worried about SC roos getting frostbite/sterility

[Mark & Nique]

Gaming cocks have their combs cut off...it doesn't effect their steriltiy as the winners are become breeding 'studs'. The damage to the comb doesn't hurt the roosters after it heals. (Source: The Chicken Book, authors Smith and Daniel, pub. Little Brown.)

What I have found in researching is that this is an old wive's tale.

 

[elmo]

Quote:
Not everything in a chicken book or other kind of source is accurate. A lot of chicken lore is just information that's been passed around and not ever tested scientifically. On the other hand, I can well imagine that a rooster who has a badly frostbitten comb wouldn't be as much "in the mood" as before. That's got to hurt.

The other factor might be that a rooster who suffers from frostbite doesn't have a dry, draft free coop to live in all winter long, and there may well be other poor management issues going on. I can certainly believe that general poor health depresses fertility in roosters the same way it depresses egg laying in hens.

And, by the way, that thing about hens tucking their heads under the wings? It varies by individual. I have a couple of hens who do this, but the rest don't.

 

[Dead Rabbit]

yes. id have to see an actual in depth study of this before id even consider it to be factual. and im eager to entertain this thought if anyone comes up with one. it would be interesting.... i see to much in poultry books and magazines that is a bunch of hoop-lah. the only time i know that a rooster can lose fertility is if he takes a damaging shot to the gonads from another rooster, mainly seen in the cock pit when sporting was still legal in the states. the "nads" are located close to the surface of the lower back and they can get hit...............or at times when they molt. but IMO even when molting this rarely ever happens and if it does, its from actual poor health, and the molt just intensifies the ol boys condition.

every yr up to a couple back, id have roosters get frostbite, and i cant ever say ive had any problems. but it does get colder in other parts of the country than here.