A couple of questions regarding the cold weather-- I have read/heard that to prevent frostbite on combs and other exposed skin, one should smear vaseline on them- but how cold are we talking here? I haven't done it so far (and we had some pretty cold weather in SLC a couple of weeks ago) and my girls are fine. They have a pretty snug coop and they cuddle up next to each other on their roost, and when I go out to check on them before I go to bed I pet them and can feel a lot of heat under their wings and between their little snuggly bodies, so I don't worry about them getting cold, but I would hate for their pretty combs to be frostbitten. Any advice about when I should be taking those precautions?
Second question- last week one of the girls hopped the (3 foot) fence into my neighbors yard and her little dog got a hold of her. Luckily for Charlotte, he is a very old dog and only managed to pull out a whole bunch of feathers. She has a bald spot now right above her tail, but other feathers cover it up so she just looks a little ragged; however, when I hold my hand above the spot I can feel heat pouring off her from that spot. Should I make her some kind of a little jacket until the feathers grow back in, or do you think she'll be okay (I was thinking something like a chicken saddle would work)?
What a shock that must have been!
