Official BYC Poll: With Winter Upon Us, What Preparations Have You Made For Your Chickens?

[BYC Project Manager]

Keeping chickens safe and healthy over the colder months is a big concern for their keepers as winter and the extreme weather conditions experienced in certain parts of the world can cause problems such as frostbite and in some cases losses of birds. So With Winter Upon Us, What Preparations Have You Made For Your Chickens?

Place your vote above, and please elaborate in a reply below if you chose "Other".

Further Reading:

Top 5 Ways Of Keeping Your Flock Warm In Winter
Caring For Chickens in the Winter
Chicken Coop Ventilation
To Insulate or Not To Insulate
It's Cold - Keeping Flocks Warm And Healthy In Winter
Deep Litter Method - The Easiest Way To Deal With Chicken Litter
Cold Weather Advisory - A Detailed Look At The Question of Supplemental Heat

(Check out more exciting Official BYC Polls HERE!)

 

[6BeachChicks]

I add some treats, scratch, a cabbage. I also free range them for hours a day. I have to be outside with them, because in our woods there are hawks, falcons, and raccoons, and skunks, cats, opossum.

 

[MysteryChicken]

Working on cleaning on the other two coops, & bed them up for winter. But I gotta find the time.

I also offer extra protein, & give out some corn every once in awhile.

 

[Phaedra Geiermann]

It's already my habit to collect supplement for them from kitchen scraps. Besides, as we have raw-fed dogs and cats, I will also add some cooked meat scraps, organs, fishes like Sprattus and Sardines into their daily feed.

They love their feed and always empty that within 10 minutes

 

[casportpony]

I picked other. Since we don't get harsh winters here, I don't do anything other than keep their coops clean and as dry as possible.

 

[Sally PB]

I put up wind barriers on the prevailing wind (west) side of the run. It goes around the NW and SW corners for about 3 feet. The chickens can get out of the wind and scratch and peck to their hearts' content.

There are lots of "clutter" things to get behind to block the wind from the other directions. When if gets really cold, ie, under 10 degrees, I'll shut the people door to the coop and they can stay inside if they want.

 

[SueT]

I cover the open windows which are of 1/2” wire mesh. The 24” X 30” window gets a piece of plexiglass. The smaller window, which is in the door, gets bubble wrap stapled over it. There is still plenty of ventilation, but these ‘storm’ windows will help keep out the cold.

 

[bangarain]

We’ve lowered the roost, closed their little windows, covered an extraneous vent, and are going to be adding some angled covers on the larger vents to allow airflow but block blowing snow!

 

[Kaesi2020]

We put plexiglass up over the coop windows (still have ventilation from atop and small slats), set up a heated base for the water, and are going to be adding tarps over the run area to prevent snow from entering it. The chickens do not like to be in the snow and are even kind of scared of it. We try and keep the run snow free otherwise they will stay in the coop all day.

 

[Meema Hen]

Built a 9'X13' enclosure around the coop covered in 6 mil plastic. Heated waterer. Extra treats and toys.