SmiYa0126
Free Ranging
@Wyorp Rock @aart would you have some suggestions?
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What's your coop like?We have a forecasted -35c coming later this week. I have a very tiny flock of two pullets at the moment, in a coop with plenty of ventilation. They coldest they've been has been -20c for a night or two,
thanks for the good advice in your post. My coop is 5x3.5, see below with a 17x4 covered run attached. (ignore the pallet, it's just sitting there against a garden bed and not part of the coop!) There is a lot of ventilation in the coop but for the winter I have covered up anything (other than what they need above roost) with cloth and plastic to cut any winds. They have a good size covered run that has plastic on the south and east sides for wind protection, filled with fresh leaves and woodchips often. Heated dog dish for water and I feed them soaked feed in the morning for the day, with afternoon snacks before bed. I just have two birds right now, and one has a really large comb, she's the one I am most worried about. She has had a very tiny bit of frostbite on the tip of her comb last time it went down to -20 but this is even colder. Is bag balm something I should do?What's your coop like?
I was thinking of having them on the roost but below a towel wrap, so that they aren't accessible?I'm not quite so sure about using handwarmers on the roost. I'd use caution if you did, the packs are usually fairly thin and if pecked and explored, the contents may spill. You know chickens, they will eat things they shouldn't.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/aarts-extreme-weather-spiel.75893/@aart any tips?
there's definitely a foot above their heads, and ventilation there along the roof. I definitely don't want condensation, that would be awful! The forecast is looking like very dry 10%POP and generally the coop is near identical to humidity outside. I was thinking of hanging a heating pad on the wall closest to their roost. Do you think this is a good idea or do you think they'll feel more cold when it auto shuts off after 2hrs? I could alternatively get a planting heat matWhat is important is the space above the chickens head when the chicken is on the roost. One needs about 15 inches or at least a foot. This keeps them away from the cold ceiling. Warm moist air from their breath rises, if they are close to the ceiling, the moisture will condense and can fall back on to the bird. You don't want that. One stops that by having ventilation moving the wet air out.
Do not worry warm, worry dry. The drier you can keep it, the more comfortable they will be.
And know that those large pointed combs often do get frostbite - but it really does not seem to phase them.
MRs K