Baby Chicks and the Winter

[Ellanora]

Hi everybody!! I got 3 beautiful baby chicks last week and I think they are about 2-3 weeks old. I am concerned about this winter because winters where I live can be very cold. Will my chicks get their winter down in time? Thanks in advance.

 

[ninjawesome]

Once chicks have their back and front feathers grown (at about 5-6 weeks of age), they should be fine. I'd recommend you purchase a heat lamp so they can stay nice and warm. Also, when their combs grow out more, you might consider putting Vaseline on their combs to prevent frostbite.

I think they will be fine this winter as long as you have a warm and dry coop with a bit of ventilation for air flow.

Hope this helps!

 

[brentonc]

How much ventilation is too much in the winter in cold area (I am in WI)? We have the gaps between the 2x4 roof rafters in my coop open (just hardware cloth) and I'm a little worried that's too much?

 

[ninjawesome]

Hmmm...how wide are the gaps? Do you mind taking a picture or telling me the width? If It's just a little space between your 2x4s (about a centimeter wide), I think that is perfect.

 

[Blooie]

Welcome! I have the following for ventilation in my 8'x6' coop.

North wall: 12"X 8" Vent up high that can be opened or closed, depending on wind and snow direction.
About halfway up, a two or 3 foot long (can't recall exactly now) by 6 inch wide vertical opening covered with hardware cloth. Closed all winter.

East wall: Operable window. This one stays open all year since our prevailing weather doesn't come from that side.
Pop door on the floor. Again, open all winter so they can come and go from coop to run when they want.
Mobile home exhaust fan which can either be closed, open but not running for passive ventilation, or opened and running for summer. People door opened on nice days.
Large gable vent above the window.

South wall: Operable window, which is almost always at least cracked.

West wall: Operable window. Whether this one is closed or not depends on if we are getting storms out of the west. Usually cracked when we get storms out of the west. Another operable 12'X 8" vent up high which can be opened or closed, It's usually open year round.

Around the entire coop: Open and covered with hardware cloth where the rafters meet the walls.

My husband said he could have saved a fortune in lumber if he'd known how many holes I was going to put into his masterpiece! But we didn't lose a single bird or have any frostbitten combs or wattles all winter. (We did have one chick who suffered frostbitten feet, but he managed to get his feet soaking wet at the waterer when it was below zero. Not an issue from too much ventilation - just bad luck for Scout)

By the way, I live in Northern Wyoming not too far from Yellowstone Park. It flat gets cold here and it's always windy. All of that ventilation is what keeps my chickens comfortable and healthy.

 

[brentonc]

Hmmm...how wide are the gaps? Do you mind taking a picture or telling me the width? If It's just a little space between your 2x4s (about a centimeter wide), I think that is perfect.

This pick shows the gaps on the low end, they're ~15" wide. The opposite side (where the photo is taken from) is similar.

 

[ninjawesome]

I think they will be okay. I would recommend you provide a heat lamp, but with all their feathers and fluff, they should be just fine. If you want to be extra safe when it gets -0, you might consider temporarily putting a little blanket in that bit of space, but you should be fine. I would be happy to answer any other questions you might have.

I hope this helps!

 

[brentonc]

Definitely helps, thanks!