Frost bite

[pygmybabies]

Our little Blizzie (born during the blizzard) will be 3 weeks old tomorrow, and noticed the tips of her ears are hard. Hadnt noticed it before. We kept her in the barn with mom in a kidding pen with a heat lamp and a heated dog house for at least a week, when it was so cold, She even had a sweater on. Didnt think as warm as it was that she would get frost bite on her ears. They are not black dont look strange, just hard at the tips. is this what this is, or something different. I know I read that they will fall off eventually. Is that right? Muffin had frost bite before we got her and I love her little cute ears, but I sure didnt want this to happen. What else can I do to prevent this. I thought I was doing everything I could.

[thaiblue12]

Sounds like frostbite. When mine have had it- Jan surprise kids- they had that happen and they did not look different just hard and the tips did eventually fall off. It took weeks to do so. I think my one Jan '11 doeling is going to loose the tips of hers, they are hard.

I try to dry their ears off as well as possible, as soon as they are born. Blizzie probably got frostbite very soon after she was born. They really cannot regulate their temps well the first few days/week. The ears during the negative -25 degree temps we had seem to be effected even while wearing sweaters, being kept draft free etc. since they stick out and are hard to keep warm.

I do not use a heat lamp since my barn is wood, the ground is hay and shavings. I tried it once and my tall tall nosy Nubian reached up to the rafter and grabbed the cord and pulled, it was knotted and screwed into the wall but he still managed to pull on it. So that was that, no heat lamps for me.

[Backfourty,MI.]

You can put vaseline on the tips of her ears & see if that helps but if they have frostbite it is most likely too late.
Next time really cold weather & kids, rub a little vaseline on their ear tips & that seems to keep the cold from getting them.

I don't use heat lamps either but I try to plan for spring kids, but have had accidents here too & had them way earlier than I planned on.

[CarolT]

Poppy had the end of one ear that was hard when I got her. It's now losing hair over the hard spot has a small dry sore at the tip I thought she'd maybe chewed on it for some reason, but if it's frostbite that is sloughing off, that would explain it.