frozen feet - how long does frostbite damage take to show up?

[Ltilden]

I’m curious how long it can take frostbite damage to reveal itself? I found one of my Silkies not in the coop with her flock two nights ago, and her feet were frozen solid. I put her in a warm bath to thaw her feet and have kept her inside since it happened. The next morning she was able to walk and stand relatively normally, and has been eating and drinking as usual. Is there still a chance damaged tissue could reveal itself? Her feet look normal from what I can tell, they are blue/grey because she’s a Silkie but other than that I don’t see any red or black areas. Is it possible I caught it in time or can frostbite damage still show up over 48 hours later?

I plan on keeping her inside for atleast the next week (unless her condition worsens, then it will be until she is fully healed) since we have below zero temps expected all week.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Lacy Duckwing]

You might of caught it in time. I'd keep an eye on her feet, but they might be fine. Move her toes around to see if she can perch, and if all her toes can move well.

You said that you have her inside? If you have her inside, be careful when you bring her back out. If she's gotten used to your houses temps, it might be too much of a shock for her to go back out.

 

[WallyG74]

@JacinLarkwell the expert on frostbite

 

[JacinLarkwell]

Okay, frozen solid as in they could bend if forced or frozen solid as in if you tried to bend, they would likely snap off? Of its the latter, odds are it wont end well unfortunately if its the entire foot. Ive had 3 birds in two years get that bad, all 3 ended up losing the foot and needing to be culled.

However I'm surprised it happened to a breed with feathered legs, I have yet to have that happen fortunately. All 3 were clean legged.

If they're stiff but stil barely bendable, then they might get away with losing a knuckle or toe. Usually it will show up in a few days, but my mosaic i was working on took about 2 weeks with medicine bwfore it was a definate dead foot.

 

[Eggcessive]

Pictures may help. It can take some time until the full extent of frostbite shows up. Hopefully, it is not anything serious. Here is a good link to read:
https://poultry.extension.org/articles/poultry-health/frostbite-in-chickens/

 

[Blooie]

Check out the (long and photo heavy) story of Scout and his frostbitten feet. His looked like they were healing, then BAM….suddenly they aren’t. The link to his story is below.

Edited: Well, doggone it, it used to be there. Gimme a minute…

 

[Blooie]

https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/frostbitten-feet-the-adventures-of-scout.67277/

 

[Ltilden]

Okay, frozen solid as in they could bend if forced or frozen solid as in if you tried to bend, they would likely snap off? Of its the latter, odds are it wont end well unfortunately if its the entire foot. Ive had 3 birds in two years get that bad, all 3 ended up losing the foot and needing to be culled.

However I'm surprised it happened to a breed with feathered legs, I have yet to have that happen fortunately. All 3 were clean legged.

If they're stiff but stil barely bendable, then they might get away with losing a knuckle or toe. Usually it will show up in a few days, but my mosaic i was working on took about 2 weeks with medicine bwfore it was a definate dead foot.

It’s hard to say how stuff they were, as I was afraid to bend them much, but I believe they might have had a little bend to them if I had tried hard enough.

I’ll attach pictures of both her feet. It doesn’t look like there’s any swelling or sores. She has pretty good use of both feet and her toes move on their own.

What medicine do you typically use to treat frostbitten feet?

 

[JacinLarkwell]

I'll check when i get home what medicine i tried. It didnt save his foot, bit it kept infrction down and made it take longer to die. If yours isnt as bad as he was, it might work for her

 

[Ltilden]

So unfortunately some signs of damage have started to appear it’s mostly on one foot right now, a few white spots that look slightly like blisters (but flat to the foot, not round bubbles) have showed up. She also has started to lift that foot quite frequently when standing and she puts it out in front of her when she sits so I’m sure it’s causing her pain. Anything I can do to help alleviate this? Should I wrap her foot, or try to fashion some sort of chicken hammock for her to rest in to relieve some of the pressure?

Anything else I can do to help her? I’ll take any and all suggestions! Picture of my sweet girl during one of our cuddle sessions after her daily foot bath.