Polish Can't See

[lisamayc]

I have a young polish that seems very clumsy - (this is my first time with this breed) Is it because he/she can't see because of all its feathers around its eyes?

I mean he/she is constantly loosing his/her balance while on a perch - can't go up the ramp, which my silkeis are now doing. I think he/she litterally falls out the coop instead using the ramp.

 

[chicmom]

Oh definitely. One of my friends has Polish chickens. They're her favorite breed, and she sometimes trims the feathers if she thinks they are blocking their vision. If you don't plan on showing your Polish, I would trim them just enough so your little polish gal can see.

 

[calicokat]

Yeah, probably can't see around her poof. We have one hen that we have to trim every few weeks so she can see, LOL. The other one is going to the fair, so no trimming for her.

What's funny is, over time, these will be the ones to come when you call. Since they can't see as well, they learn to follow your voice (of course, they may bump into a few obsticles in between your voice and them, LOL)

 

[LarryPQ]

Time for a new do!

 

[lisamayc]

How much do you trim? Do you just use regular scissors?

 

[LarryPQ]

Yup. And have fun catching them, because after they can see, the suddlenly get a lot smarter.

 

[2DogsFarm]

My Houdan had the same problem.
Lovely large crest, but she ran into things & startled easily

I just used a small scissors to trim the feathers that covered her eyes.

sigh.....
Then along came Winter, hens cooped up (literally) and from boredom the other 4 picked her bald!

On the Bright side she is now my friendliest hen - comes running to me.
She is my BPFF < BestPoultryFriendForever

 

[lisamayc]

I don't even know where to begin - I can't even see its eyes.

 

[MikasGirl]

I would start by trimming the edges a little bit... Don't worry when her hair looks really weirdly shaped. My two Polish girls have pretty funny looking hair after they get trimmed.

 

[2DogsFarm]

Hold her in your lap and with one hand hold back the crest so you can see her eyes.
Then take little snips from the outside in until when you let go of the crest you can still see eyes.

Before Ms Baldy got picked, I also trimmed her crest so it didn't freeze after she dipped it in the waterbowl.
She had crestsicles