Medical Issues Associated with Frizzle Double Gene aka Frazzle

[Lizzy733]

Hello everyone!

Long time no cluck

I picked up a pair of frizzled Auracana back in September on my hunt to add the blue egg gene and had assumed at least one parent would have been smooth, but maybe not because I have this girl(?) who is overly curly with tattered tail and primaries like a silkie. (NZ, so EU based Araucana standard btw)

Her feathers don't *seem* all that brittle aside from those, but her feathering in was slower than sister(?) who is maybe a week older and only has a mild frizzling.

I hear plenty about feather quality issues in this mix, but on the health side, I hear enlarged heart and vague mentions of possible neurological issues and I'd just like to find out if anyone has any experience with the broader effects of this bad gene combo, at what age symptoms may start to appear, and if there are any preventative measures that can lessen or relieve symptoms (such as supplements to curb neurological issues).

At roughly 7 weeks old, she isn't showing any signs of medical issue so far, is happily foraging and keeping up with her sister(?) and the 3 younger hyline chicks they've been raised with. I do have them on pheasant starter at the moment since we also have a few turkey hens with poults underfoot. Perhaps the richer diet is doing her(?) some good in the short term, but they are also transitioning outdoors and starting to free range.

Any advice to impart from those that have dealt with frazzling before? Or if there's already a thread that does a deep dive on medical complications, please point me in that direction.

As you can see, her(?) *swish* is quite extreme. Am thinking of calling her(?) hairspray.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

The only problem I had with my frazzle was he would lose most of his feathers over the summer and be nearly buck naked by fall. Thankfully he grew his feathers back in before winter. He wasn't particularly winter hard, so he need extra protection from the elements. He also didn't live very long. About 3 years. Not sure why he died.

 

[I Like Turkeys]

That does look like severe feathering. Most of my frizzle chicks start out haywire, then even out with age. Given the curl and tattered-ness, you're probably right on a frazzle.

I have a frazzled cochin bantam at the moment. 1 year and 9 months old. So far, she's exhibited no signs of failing health, and has kept up with her hatch mates perfectly fine. She's tinier than they are, though I am unsure if that's just because of her usual lack of feathering, or what.

I, like @oldhenlikesdogs, usually provide extra protections for winter. I've taken her inside when the weather drops below 50 degrees, since she's often half-bald. This usually occurs because she sits to herself though. One of the worst issues she's had so far is she can never grow flight feathers in, and has never been able to actually fly. She's usually sat on the ground because of this, alone. A week ago she learned to climb the ramp up to the roosting shelves her flock has though, and groups in tight with the rest even in cold weather now.

As for neurological issues, I've seen nothing prominent. She is super clingy, and will throw herself into dangerous and stress-inducing situations to try and get to me sometimes. She also likes blankets a lot, something I learned after her last foray inside when she jumped out of her tote so she could sit on my blankets. Her inability to live like a normal chicken in some seasons has turned her into a very peculiar bird.

 

[Lizzy733]

Will be mindful of winter then. We have wet winters and it usually doesn't fall below 5c at the coldest here, but better safe than sorry. She's (?) very human friendly, but fickle about being picked up, which I assume is due to that feather curl and new pin feathers. Is happy once she's(?) up though.

So far, I've not seen any indicators of poor health in her(?), so hopefully it'll stay that way.